====== Corporations ======

[ [[Economics]], [[.:]] ]

//Corporations are international business entities that engage in production, trade and sale of goods. Corporations are limited in the type of goods they are able to produce, but this focus allows them to have economies of scale impossible in a less focused environment.//

Players may found corporations. Corporations are devoted to a single raw-material or product which must be chosen when the Corporation is founded and which cannot be changed afterwards. Additionally, the player must choose a specialty for that raw material or product. 

When a player has control of a corporation, he may specialize [[Zones]] devoted to producing the chosen [[Raw Materials]] or [[Products]]. Specialized zones double their production. However, a specialized zone no longer produces a standard product, but rather a specialized product.

Specialized raw materials are too specific to process into products and specialized products are too specific to generate taxes, thus at first glance they seem rather useless. However, when a player combines different specialized raw materials or different specialized products the combine into normal products.

  * You can combine 3 different specialized raw materials to get 3 normal raw materials
  * You can combine 2 specialized products of the same type, they combine into 2 regular products

Players may not just specialize their zones with their own corporations: with the permission of the corporation owner, other players may also upgrade their zones with that corporation. The player who owns the zone that is being specialized is always the one to pay for it and the player that owns the corporation may ask for favours or deals in return. Once a zone is specialized by a specific corporation, it is under the control of the player who owns the zone - the player who owns the corporation can not later withdraw their permission.

Founding a corporation is expensive and founding more then one of the same type gets progressively more expensive. It is in your best interest to cooperate with other players when creating corporations.

===== Founding a Corporation =====

To found a Corporation, a player must have a qualifying zone which you can specialise to set up the Corporation. A zone only qualifies when it produces the correct raw material or product, and when it is on a world with a [[Type I atmosphere]].

The cost of starting a corporation depends on two factors: the total number of Corporations under your control and the number of those Corporations that are of the same resource type as the one you are trying to found under your control. Note that you do NOT count Corporations controlled by other players at any point, even if they are present in your system. These never influence your cost.

Founding a Corporation costs (5000 (:tax) + 1000 (:tax) per Corporation you control). This cost is doubled for every additional corporation of the same type. Constructing a Corporation is considered a zone construction project, and as such fall under the normal [[completions]] rules. As such you cannot upgrade, construct or work on another zone or special project while the Corporation is being founded. Construction costs of a corporation are NOT reduced by the [[natural_flight]] racial ability, nor by the planet having natural life.

Upon completion of the Corporation, the selected zone is specialised by the Corporation, and the Corporation Headquarters is located on the newly specialised zone.

==== Corporate Headquarters ====

Each Corporation has a Corporate Headquarters. This is established when the Corporation is founded. The Corporate Headquarters may only be on a zone specialised by the Corporation.

It is possible to move the Corporate Headquarters to any zone specialised by the Corporation. You do this by noting the move in your turn report, once the report is approved, the corporation headquarters is moved.

You are allowed to move the Corporate Headquarters to a system controlled by someone else. However, they can evict it at any moment by noting this in their turn report, forcing you to move it to a new location.

The Corporate Headquarters' location is relevant for the [[#Tax Benefits]] of the Corporation.

==== Specializing Zones ====

Upgrading a Zone to be specialized is considered construction, so you can only specialize one zone per planet at a time and you cannot construct a regular zone while specializing (i.e. the [[completions]] rules apply). To specialize a zone with a specific corporation, you must have permission of the Corporation owner.

Specializing a Zone costs 1000 (:tax) taxes per zone. This cost, like the cost of a Corporation, is NOT reduced by the [[natural_flight]] racial ability, nor by the planet having natural life.

Note that you may ONLY specialize zones on planets with a [[Type I atmosphere]], and that the zone to be specialised must be of the correct type (that is, it must already produce the same goods as the corporation).

===== Tax Benefits =====

The player who controls the Corporation gains tax income over the profits made by the Corporation. Each turn, the owner of the Corporation gains (:tax) for every zone that has been specialized by the Corporation.

For every zone that is specialized by the Corporation which lies in the same system as the Corporate Headquarters, the player controlling the Corporation earns 10 (:tax). Additionally, for every zone that is specialized by the Corporation which lies outside the system with the Corporate Headquarters, the player earns 1 (:tax).