> This thread is confusing State granted monopoly with Market granted monopoly. Economists usually talks about the former.

Can you really tease those apart in our mixed economy? Look at ISP monopolies, or the bizarre state of the "deregulated" electricity market and what remains of the long-distance telephone market. Or take pharma, where tremendous resources are needed to comply with regulation. Or the -- tremendous scare quotes required -- "marketplace" for health care. In a mixed economy, monopoly exists because of state and market.