What is the concept of “essential facilities” in antitrust law?

The concept of essential facilities in antitrust law has been established to prevent companies from creating or reinforcing monopolies. This concept is generally upheld in California and applies when a business has a monopoly or near-monopoly and denies access to essential facilities to its competitors. Essential facilities are resources or services that are necessary for a company to gain access to or remain competitive in a particular market. For example, a company with a near-monopoly on an essential facility such as a large shipping dock in a port city may be required to provide access to this facility to competing companies. The concept of essential facilities is often applied to telecommunications, transportation, and energy, as well as any other sector in which a single firm has control over the availability of essential services or resources. When a company refuses to provide access to its essential facilities to competitors, the court may force the company to make those facilities available in order to promote fair competition and prevent the creation or reinforcement of a monopoly. The concept of essential facilities is an important part of California’s antitrust law, as it helps to ensure that companies do not use their resources to exclude competitors and create or reinforce monopolies.

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What is the concept of “essential facilities” in antitrust law?

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