Markets in Everything: Blood for Profit

FORBES -- "The supply chain for blood hasn't changed in seven decades—a system that Minneapolis-based General Blood is trying mightily to disrupt. Instead of relying on collection from local donors, then selling to hospitals within driving distance, why not buy cheaply from centers in ­America’s vast midsection and distribute overnight to hospitals on either coast, underpricing rivals like the Red Cross?
 

But it’s not so easy to disrupt a $4.5-billion-a-year business, even a sclerotic one. For one thing, the tide of supply and demand changes as dramatically as Old Muddy. For another, it’s tough to dislodge old ways of doing things—especially in a market where the biggest player, the American Red Cross, controls 44% of the blood supply and has the ability to distribute nationally, depending on the needs of particular areas."

Updated with link to article and correction in first sentence.