Editing Mafia (section)

===Protection from competition===
Mafiosi sometimes protect businessmen from competitors by threatening their competitors with violence. If two businessmen are competing for a government contract, the protected can ask his mafioso friends to bully his rival out of the bidding process. In another example, a mafioso acting on behalf of a coffee supplier might pressure local bars into serving only his client's coffee.

The primary method by which the Mafia stifles competition, however, is the overseeing and enforcement of [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Collusion collusive agreements] between businessmen. Mafia-enforced collusion typically appear in markets where collusion is both desirable ([http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Price_elasticity_of_demand inelastic demand], lack of [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Product_differentiation product differentiation], etc.) and difficult to set up (numerous [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Competitor competitors], low [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barriers_to_entry barriers to entry]).<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-136">[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sicilian_Mafia#cite_note-136 [136]]</sup> Industries which fit this description include garbage collection.