Sheltered Monopoly

A monopoly that a government or, rarely, another body protects from competition. For example, a company may receive a charter to be the only company in its industry to operate in a certain area. Sheltered monopolies such as the British East India Trading Company were common in the early development of capitalism. In the United States, the insurance industry and Major League Baseball are exempt from most antitrust law, which may make them a type of sheltered monopoly.