Product Code Database
Megacorporations are a form of corporation differentiated by their global scale of activities and broad scope of influence, which exceed even those of a multinational corporation (MNC). They are often characterised by monopoly control over multiple markets—and sometimes even trade in general—and the exercising of quasi-governmental powers, either via Puppet state (such as through a private militia or extensive corruption) or through the governing of their own sovereign territory.
Although megacorporations are most frequently a trope of science fiction (particularly the sub-genre of cyberpunk), historical examples have been proposed, including the Dutch East India Company, the (English and later British) East India Company and the Hudson's Bay Company. The term has also been applied to the members of Big Tech, such as Alphabet Inc. (Google), Facebook, and Amazon.
In Megacorporation: The Infinite Times of Alphabet (2021), Glen Whelan differentiates the megacorporation from other types of corporation by the relative scale and scope of its actions, as well as more specific characteristics that include monopoly, corporate social responsibility concerns, political-economic hybridity, and existential impacts.
In the animated Pixar film WALL-E, the megacorporation Buy n' Large has completely supplanted every planetary government.
In the Avatar series of films, the Resources Development Administration (RDA) is a megacorporation that outmatches most governments in wealth, influence, and military power. The RDA has monopolized ownership of all extraterrestrial colonies and assets, granted in perpetuity by an international committee.
In the video game The Outer Worlds, many megacorps purchase the rights to solar systems from Earth governments. Corporate colonies, being lightyears away from government influence, are effectively governed by their parent companies, with employment acting as citizenship.
In the Doom video game franchise, the Union Aerospace Corporation (UAC)—a multi-planetary conglomerate—is often referred to as a megacorporation.
In Cyberpunk 2077, several megacorporations (most notably Arasaka and Militech) are multinational entities that dominate nearly every aspect of society, from politics to the economy. These corporations are so powerful that they function almost like states unto themselves, exerting control over vast territories and influencing the daily lives of the populace. They often operate outside or above the reach of traditional governments, often exhibit cutthroat, morally bankrupt practices, driven by a relentless pursuit of profit and power. Ethics are secondary, and corporate warfare—both economic and physical—can result in the deaths of thousands, if not millions. These corporations will often engage in sabotage, espionage, or even orchestrate political coups to secure their interests. They also manipulate public opinion through media and control over information, ensuring their image remains pristine while their unethical activities remain hidden.
In the Titanfall franchise, which contains Apex Legends, a megacorporation named Interstellar Manufacturing Corporation IMC dominates the entire mining and manufacturing industry across the Frontier (galaxy) based on Earth, well as maintaining private military contractors to suppress dissidents. According to the Protagonist Jack Cooper, as long as they find a profitable resource reserve in a planet, it forces their residents out of land, destroys their environment, and kills anyone who dares to resist, to maximize profits.
In the indie game Stardew Valley, the Joja Corporation seems to have monopolized the entire markets of retail, logistics, mining, manufacturing, and emergency healthcare.
In the 2006 book The Wal-Mart Effect, Charles Fishman describes the American multinational retail company Walmart as "in a whole class of megacorporations of which Wal-Mart is just the most extreme, vivid example". The American multinational technology conglomerate Alphabet Inc. (the parent holding company of Google) has also been described as a megacorporation,Whelan 2021, pp. 60–67. as have other members of Big Tech such as Meta Platforms (Facebook) and Amazon.
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