The Global Rise of Monopolies: Economic and Political Threats in 2025

The concentration of market power in the hands of a few dominant corporations has emerged as one of the most pressing economic and political challenges of our time. From Silicon Valley tech giants to aviation and entertainment conglomerates, monopolies are reshaping industries, influencing political discourse, and limiting consumer choice on a global scale. This trend represents a fundamental shift in how markets operate, with profound implications for innovation, pricing, and even national security. As these corporate entities amass unprecedented control over critical infrastructure and information channels, regulators and consumers alike are grappling with how to respond to this new era of concentrated power.

The warning from the United Kingdom's foreign intelligence agency highlights the geopolitical dimensions of this issue. MI6 chief Blaise Metreweli has stated that giant tech firms and their leaders are becoming as politically powerful as nation-states, with technologies "rewriting the reality of conflict" and creating "science fiction-like tools." This convergence of economic dominance and political influence represents a new frontier in global power dynamics, where corporate algorithms and platforms can shape public discourse and information flows with state-like authority. The concern extends beyond traditional economic metrics to encompass fundamental questions about democratic governance and information integrity in the digital age.

The Expanding Scope of Monopoly Power

While technology companies often dominate discussions about market concentration, monopoly power extends across multiple sectors of the global economy. The defining characteristic of modern monopolies is their ability to control not just products and services, but entire ecosystems—from data collection and distribution networks to consumer access points and creative content pipelines. This comprehensive control creates barriers to entry that are increasingly difficult for new competitors to overcome, leading to market stagnation and reduced innovation across affected industries.

Economist Guy Standing notes that modern economies have evolved so that "monopolies are increasingly present across all sectors of activity," particularly in information services. This widespread concentration creates systemic risks that extend beyond any single industry, affecting everything from consumer pricing to political discourse. The economic consequences are significant: monopolies can distort prices, limit supplies to keep prices artificially high, and create wealth inequality by reaping "vast wealth and benefits for their shareholders at the expense of consumers," as Standing observes.

Streaming and Entertainment Consolidation

The proposed $82.7 billion merger between Netflix and Warner Bros Discovery illustrates how entertainment monopolies are forming through consolidation. This deal, following Disney's 2019 purchase of 21st Century Fox and the Paramount-Skydance Media merger earlier in 2025, would give Netflix control over major franchises including Harry Potter, DC Comics, and Game of Thrones. The acquisition has already sparked antitrust concerns from experts and government officials who worry about reduced competition and consumer choice.

A lawsuit filed in December 2025 seeks to block the merger, asserting that it would eliminate Netflix's closest rival—HBO Max—and potentially push up prices while limiting content options for viewers. Netflix has countered that social media video platforms like YouTube and TikTok should be considered part of the same market, which would reduce its perceived dominance. The company also argues that bundling Discovery Warner Bros services with Netflix subscriptions could lower costs for consumers. This debate highlights the challenges regulators face in defining relevant markets in the digital age, where traditional industry boundaries are increasingly blurred.

Aviation Market Concentration

India's airline industry provides a stark example of how monopoly power can disrupt essential services and consumer access. In December 2025, the country's largest airline, IndiGo, cancelled thousands of flights due to pilot shortages, stranding hundreds of thousands of passengers. The crisis emerged after IndiGo failed to adopt new pilot rest-and-duty rules introduced by the government in 2024, despite receiving temporary exemptions to maintain operations.

The situation revealed deeper structural problems: IndiGo and Air India together control 92 percent of India's aviation market, with IndiGo alone commanding 65 percent market share. This lack of competition has led to steep fare increases—a 43 percent rise in domestic airfares in the first half of 2024 compared to 2019, according to Airports Council International data. The effective duopoly has made air travel increasingly inaccessible for many Indians, demonstrating how market concentration can exclude significant portions of the population from essential services.

Historical Context and Modern Parallels

Current monopoly concerns echo historical patterns of market concentration. In the late 1800s, John D. Rockefeller's Standard Oil controlled approximately 90 percent of U.S. oil refining through predatory pricing strategies that deliberately undercut competitors before raising prices once dominance was established. Similarly, railroad monopolies in the same era distorted regional economies through discriminatory freight rates that favored certain industries and regions while suppressing competition.

Modern technology monopolies follow similar patterns but with digital tools and global scale. Google dominates digital advertising and shapes online markets through mass data collection that determines what information reaches audiences. Amazon leverages its e-commerce and logistics infrastructure to undercut rivals, using its vast network, warehousing capabilities, and data-driven pricing to consolidate market power. As Max Lawson of Oxfam notes, "In the past 30 years, we've seen an extreme concentration of market power [in the tech sector] ... which made economies more inefficient and [has] driven up income inequality."

Regulatory Responses and Solutions

Governments have multiple tools to address monopoly power, beginning with antitrust laws that prohibit anti-competitive practices. These laws empower regulators to break up dominant firms, as occurred with AT&T in 2011 and Standard Oil in the 1910s. Lawson suggests that "to regulate super-powerful corporate titans, you can cut them down to size; either break them up into smaller private firms or nationalise them," noting that "there's no reason it can't happen again."

Beyond structural breakups, regulators can impose fines for unfair practices and mandate greater transparency. In March 2025, the European Commission ordered Apple to open device connectivity to other companies and fined the technology giant for practices that hid cheaper options from consumers. The European Union's Digital Markets Act (DMA) represents a comprehensive approach, requiring dominant platforms to share data, allow interoperability with rival systems, and disclose transparent advertising and ranking practices. These measures aim to create fairer competitive conditions for smaller firms.

In the United States, the Department of Justice has ongoing antitrust lawsuits against Google, while international regulators have secured significant settlements, including Google's agreement to pay a $268 million fine to French authorities in 2021 as part of an antitrust settlement that required overhauling its global advertising business. These regulatory actions demonstrate that governments retain significant power to challenge monopoly dominance, though enforcement requires political will and international coordination.

The Path Forward

Addressing the challenge of modern monopolies requires a multifaceted approach that recognizes both their economic and political dimensions. As Metreweli warned, "the defining challenge of the 21st century" is "not simply who wields the most powerful technologies, but who guides them with the greatest wisdom." This suggests that regulation must extend beyond traditional antitrust measures to consider how concentrated corporate power affects information ecosystems, political processes, and national security.

Effective solutions will likely combine structural reforms with ongoing oversight, promoting competition while ensuring that essential services remain accessible and affordable. As industries continue to consolidate across sectors, the need for vigilant regulatory frameworks and international cooperation becomes increasingly urgent. The experiences of 2025 demonstrate that monopolies are not inevitable market outcomes but rather the result of specific policy choices and enforcement decisions—choices that can be revisited and revised to promote fairer, more competitive, and more democratic economic systems.