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The welfare effects of location and quality in oligopoly

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  • Corchón, Luis C.
  • Zudenkova, Galina

Abstract

In this paper we argue that two important causes of welfare losses in oligopolistic markets have been neglected. We show that in models where location is endogenous, welfare losses arising from wrong locations or from lack of market coverage may be substantial despite firms competing in prices. In contrast, welfare losses arising from quality choice are modest but they might vary discontinuously with the size of the market.

Suggested Citation

  • Corchón, Luis C. & Zudenkova, Galina, 2010. "The welfare effects of location and quality in oligopoly," UC3M Working papers. Economics we102008, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid. Departamento de Economía.
    • Handle: RePEc:cte:werepe:we102008
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Jean Tirole, 1988. "The Theory of Industrial Organization," MIT Press Books, The MIT Press, edition 1, volume 1, number 0262200716, December.
    2. Corchón, Luis C. & Zudenkova, Galina, 2009. "Computing welfare losses from data under imperfect competition with heterogeneous goods," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 27(6), pages 646-654, November.
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Welfare losses;

    JEL classification:

    • D61 - Microeconomics - - Welfare Economics - - - Allocative Efficiency; Cost-Benefit Analysis
    • L11 - Industrial Organization - - Market Structure, Firm Strategy, and Market Performance - - - Production, Pricing, and Market Structure; Size Distribution of Firms
    • L13 - Industrial Organization - - Market Structure, Firm Strategy, and Market Performance - - - Oligopoly and Other Imperfect Markets
    • L50 - Industrial Organization - - Regulation and Industrial Policy - - - General

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