June 5, 2006   link to syllabus   Link to handout on paper topics!      Final exam now online 

History 363: American Business History

After reviewing the video of Startup.com, I've decided to show you the last 35 or 40 minutes.  In the sections we're skipping, their website has been launched--but with some glitches.  Kaleil has argued with his girlfriend; the partners have received a visit from another dotcom that's in competition with govworks; everyone in the company has gathered at Tom's parents' summer camp in New Hampshire for a "bonding experience," etc.  The company has raised approximately $50 million from the VC's (Venture Capitalists) and is up to 250 employees by January 2000.

What we see in the final section is a combination of the national collapse of the internet boom and the specific problems of govworks.com which came to a head in winter and spring 2000. 

I. Who does control the Giant Corporation?  Government Regulation?

    A. Limits and Paradoxes of Anti-Trust
    B. From Competition to Regulated Big Business
    C. Commission-Style Regulation
    D. "New Regulation" in the 1960s and 70's
            1. From regulating industries to regulating activities
          2. Consumers, Environment, Labor

III. Theories of Government Regulation
    A. Public Interest
    B. Capture
    C. Bureaucratic Politics

IV. Deregulation (and Re-Regulation?)
        Milton Friedman is a leading advocate of deregulation