Chapter 17 Summary and Analysis

Privatization of government-run business can be very profitable, no matter which country is selling. Privatization takes something that is owned by the public, sells it to the public, and then it is private. In America and Britain, privatization is almost always a no-lose situation. Elected officials do not want to upset the voting public by losing their money in a privatization deal that goes wrong. Privatizations almost always favor the investor with very low prices.

Telephone companies around the world have privatized and done extremely well. Privatization of telephone companies in Mexico, Spain, and the Philippines all resulted in investors making a once-in-a-lifetime killing. The Mexican phone company, for example, went up almost 800% in only two years.

Privatization in the United States is somewhat rare since the types of companies that might be privatized in other countries likely started out private...