when a company is the sole provider of a good or service it can become powerful enough to prevent other companies from entering the marketplace and providing competition with the lack of alternative choices in the marketplace consumers are often left with no choice but to pay the higher prices the monopolist demands or go without the desired product or service 
governments enact and enforce antitrust laws to penalize monopolists and ensure fair competition in the marketplace 1 these laws protect consumers from predatory business practices such as price gouging in some cases the government may step in and force a breakup of the monopoly government granted monopolya government granted monopoly or legal monopoly by contrast is sanctioned by the state often to provide an incentive to invest in a risky venture or enrich a domestic interest group patents copyrights and trademarks are sometimes used as examples of government granted monopolies in the united states many companies in the utilities sector are an example of government granted monopolies a government may also reserve a venture for itself and form a government monopoly characteristics of a true monopolista monopolist has full control of a market and is the one supplier that provides a good or service to many consumers beyond that however there are certain characteristics of a monopolist that stand out above others 