Ask HN: Are there any business monopolies that you like?

[NewUser76312]

It seems a common pattern that a business gets big enough, dominate through network effects and/or regulations and high barriers to entry, and then their services and customer support deteriorate to awful levels. But they end up being the only major game in town, so consumers begrudgingly use them.

That's the common pattern I see, at least.

So I'm curious about the opposite - are there any businesses that are relative monopolies in their industries that you're happy to use / do business with?

I'm struggling to come up with an example myself. Are monopolies doomed to become awful to consumers?

[pestatije]

sports competitions...i guess their appreciated cause the consumer doesnt pay directly

[PaulHoule]

Steam?

[benoau]

There's really two different Steams, there's the beloved one with 30 - 50 year olds getting great value from good games and frequent discounts and bundles. Then there's the shitty stuff that the kids plow money into where they pioneered concepts like lootboxes, some of their biggest cash-cows may become illegal under the EU's Digital Fairness Act.

https://www.digital-fairness-act.com/

[NewUser76312]

They seem decent enough. I barely play games these days, so I don't fully understand the value they add. Just seems like a convenient app store that lets me port my collection across different computers.

[toomuchtodo]

Costco, Bosch, companies with moats who aren't extracting from their customers (broadly speaking). I would've included Southwest Airlines until Elliot Management came in to squeeze the org for returns, and has enshittified the carrier in the process.

[NewUser76312]

Costco doesn't seem to be like a monopoly, broadly speaking they compete with many grocery stores and bulk food outlets. That being said they often have solid inventory, and the samples used to be a nice touch until all my local locations got way too crowded.