What type of market structure is Microsoft in?
2 Answers
pohnpei397 | College Teacher | (Level 3) Distinguished Educator
Microsoft, of course, does not sell only one product. Therefore, it is in at least two market structures.
When it comes to operating systems, Microsoft is essentially a monopoly. Microsoft Windows is by far the dominant operating system today. It is said to have at least a 95% share of the market. This is not technically a monopoly, but the market does show most of the characteristics of a monopoly.
However, Microsoft also tries to sell other goods and services. One example of this is its Bing search engine. The search engine market is not a monopoly. Rather, it is an oligopoly with competition between Google, Microsoft, Yahoo, and a few others.
thetall | (Level 1) Senior Educator
Microsoft operates in a number of segments which include consumer electronics, computer software, and personal computers. Therefore, the corporation may exist in different market structures as determined by the product segments served. The company’s most popular products include Microsoft Windows (operating system), Microsoft Office suite (office suite), Internet Explorer (browser), Xbox (gaming console), and Microsoft Surface (PC/ tablet).
Microsoft products exist in markets where there are either strong challengers or leaders. Microsoft Windows is a market leader in operating systems followed closely by Apple’s Mac OS and Linux. In the browsers segment, Internet Explorer comes third following Safari and Firefox, which is the market leader. In gaming consoles, Microsoft’s Xbox is fighting it out with Sony PlayStation, which is the market leader.
This brief breakdown suggests that a majority of Microsoft’s product and the company, in general, exists in an oligopoly market structure. This is because the markets the products exist in are dominated by a small number of companies. The companies are in constant competition, forcing some level of differentiation in their products and services. Barriers to entry are high because the market segments entail complex technology, patents and economies of scale to operate. The barriers to entry also explain the abnormal profits that Microsoft and its peers are able to record.