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Complementing Cournot’s analysis of complements: unidirectional complementarity and mergers

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  • Takanori Adachi
  • Takeshi Ebina

Abstract

We study the price and welfare effects of a merger of firms producing unidirectional complements: a firm is producing a product (called an optional good) that is valuable only if it is consumed with the other product (called a base good) produced by another firm. Under the assumption that there are two types of consumers: (i) those who consume one unit of the base good only or nothing (having zero valuation of the optional good), and (ii) those who consume one unit of the composite good or nothing, we show that a merger of the two firms raises the price of the base good, resulting in lower consumer surplus for the former consumer group, if and only if the average willingness to pay in the latter consumer group is sufficiently low. This result is in sharp contrast to Cournot’s (Researches into the mathematical principles of the theory of wealth, 1838 ) classical implication that a merger of firms producing strict complements makes all consumers strictly better off. Copyright Springer-Verlag Wien 2014

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  • Takanori Adachi & Takeshi Ebina, 2014. "Complementing Cournot’s analysis of complements: unidirectional complementarity and mergers," Journal of Economics, Springer, vol. 111(3), pages 239-261, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:jeczfn:v:111:y:2014:i:3:p:239-261
    DOI: 10.1007/s00712-012-0329-x
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Matteo Alvisi & Emanuela Carbonara & Francesco Parisi, 2011. "Separating complements: the effects of competition and quality leadership," Journal of Economics, Springer, vol. 103(2), pages 107-131, June.
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    9. Ishihara, Akifumi & Yanagawa, Noriyuki, 2018. "Dark sides of patent pools with independent licensing," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 57(C), pages 1-34.
    10. Takanori Adachi & Takeshi Ebina, 2012. "An Economic Analysis of Add‐on Discounts," Managerial and Decision Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 33, pages 99-107, March.
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    Cited by:

    1. Takanori Adachi & Takeshi Ebina & Makoto Hanazono, 2017. "Endogenous Product Boundary," Manchester School, University of Manchester, vol. 85(1), pages 13-40, January.
    2. Chia-Hung Sun & Chorng-Jian Liu, 2017. "The combination of two tragedies: commons and anticommons tragedies," Journal of Economics, Springer, vol. 122(1), pages 29-43, September.
    3. Ishihara, Akifumi & Yanagawa, Noriyuki, 2018. "Dark sides of patent pools with independent licensing," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 57(C), pages 1-34.
    4. Gregor Langus & Vilen Lipatov & Jorge Padilla, 2019. "Non-horizontal mergers with investments into compatibility," CESifo Working Paper Series 7617, CESifo.

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    Keywords

    Unidirectional complementarity; Merger; L110; L410;
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