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Price Discrimination in International Airline Markets

Author

Listed:
  • Gaurab Aryal
  • Charles Murry
  • Jonathan W Williams

Abstract

We develop a model of inter-temporal and intra-temporal price discrimination by monopoly airlines to study the ability of different discriminatory pricing mechanisms to increase efficiency and the associated distributional implications. To estimate the model, we use unique data from international airline markets with flight-level variation in prices across time, cabins, and markets and information on passengers’ reasons for travel and time of purchase. The current pricing practice yields approximately 77% of the first-best welfare. The source of this inefficiency arises primarily from private information about passenger valuations, not dynamic uncertainty about demand. We also find that if airlines could discriminate between business and leisure passengers, total welfare would improve at the expense of business passenger surplus. Also, replacing the current pricing that involves screening passengers across cabin classes with offering a single cabin class has minimal effect on total welfare.

Suggested Citation

  • Gaurab Aryal & Charles Murry & Jonathan W Williams, 2024. "Price Discrimination in International Airline Markets," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 91(2), pages 641-689.
    • Handle: RePEc:oup:restud:v:91:y:2024:i:2:p:641-689.
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    File URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10.1093/restud/rdad037
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    Cited by:

    1. Kevin R. Williams, 2022. "The Welfare Effects of Dynamic Pricing: Evidence From Airline Markets," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 90(2), pages 831-858, March.
    2. Kevin R. Williams, 2017. "Dynamic Airline Pricing and Seat Availability," Cowles Foundation Discussion Papers 2103R, Cowles Foundation for Research in Economics, Yale University, revised May 2020.
    3. Ambarish Chandra, 2020. "Price Discrimination along Multiple Dimensions: New Evidence from a Regional Airline," Working Papers tecipa-676, University of Toronto, Department of Economics.
    4. Kevin R. Williams, 2017. "The Welfare Effects of Dynamic Pricing: Evidence from Airline Markets," Cowles Foundation Discussion Papers 2103R2, Cowles Foundation for Research in Economics, Yale University, revised Jun 2021.
    5. Wozny, Florian, 2025. "From Tax Incidence to Emission Reduction: The Pass-through of Air Passenger Taxes," VfS Annual Conference 2025 (Cologne): Revival of Industrial Policy 325370, Verein für Socialpolitik / German Economic Association.
    6. Harold D. Chiang & Jack Collison & Lorenzo Magnolfi & Christopher Sullivan, 2025. "Enhancing the Merger Simulation Toolkit with ML/AI," Papers 2506.05225, arXiv.org.
    7. Dubus, Antoine, 2024. "Behavior-based algorithmic pricing," Information Economics and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 66(C).
    8. Ali Hortacsu & Olivia R. Natan & Hayden Parsley & Timothy Schwieg & Kevin R. Williams, 2021. "Organizational Structure and Pricing: Evidence from a Large U.S. Airline," Cowles Foundation Discussion Papers 2312, Cowles Foundation for Research in Economics, Yale University.
    9. Aniko …ry & Ali Horta su & Kevin Williams, 2022. "Dynamic Price Competition: Theory and Evidence from Airline Markets," Cowles Foundation Discussion Papers 2341R1, Cowles Foundation for Research in Economics, Yale University, revised Apr 2023.

    More about this item

    Keywords

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    JEL classification:

    • L00 - Industrial Organization - - General - - - General
    • D42 - Microeconomics - - Market Structure, Pricing, and Design - - - Monopoly
    • L93 - Industrial Organization - - Industry Studies: Transportation and Utilities - - - Air Transportation

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