ECON 2304-02 Essay
Is FaceBook a Monopoly?
Facebook is the most dominant global social networking company in the world with 2.23 billion monthly
active users as of June 2018. Facebook is used by many people all over the world to make comments,
share pictures and videos, chat line and discuss current events. Facebook provides users a platform to
share content with the public or among exclusive groups. Facebook has also helped foster global
economic activity by connecting people with innovative ideas all over the world.
Facebook can be considered a monopoly in my opinion because it’s very dominant in the social
networking market by the way it has power to influence news events. While Twitter, Snapchat, LinkedIn
and Instagram can be considered as competitors, Facebook is the “most dominant network driving social
media to news websites accounting for 85% of traffic from social networks”. As shown in the last
general elections in the United States, Facebook was used to influence elections which has led to
discussions as to whether Facebook should be government regulated.
Facebooks complements are Twitter, Snapchat, LinkedIn and Instagram and its substitutes are Reddit,
Diaspora, Ello, EyeEm, Vero etc. Facebook is a free product, Facebook makes billions of dollars in
advertising money from the wealth of personal data it collects from its uses. So, while technically
