IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/bla/jemstr/v5y1996i4p565-579.html

Most‐Favored‐Customer Clauses and Multilateral Contracting: When Nondiscrimination Implies Uniformity

Author

Listed:
  • Patrick DeGraba

Abstract

DeGraba and Postlewaite (1992) show that the seller of a durable input can solve the time inconsistency problem by offering most‐favored‐customer (MFC) protection to buyers. McAfee and Schwartz (1994) show that if a supplier sells inputs to competing firms using two‐part tariffs, MFC protection that allows a firm to replace its contract with a contract executed by any other firm will not solve the commitment problem, and argue this implies managers cannot use MFCs as a strategic commitment device in complex contracting situations. This paper shows that if the profits of the seller and the buyers are monotonic in each term of the contract, then applying MFC protection to each term of a contract allows a manager to solve his commitment problem in complex contacting situations. We show that “standard” contract arrangements (two‐part tariffs, declining block tariffs, and royalties as a percentage of sales) meet this condition.

Suggested Citation

  • Patrick DeGraba, 1996. "Most‐Favored‐Customer Clauses and Multilateral Contracting: When Nondiscrimination Implies Uniformity," Journal of Economics & Management Strategy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 5(4), pages 565-579, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:jemstr:v:5:y:1996:i:4:p:565-579
    DOI: 10.1111/j.1430-9134.1996.00565.x
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1430-9134.1996.00565.x
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1111/j.1430-9134.1996.00565.x?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. Francine Lafontaine, 1992. "Agency Theory and Franchising: Some Empirical Results," RAND Journal of Economics, The RAND Corporation, vol. 23(2), pages 263-283, Summer.
    2. Thomas E. Cooper, 1986. "Most-Favored-Customer Pricing and Tacit Collusion," RAND Journal of Economics, The RAND Corporation, vol. 17(3), pages 377-388, Autumn.
    3. DeGraba, Patrick & Postlewaite, Andrew, 1992. "Exclusivity Clauses and Best Price Policies in Input Markets," Journal of Economics & Management Strategy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 1(3), pages 423-454, Fall.
    4. McAfee, R Preston & Schwartz, Marius, 1994. "Opportunism in Multilateral Vertical Contracting: Nondiscrimination, Exclusivity, and Uniformity," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 84(1), pages 210-230, March.
    5. Patrick J. DeGraba, 1987. "The Effects of Price Restrictions on Competition Between National and Local Firms," RAND Journal of Economics, The RAND Corporation, vol. 18(3), pages 333-347, Autumn.
    6. Hubbard, R Glenn & Weiner, Robert J, 1991. "Efficient Contracting and Market Power: Evidence from the U.S. Natural Gas Industry," Journal of Law and Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 34(1), pages 25-67, April.
    7. Keith J. Crocker & Scott E. Masten, 1988. "Mitigating Contractual Hazards: Unilateral Options and Contract Length," RAND Journal of Economics, The RAND Corporation, vol. 19(3), pages 327-343, Autumn.
    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. Isabel Teichmann & Vanessa von Schlippenbach, 2014. "Collusive Effects of a Monopolist's Use of an Intermediary to Deliver to Retailers," Discussion Papers of DIW Berlin 1440, DIW Berlin, German Institute for Economic Research.
    2. Michele Bisceglia & Jorge Padilla & Salvatore Piccolo, 2019. "When Prohibiting Platform Parity Agreements Harms Consumers," CSEF Working Papers 542, Centre for Studies in Economics and Finance (CSEF), University of Naples, Italy.
    3. Rosenkranz, Stephanie & Schmitz, Patrick W., 2001. "Vertikale Unternehmenskooperationen," MPRA Paper 6930, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    4. Daniel P. O'Brien, 2014. "The welfare effects of third-degree price discrimination in intermediate good markets: the case of bargaining," RAND Journal of Economics, RAND Corporation, vol. 45(1), pages 92-115, March.
    5. Rey, Patrick & Tirole, Jean, 2007. "A Primer on Foreclosure," Handbook of Industrial Organization, in: Mark Armstrong & Robert Porter (ed.), Handbook of Industrial Organization, edition 1, volume 3, chapter 33, pages 2145-2220, Elsevier.
    6. João Montez, 2015. "Controlling opportunism in vertical contracting when production precedes sales," RAND Journal of Economics, RAND Corporation, vol. 46(3), pages 650-670, September.
    7. Roman Inderst & Tommaso Valletti, 2009. "Price discrimination in input markets," RAND Journal of Economics, RAND Corporation, vol. 40(1), pages 1-19, March.

    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. Roman Inderst & Tommaso Valletti, 2009. "Price discrimination in input markets," RAND Journal of Economics, RAND Corporation, vol. 40(1), pages 1-19, March.
    2. Michele Bisceglia & Jorge Padilla & Salvatore Piccolo, 2019. "When Prohibiting Platform Parity Agreements Harms Consumers," CSEF Working Papers 542, Centre for Studies in Economics and Finance (CSEF), University of Naples, Italy.
    3. Felipe Avilés-Lucero & Andre Boik, 2018. "Wholesale most-favored-nation clauses and price discrimination with negative consumption externalities: equivalence results," Journal of Regulatory Economics, Springer, vol. 54(3), pages 266-291, December.
    4. Spier, Kathryn E., 2001. "The Use of “Most-Favored-Nation” Clauses in Settlement of Litigation," Berkeley Program in Law and Economics, Working Paper Series qt7hm4d39g, Berkeley Program in Law and Economics.
    5. Kathryn E. Spier, 2003. "“Tied to the Mast”: Most-Favored-Nation Clauses in Settlement Contracts," The Journal of Legal Studies, University of Chicago Press, vol. 32(1), pages 91-120, January.
    6. Arora, Vipin, 2012. "A Note on Natural Gas Market Evolution in Light of Transaction Cost Theory," MPRA Paper 54974, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    7. Cong Pan, 2018. "Supplier Encroachment and Consumer Welfare: Upstream Firm’s Opportunism and Multichannel Distribution," ISER Discussion Paper 1020, Institute of Social and Economic Research, The University of Osaka.
    8. Marian Moszoro & Pablo T. Spiller & Sebastian Stolorz, 2016. "Rigidity of Public Contracts," Journal of Empirical Legal Studies, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 13(3), pages 396-427, September.
    9. Vazquez, Luis, 2007. "Determinants of contract length in franchise contracts," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 97(2), pages 145-150, November.
    10. Francine Lafontaine & Kathryn L. Shaw, 1999. "The Dynamics of Franchise Contracting: Evidence from Panel Data," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 107(5), pages 1041-1080, October.
    11. Wang, Sen & Bogle, Tim & van Kooten, G. Cornelis, 2012. "Forestry and the New Institutional Economics," Working Papers 130818, University of Victoria, Resource Economics and Policy.
    12. Rosenkranz, Stephanie & Schmitz, Patrick W., 2001. "Vertikale Unternehmenskooperationen," MPRA Paper 6930, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    13. Choi, Gobong & Heo, Eunnyeong, 2017. "Estimating the price premium of LNG in Korea and Japan: The price formula approach," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 109(C), pages 676-684.
    14. Dobson, Paul W. & Waterson, Michael, "undated". "Chain-Store Pricing for Strategic Accommodation," Economic Research Papers 269490, University of Warwick - Department of Economics.
    15. Costello, Anna M., 2013. "Mitigating incentive conflicts in inter-firm relationships: Evidence from long-term supply contracts," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 56(1), pages 19-39.
    16. Kazuhiro Ohnishi, 2010. "Most-Favoured-Customer Pricing and Labour-Managed Oligopoly," Journal of Industry, Competition and Trade, Springer, vol. 10(1), pages 33-40, March.
    17. Francine Lafontaine & Joanne Oxley, 2001. "International Franchising: Evidence from US and Canadian Franchisors in Mexico," NBER Working Papers 8179, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    18. Maria Goddard & Russell Mannion, 1998. "From competition to co‐operation: new economic relationships in the National Health Service," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 7(2), pages 105-119, March.
    19. Chong‐En Bai & Zhigang Tao, 2000. "Contract Mixing in Franchising as a Mechanism for Public‐Good Provision," Journal of Economics & Management Strategy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 9(1), pages 85-113, March.
    20. Glachant, Jean-Michel & Hallack, Michelle, 2009. "Take-or-pay contract robustness: A three step story told by the Brazil-Bolivia gas case?," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 37(2), pages 651-657, February.

    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:jemstr:v:5:y:1996:i:4:p:565-579. 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.kellogg.northwestern.edu/research/journals/JEMS/ .

    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.