The domination of a market by a small consortium of companies, who can run up costs and work in tandem to assert their control. Examples include major airlines, automobile manufacturers, and telephone companies. While it is theoretically feasible to start a company to compete against an oligopoly, the costs often run significantly higher than the estimated return on investment. As a result, the FTC closely monitors oligopolies in the United States of America, and many other countries have similar measures in place.