Your Beer Are Belong to Us !!!!

[starroute]

11. it's not that simple

The biggies use all sorts of tactics to drive out the little guys. One is to get a toe in the door, cut your prices to the point where no one else can compete, then once you've driven them out of business you either raise your own prices or cut the quality or both.

Another is simple extortion. "If you want to buy from us, you have to stop buying from them."

There are also ways of getting an in with government -- which is why there are no locally owned pharmacies any more -- though that may not apply as much to beer.

But the point is that we don't live in an ideal free market. And there really is a problem.