Profiteering
Profiteeringis apejorativeterm for the act of making aprofitby methods consideredunethical.[1][2][page needed]
Overview
[edit]Businessowners may be accused of profiteering when theyraise pricesduring an emergency (especially a war).[3][page needed]The term is also applied to businesses that play onpolitical corruptionto obtain government contracts.
Some types of profiteering are illegal, such asprice fi xing[4][page needed]syndicates, for example onfuel subsidies(seeBritish Airways price-fi xing allegations), and otheranti-competitivebehaviour. Some are restricted by industry codes of conduct, e.g. aggressivemarketingof products in theThird Worldsuch asbaby milk(seeNestlé boycott).
Types of profiteering
[edit]Laws
[edit]Profiteering is illegal in several countries, including but not limited to:
- UK: Chapter 1 of theCompetition Act 1998
- Germany:§ 291 StGB(Criminal Code) – up to 10 years' jail maximum penalty
- Austria:§ 154 StGB– up to 5 years' jail maximum penalty
See also
[edit]![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/99/Wiktionary-logo-en-v2.svg/40px-Wiktionary-logo-en-v2.svg.png)
- Enshittification
- Hoarding (economics)
- Business ethics
- Price gouging
- Product sabotage
- Rent seeking
- Supracompetitive pricing
- Ticket scalping
- Usury
Example cases
[edit]References
[edit]- ^"Profiteering".Oxford Learners Dictionaries.
- ^Ray, S. K. (2004).Polity And Economy Of The Underworld.PHI Learning Pvt. Ltd.ISBN978-8120325777.
- ^Hughes, Solomon (2007).War on Terror, Inc: corporate profiteering from the politics of fear.Verso.ISBN978-1844671236.
- ^Neuwirth, Robert (2011).Stealth of Nations: The Global Rise of the Informal Economy.Random House Digital, Inc.ISBN978-0307906809.