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Contractual Externalities and Common Agency Equilibria

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Author Info
David Martimort (Universite de Toulouse (IDEI-GREMAQ))
Lars Stole (University of Chicago, GSB)
Abstract

This paper characterizes the equilibrium sets of common agency games with direct externalities between principals when they compete with nonlinear prices. Direct externalities arise when the contracting variable of one principal directly affects the other principal's payoff. First, we characterize the set of pure-strategy, symmetric equilibria under complete information of an intrinsic common agency game. This set of equilibria is large because of the presence of price-output offers by the principals that are unchosen by the agent in equilibrium. Equilibria exist in which principals offer out-of-equilibrium price-output choices to the agent and induce aggressive, low-price behavior corresponding to marginal-cost pricing in the extreme case. We then show that this equilibrium set of outputs is robust to the possibility that agent refuses any of the offered contracts; the case of delegated agency. Second, we introduce asymmetric information in order to rationalize existing nonlinear pricing contracts. The introduction of asymmetric information has the effect of restricting the set of equilibrium outputs of the intrinsic common agency game.

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Publisher Info
Article provided by Berkeley Electronic Press in its journal Advances in Theoretical Economics.

Volume (Year): 3 (2003)
Issue (Month): 1 ()
Pages: 1037-1037
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Handle: RePEc:bep:theadv:v:3:y:2003:i:1:p:1037-1037

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Related research
Keywords: Common agency contracting externality adverse selection equilibrium selection.

Find related papers by JEL classification:
D82 - Microeconomics - - Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty - - - Asymmetric and Private Information

References listed on IDEAS
Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.:

  1. David Martimort & Lars Stole, 2002. "The Revelation and Delegation Principles in Common Agency Games," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 70(4), pages 1659-1673, July. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  2. Grossman, Sanford J, 1981. "Nash Equilibrium and the Industrial Organization of Markets with Large Fixed Costs," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 49(5), pages 1149-72, September. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  3. Jean-Jacques Laffont & David Martimort, 1997. "The Firm as a Multicontract Organization," Journal of Economics & Management Strategy, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 6(2), pages 201-234, 06. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  4. Bernheim, B Douglas & Whinston, Michael D, 1986. "Common Agency," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 54(4), pages 923-42, July. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  5. Hart, O. & Tirole, J., 1990. "Vertical Integration And Market Foreclosure," Working papers 548, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Department of Economics.
    Other versions:
  6. Wilson, Robert, 1979. "Auctions of Shares," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, MIT Press, vol. 93(4), pages 675-89, November. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  7. Klemperer, Paul D & Meyer, Margaret A, 1989. "Supply Function Equilibria in Oligopoly under Uncertainty," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 57(6), pages 1243-77, November. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  8. David Martimort, 1996. "Exclusive Dealing, Common Agency, and Multiprincipals Incentive Theory," RAND Journal of Economics, The RAND Corporation, vol. 27(1), pages 1-19, Spring. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  9. Ilya Segal, 1999. "Contracting With Externalities," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, MIT Press, vol. 114(2), pages 337-388, May. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  10. Epstein, Larry G. & Peters, Michael, 1999. "A Revelation Principle for Competing Mechanisms," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 88(1), pages 119-160, September. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  11. Grossman, Gene M & Helpman, Elhanan, 1994. "Protection for Sale," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 84(4), pages 833-50, September. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  12. Claudio Mezzetti, 1997. "Common Agency with Horizontally Differentiated Principals," RAND Journal of Economics, The RAND Corporation, vol. 28(2), pages 323-345, Summer. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  13. Fershtman, Chaim & Judd, Kenneth L & Kalai, Ehud, 1991. "Observable Contracts: Strategic Delegation and Cooperation," International Economic Review, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania and Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association, vol. 32(3), pages 551-59, August. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  14. James J. Anton & Dennis A. Yao, 1989. "Split Awards, Procurement, and Innovation," RAND Journal of Economics, The RAND Corporation, vol. 20(4), pages 538-552, Winter. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  15. MARTIMORT, David, 1994. "Exclusive Dealing, Common Agency and Multiprincipals Incentive Theory," IDEI Working Papers 43, Institut d'Économie Industrielle (IDEI), Toulouse, revised 1996.
  16. Caillaud, Bernard & Jullien, B & Picard, P, 1995. "Competing Vertical Structures: Precommitment and Renegotiation," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 63(3), pages 621-46, May. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  17. Peters, Michael, 2001. "Common Agency and the Revelation Principle," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 69(5), pages 1349-72, September.
    Other versions:
Full references

Cited by:
(explanations, Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.)

  1. Gwenael Piaser, 2005. "Stochastic and deterministic menus in common agency games," Economics Bulletin, Economics Bulletin, vol. 4(11), pages 1-6. [Downloadable!]
  2. Inderst, Roman & Wey, Christian, 2002. "Buyer Power and Supplier Incentives," CEPR Discussion Papers 3547, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  3. Marko Koethenbuerger, 2007. "Federal Tax-Transfer Policy and Intergovernmental Pre-Commitment," CESifo Working Paper Series CESifo Working Paper No. , CESifo GmbH. [Downloadable!]
  4. Diaw, K.M. & Pouyet J.,, 2004. "Competition, incomplete discrimination and versioning," Discussion Paper 69, Tilburg University, Center for Economic Research. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  5. Andrea Attar & Eloisa Campioni & Gwenael Piaser, 2006. "Multiple Lending and Constrained Efficiency in the Credit Market," Contributions to Theoretical Economics, Berkeley Electronic Press, vol. 6(1), pages 1253-1253. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  6. Tsung-Sheng Tsai, 2005. "Private Provision of Public Goods under Delegated Common Agency," Economics Bulletin, Economics Bulletin, vol. 8(13), pages 1-9. [Downloadable!]
  7. MIKLOS-THAL, Jeanine & REY, Patrick & VERGÉ, Thibaud, 2008. "Buyer Power and Intraband Coordination," IDEI Working Papers 500, Institut d'Économie Industrielle (IDEI), Toulouse. [Downloadable!]
  8. Giacomo Calzolari & Alessandro Pavan, 2004. "On the Optimality of Privacy in Sequential Contracting," Discussion Papers 1394, Northwestern University, Center for Mathematical Studies in Economics and Management Science. [Downloadable!]
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  9. Miravete, Eugenio J & Röller, Lars-Hendrik, 2003. "Competitive Non-Linear Pricing in Duopoly Equilibrium: The Early US Cellular Telephone Industry," CEPR Discussion Papers 4069, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  10. Fahad Khalil & David Martimort & Bruno Maria Parigi, 2005. "Monitoring a Common Agent: Implications for Financial Contracting," CESifo Working Paper Series CESifo Working Paper No. , CESifo GmbH. [Downloadable!]
  11. Michiel Bijlsma & Viktoria Kocsis & Victoria Shestalova & Gijsbert Zwart, 2008. "Vertical foreclosure, a policy framework," CPB Documents 157, CPB Netherlands Bureau for Economic Policy Analysis. [Downloadable!]
  12. Martimort, David & Semenov, Aggey, 2008. "Ideological Uncertainty and Lobbying Competition," MPRA Paper 6992, University Library of Munich, Germany. [Downloadable!]
  13. Claude, D’ASPREMONT & Rodolphe, DOS SANTOS FERREIRA, 2005. "Oligopolistic Competition as a Common Agency Game," Université catholique de Louvain, Département des Sciences Economiques Working Paper 2005018, Université catholique de Louvain, Département des Sciences Economiques. [Downloadable!]
  14. Khaled Diaw & Jérôme Pouyet, 2005. "Information, competition and (In) complete discrimination," Post-Print hal-00243025_v1, HAL. [Downloadable!]
  15. David Martimort & Humberto Luiz Ataide Moreira, 2004. "Common agency with informed principals," Economics Working Papers (Ensaios Economicos da EPGE) 551, Graduate School of Economics, Getulio Vargas Foundation (Brazil). [Downloadable!]
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