I’ve
recently heard about a couple of companies that are about to be ‘swallowed up’
by larger ones, which is bound to have an effect on consumer choice.
The
Competitions and Markets Authority (formerly the Competition Commission, in
turn formerly The Monopolies and Mergers Commission) is supposedly meant to
strengthen competition in the marketplace, thus protecting consumer choice. Why
is it then that in some areas our choices are becoming increasingly more
limited?
One of the
big issues at the moment, I feel, is that of mobile phone providers. I used to
be a customer of Orange, which merged with TMobile (referred to in our
household as Torange), which then became part of EE. It has now been announced
that EE are to be bought out by BT – just the company I do not want to provide
my service!
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4SnWhpr_W-vqUJp975mhnpd_mV6T6sQ8NjHZUyR9sbBivL6_P4SsRET47sIvSxrVOuw8nz-jTZBeWEJj3VPyhqqYkQWlEOkDbp11XBN2oQdcSQ5rbqteTVPmyLcR6OrzmBvRKFPuJhEQ/s1600/mobile.jpg)
With our
choices of mobile provider basically down to three, where is the incentive for
the remaining companies to offer the best deals? With competition rapidly
dwindling it certainly makes their life easier, but not ours!
Also in the
news is the plan for Poundland to buy out 99p Stores – another bad move I
believe. Certainly in my area, the 99p Stores are much better than the
Poundland equivalents, stocking better products in a more welcoming
environment. Of course, that may not be the case nationwide, but it’s still
nice to be given the choice of where to shop.
Time and
again shops and companies are being taken over by larger concerns, reducing
competition and limiting our choices. Competition is healthy for businesses. It
encourages them to deliver the best possible customer service, product ranges
and consumer care. Insufficient competition can create complacency, resulting
in poorer deals for customers and severe lack of service and care.
I’ve always
believed that if I don’t get good service from a company, I should take my
custom elsewhere. But if my choices are limited, where do I turn?
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