| From: | Paul J. Adam Paul@********.demon.co.uk |
|---|---|
| Subject: | Question about Corp Extraterritoriality (sp?) |
| Date: | Sat, 18 Sep 1999 08:47:54 +0100 |
<gurth@******.nl> writes
>The UCAS government could pass a law that says no corp can have
>extraterritoriality, sure -- they can pass any law they want, and
>implement it if they can. The problems this would cause, though, would be
>mostly for the UCAS rather than for the corps: the major corps likely pull
>out of the UCAS, and the UCAS sees its economy collapse as a result.
I seriously doubt that. Much more likely, if extraterritoriality's being
revoked by some politician with an eye on possible tax revenues, the law
dies in a series of filibusters and amendments (much cheaper to just rent
a Representative than to fight an economic war). In normal circumstances
the megacorps have plenty of leverage.
If extraterritoriality's being revoked for a major crisis - especially if it
involves only one corporation, like the Renraku Arcology - then the
corporate attitude seems more likely to accept its loss on a local, site-by-
site and case-by-case basis. After all, if they fight it, they also end up
liable for anything coming out... and it's a lot more economic for Renraku
to let the UCAS Army seal off the Arcology than to try to handle the
problem itself. What happened to extraterritorial businesses in Chicago,
for instance?
And at absolute worst - the UCAS is a _big_ market. Sure, if worst came
to worst, some of the megas might up and leave... so what happens to
the ones who stay, with all that market share suddenly waiting to be
snatched? All the smaller-tier companies who'd leap at the chance to fill
the gaps? Major opportunities to make money there... and no clear
benefit to the megas. The benefits of any action _must_ outweigh the
costs, on a timescale short enough that it benefits the Board's stock
options, or it just won't happen.
--
Paul J. Adam
