Firm Concentration Ratios for the Following Industries

¶ … firm concentration ratios for the following industries are: fluid milk (311511), women's and girl's cut & sew dresses (315233), envelopes (322232), electronic computers (334111). The industries that are characterized by a high level of competition include clothing, which is a dominant industry in this country. The high level of competition and the many small business type clothing stores, in competition with larger chain stores, makes the competition widespread (Case et. Al, 2009).

Another industry that has a high level of competition is that of car sales and auto parts. Again, cars are a modern necessity and not necessarily a luxury item. Transportation is a necessity for many individuals. This means that car sales as well as auto parts are items that are sold often, and thus have a high level of output. Agricultural and farming products are also highly competitive. Food is obviously a necessity for everybody, and there are many communities that rely solely on farming as a means of producing income. (Case et. Al, 2009).

Software sales are another industry where there is a heavy level of competition, as individuals are constantly seeking out programs for their computers. This is generally driven not only by individual demands, but also business demands, as technology is becoming increasingly important. Farming is thus dominated by many small farmers as well as many large, chain type farms. (Case et. Al, 2009).

As far as a low level of competition is concerned, industries that have lower competition rates include the actual sales of computers themselves; while there is competition in this industry, the industry is primarily dominated by IBM and Apple. The rest of the competition is relatively small in comparison with these two companies. A similar market that does not have as much competition is that of the video game console. Again, this market has come to be dominated by Sony and Nintendo, basically, with few small competitors in the mix. There are other examples to be provided here. For example, American movie companies have a low level of competition, with six companies primarily dominating the market. Another example is that of cellular phone services. Again, here, a few companies, such as Sprint, At and T, and Verizon dominate the industry. Television satellite production is another example, as this is now primarily dominated by the satellite television providers, Direct TV and Dish Network. Television programs and channels also have a low level of competition, once again only dominated by a few companies. (Case et. Al, 2009).

An oligopoly is an industry defined by a small number of sellers (like many of the businesses discussed above) (Smith, 2008). Some industries on the list that qualify in this category include most media industries on the list, six movie studies that receive most of America's film revenues, the television industry with companies like Disney, CBS, Viacom, Comcast, Hearst Corporation, Time Warner, and New Corporation. Wireless providers like AT and T, Verizon, Sprint, T Mobile, Nextel, etc. (Case et. Al, 2009).