IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/bla/jindec/v69y2021i3p537-560.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Supply‐ vs. Demand‐Side Transparency: The Collusive Effects Under Imperfect Public Monitoring

Author

Listed:
  • Luke Garrod
  • Matthew Olczak

Abstract

We analyse how market transparency affects collusion under imperfect monitoring where punishment phases occur on the equilibrium path. We show that increased transparency causes a ‘pro‐competitive’ demand‐side effect and an ‘anti‐competitive’ supply‐side effect on the optimal symmetric perfect public equilibrium (SPPE) profits. When transparency increases on both sides of the market, the optimal SPPE profits unambiguously increase at the perfect monitoring limit, because the pro‐competitive demand‐side effect vanishes. This result holds even when there is minimal structure on the competition game. The supply‐side effect also dominates away from the limit under reasonable conditions. We draw conclusions for policy.

Suggested Citation

  • Luke Garrod & Matthew Olczak, 2021. "Supply‐ vs. Demand‐Side Transparency: The Collusive Effects Under Imperfect Public Monitoring," Journal of Industrial Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 69(3), pages 537-560, September.
  • Handle: RePEc:bla:jindec:v:69:y:2021:i:3:p:537-560
    DOI: 10.1111/joie.12260
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1111/joie.12260
    Download Restriction: no

    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1111/joie.12260?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Schultz, Christian, 2005. "Transparency on the consumer side and tacit collusion," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 49(2), pages 279-297, February.
    2. Varian, Hal R, 1980. "A Model of Sales," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 70(4), pages 651-659, September.
    3. Asher Wolinsky, 1986. "True Monopolistic Competition as a Result of Imperfect Information," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 101(3), pages 493-511.
    4. Abreu, Dilip & Milgrom, Paul & Pearce, David, 1991. "Information and Timing in Repeated Partnerships," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 59(6), pages 1713-1733, November.
    5. Luke Garrod & Matthew Olczak, 2017. "Collusion Under Imperfect Monitoring with Asymmetric Firms," Journal of Industrial Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 65(3), pages 654-682, September.
    6. Andrea Amelio & Sara Biancini, 2010. "Alternating Monopoly And Tacit Collusion," Journal of Industrial Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 58(2), pages 402-423, June.
    7. Johan Stennek, 1997. "Coordination in Oligopoly," Scandinavian Journal of Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 99(4), pages 541-554, December.
    8. Luke Garrod & Matthew Olczak, 2017. "Market Transparency and Collusion under Imperfect Monitoring," Working Paper series, University of East Anglia, Centre for Competition Policy (CCP) 2017-02, Centre for Competition Policy, University of East Anglia, Norwich, UK..
    9. Joseph E. Harrington Jr. & Andrzej Skrzypacz, 2007. "Collusion under monitoring of sales," RAND Journal of Economics, RAND Corporation, vol. 38(2), pages 314-331, June.
    10. Christian Schultz, 2017. "Collusion in Markets with Imperfect Price Information on Both Sides," Review of Industrial Organization, Springer;The Industrial Organization Society, vol. 50(3), pages 287-301, May.
    11. Jean Tirole, 1988. "The Theory of Industrial Organization," MIT Press Books, The MIT Press, edition 1, volume 1, number 0262200716, December.
    12. Svend Albæk & Peter Møllgaard & Per B. Overgaard, 1997. "Government‐Assisted Oligopoly Coordination? A Concrete Case," Journal of Industrial Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 45(4), pages 429-443, December.
    13. Petrikaitė, Vaiva, 2016. "Collusion with costly consumer search," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 44(C), pages 1-10.
    14. Abreu, Dilip & Pearce, David & Stacchetti, Ennio, 1986. "Optimal cartel equilibria with imperfect monitoring," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 39(1), pages 251-269, June.
    15. Takuo Sugaya & Alexander Wolitzky, 2018. "Maintaining Privacy in Cartels," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 126(6), pages 2569-2607.
    16. Rasch, Alexander & Herre, Jesko, 2013. "Customer-side transparency, elastic demand, and tacit collusion under differentiation," Information Economics and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 25(1), pages 51-59.
    17. Stahl, Dale O, II, 1989. "Oligopolistic Pricing with Sequential Consumer Search," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 79(4), pages 700-712, September.
    18. Janssen, Maarten C.W. & Moraga-Gonzalez, Jose Luis & Wildenbeest, Matthijs R., 2005. "Truly costly sequential search and oligopolistic pricing," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 23(5-6), pages 451-466, June.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Wenzel, Tobias, 2024. "Collusion, inattentive consumers and shrouded prices," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 218(C), pages 579-591.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Luke Garrod & Matthew Olczak, 2017. "Market Transparency and Collusion under Imperfect Monitoring," Working Paper series, University of East Anglia, Centre for Competition Policy (CCP) 2017-02, Centre for Competition Policy, University of East Anglia, Norwich, UK..
    2. Martin, Simon, 2020. "Market transparency and consumer search - Evidence from the German retail gasoline market," DICE Discussion Papers 350, Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, Düsseldorf Institute for Competition Economics (DICE).
    3. Christian Schultz, 2017. "Collusion in Markets with Imperfect Price Information on Both Sides," Review of Industrial Organization, Springer;The Industrial Organization Society, vol. 50(3), pages 287-301, May.
    4. Martin Obradovits & Philipp Plaickner, 2020. "Price-Directed Search and Collusion," Working Papers 2020-24, Faculty of Economics and Statistics, Universität Innsbruck.
    5. Liliane Karlinger, 2008. "How Demand Information Can Destabilize a Cartel," Vienna Economics Papers 0803, University of Vienna, Department of Economics.
    6. Petrikaitė, Vaiva, 2016. "Collusion with costly consumer search," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 44(C), pages 1-10.
    7. Wenzel, Tobias, 2024. "Collusion, inattentive consumers and shrouded prices," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 218(C), pages 579-591.
    8. Dieter Pennerstorfer & Philipp Schmidt‐Dengler & Nicolas Schutz & Christoph Weiss & Biliana Yontcheva, 2020. "Information And Price Dispersion: Theory And Evidence," International Economic Review, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania and Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association, vol. 61(2), pages 871-899, May.
    9. Belleflamme,Paul & Peitz,Martin, 2015. "Industrial Organization," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9781107069978.
    10. Belleflamme,Paul & Peitz,Martin, 2015. "Industrial Organization," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9781107687899.
    11. Rasch, Alexander & Herre, Jesko, 2013. "Customer-side transparency, elastic demand, and tacit collusion under differentiation," Information Economics and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 25(1), pages 51-59.
    12. Luke Garrod & Matthew Olczak, 2017. "Collusion Under Imperfect Monitoring with Asymmetric Firms," Journal of Industrial Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 65(3), pages 654-682, September.
    13. Ding, Yucheng & Zhang, Tianle, 2018. "Price-directed consumer search," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 58(C), pages 106-135.
    14. Joseph E. Harrington Jr. & Andrzej Skrzypacz, 2007. "Collusion under monitoring of sales," RAND Journal of Economics, RAND Corporation, vol. 38(2), pages 314-331, June.
    15. Anderson, Simon & Baik, Alicia & Larson, Nathan, 2015. "Personalized pricing and advertising: An asymmetric equilibrium analysis," Games and Economic Behavior, Elsevier, vol. 92(C), pages 53-73.
    16. Ioana Chioveanu & Jidong Zhou, 2013. "Price Competition with Consumer Confusion," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 59(11), pages 2450-2469, November.
    17. Natalia Fabra & Juan-Pablo Montero, 2022. "Product Lines and Price Discrimination in Markets with Information Frictions," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 68(2), pages 981-1001, February.
    18. Fischer, Christian & Rasch, Alexander & Wenzel, Tobias, 2020. "Complex pricing and consumer-side attention," ZEW Discussion Papers 20-075, ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research.
    19. Obradovits, Martin, 2017. "Search and segregation," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 55(C), pages 137-165.
    20. Astorne-Figari, Carmen & Yankelevich, Aleksandr, 2014. "Consumer search with asymmetric price sampling," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 122(2), pages 331-333.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:bla:jindec:v:69:y:2021:i:3:p:537-560. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.blackwellpublishing.com/journal.asp?ref=0022-1821 .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.