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Bertrand and the long run

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  • Burguet, Roberto
  • Sákovics, József

Abstract

We propose a new model of simultaneous price competition, where firms offer personalized prices to consumers, who then independently decide which offer to accept, if any. Even with decreasing returns to scale, this decentralized market mechanism has a unique equilibrium, which is independent of any exogenously imposed rule for rationing or demand sharing. In equilibrium, the firms behave as if they were price takers, leading to the competitive outcome (but positive profits). Given the unique result for the short-run competition, we are able to investigate the firms’ ex ante capital investment decisions. While there is underinvestment in the long-run equilibrium, the overall outcome is more competitive than one-shot Cournot competition.

Suggested Citation

  • Burguet, Roberto & Sákovics, József, 2017. "Bertrand and the long run," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 51(C), pages 39-55.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:indorg:v:51:y:2017:i:c:p:39-55
    DOI: 10.1016/j.ijindorg.2017.01.005
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    Cited by:

    1. Cabon-Dhersin Marie-Laure & Drouhin Nicolas, 2017. "A general model of price competition with soft capacity constraints," Working Papers 2017-56, Center for Research in Economics and Statistics.
    2. Roberto Burguet & József Sákovics, 2017. "Competitive foreclosure," RAND Journal of Economics, RAND Corporation, vol. 48(4), pages 906-926, December.
    3. Marie-Laure Cabon-Dhersin & Nicolas Drouhin, 2020. "A general model of price competition with soft capacity constraints," Economic Theory, Springer;Society for the Advancement of Economic Theory (SAET), vol. 70(1), pages 95-120, July.
    4. Jozsef Sakovics & Lluis Bru & Daniel Cardona, 2018. "Block sourcing," Edinburgh School of Economics Discussion Paper Series 287, Edinburgh School of Economics, University of Edinburgh.
    5. Martimort, David & Pouyet, Jérôme, 2020. "Downstream mergers in vertically related markets with capacity constraints," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 72(C).
    6. de Meza, David & Reito, Francesco, 2020. "Too much waste, not enough rationing: The failure of stochastic, competitive markets," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 188(C).
    7. Lluis Bru & Daniel Cardona & Jozef Sakovics, 2019. "Beating Coase at Monopoly," Edinburgh School of Economics Discussion Paper Series 291, Edinburgh School of Economics, University of Edinburgh.
    8. Burguet, Roberto & Sákovics, József, 2019. "Personalized prices and uncertainty in monopsony," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 67(C).
    9. Bru, Lluís & Cardona, Daniel & Sákovics, József, 2023. "Block sourcing plus," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 305(3), pages 1130-1140.
    10. Peck, James, 2018. "Competing mechanisms with multi-unit consumer demand," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 177(C), pages 126-161.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Price competition; Personalized prices; Marginal cost pricing;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D43 - Microeconomics - - Market Structure, Pricing, and Design - - - Oligopoly and Other Forms of Market Imperfection
    • L13 - Industrial Organization - - Market Structure, Firm Strategy, and Market Performance - - - Oligopoly and Other Imperfect Markets

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