IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/ucp/jlawec/doi10.1086-675862.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Did Robert Bork Understate the Competitive Impact of Mergers? Evidence from Consummated Mergers

Author

Listed:
  • Orley Ashenfelter
  • Daniel Hosken
  • Matthew Weinberg

Abstract

In The Antitrust Paradox, Robert Bork viewed most mergers as either competitively neutral or efficiency enhancing. In his view, only mergers creating a dominant firm or monopoly were likely to harm consumers. Bork was especially skeptical of oligopoly concerns resulting from mergers. In this paper, we provide a critique of Bork's views on merger policy from The Antitrust Paradox. Many of Bork's recommendations have been implemented over time and have improved merger analysis. Bork's proposed horizontal merger policy, however, was too permissive. In particular, the empirical record shows that mergers in oligopolistic markets can raise consumer prices.

Suggested Citation

  • Orley Ashenfelter & Daniel Hosken & Matthew Weinberg, 2014. "Did Robert Bork Understate the Competitive Impact of Mergers? Evidence from Consummated Mergers," Journal of Law and Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 57(S3), pages 67-100.
    • Handle: RePEc:ucp:jlawec:doi:10.1086/675862
    DOI: 10.1086/675862
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1086/675862
    Download Restriction: Access to the online full text or PDF requires a subscription.
    File URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1086/675862
    Download Restriction: Access to the online full text or PDF requires a subscription.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1086/675862?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
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to look for a different version below or search for a different version of it.

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Paul B. Ellickson, 2007. "Does Sutton apply to supermarkets?," RAND Journal of Economics, RAND Corporation, vol. 38(1), pages 43-59, March.
    2. John Kwoka & Evgenia Shumilkina, 2010. "The Price Effect Of Eliminating Potential Competition: Evidence From An Airline Merger," Journal of Industrial Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 58(4), pages 767-793, December.
    3. Marie-Laure Allain & Claire Chambolle & Stéphane Turolla & Sofia Villas-Boas, 2013. "The Impact of Retail Mergers on Food Prices: Evidence from France," Working Papers hal-00920460, HAL.
    4. Robin A. Prager & Timothy H. Hannan, 1998. "Do Substantial Horizontal Mergers Generate Significant Price Effects? Evidence From The Banking Industry," Journal of Industrial Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 46(4), pages 433-452, December.
    5. Philippe Choné & Laurent Linnemer, 2012. "A Treatment Effect Method for Merger Analysis with an Application to Parking Prices in P aris," Journal of Industrial Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 60(4), pages 631-656, December.
    6. repec:pri:cepsud:140weinberg is not listed on IDEAS
    7. Robert Connor & Roger Feldman & Bryan Dowd, 1998. "The Effects of Market Concentration and Horizontal Mergers on Hospital Costs and Prices," International Journal of the Economics of Business, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 5(2), pages 159-180.
    8. Kwoka, John & Pollitt, Michael, 2010. "Do mergers improve efficiency? Evidence from restructuring the US electric power sector," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 28(6), pages 645-656, November.
    9. Daniel Hosken & Louis Silvia & Christopher Taylor, 2011. "Does Concentration Matter? Measurement of Petroleum Merger Price Effects," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 101(3), pages 45-50, May.
    10. Kim, E Han & Singal, Vijay, 1993. "Mergers and Market Power: Evidence from the Airline Industry," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 83(3), pages 549-569, June.
    11. Christopher T. Taylor & Daniel S. Hosken, 2007. "The Economic Effects Of The Marathon‐Ashland Joint Venture: The Importance Of Industry Supply Shocks And Vertical Market Structure," Journal of Industrial Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 55(3), pages 419-451, September.
    12. Justine S. Hastings & Richard J. Gilbert, 2005. "Market Power, Vertical Integration And The Wholesale Price Of Gasoline," Journal of Industrial Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 53(4), pages 469-492, December.
    13. Leemore Dafny, 2009. "Estimation and Identification of Merger Effects: An Application to Hospital Mergers," Journal of Law and Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 52(3), pages 523-550, August.
    14. Charles W. Calomiris & Thanavut Pornrojnangkool, 2005. "Monopoly-Creating Bank Consolidation? The Merger of Fleet and BankBoston," NBER Working Papers 11351, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    15. Leemore Dafny & Mark Duggan & Subramaniam Ramanarayanan, 2012. "Paying a Premium on Your Premium? Consolidation in the US Health Insurance Industry," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 102(2), pages 1161-1185, April.
    16. Mark J. McCabe, 2002. "Journal Pricing and Mergers: A Portfolio Approach," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 92(1), pages 259-269, March.
    17. Schumann, Laurence & Reitzes, James D & Rogers, Robert P, 1997. "In the Matter of Weyerhaeuser Company: The Use of a Hold-Separate Order in a Merger with Horizontal and Vertical Effects," Journal of Regulatory Economics, Springer, vol. 11(3), pages 271-289, May.
    18. Aguzzoni, Luca & Argentesi, Elena & Ciari, Lorenzo & Duso, Tomaso & Tognoni, Massimo, 2016. "Ex-post Merger Evaluation in the U.K. Retail Market for Books," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 64(1), pages 170-200.
    19. Clifford Winston & Vikram Maheshri & Scott M. Dennis, 2011. "Long-Run Effects of Mergers: The Case of U.S. Western Railroads," Journal of Law and Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 54(2), pages 275-304.
    20. Dan Luo, 2014. "The Price Effects of the Delta/Northwest Airline Merger," Review of Industrial Organization, Springer;The Industrial Organization Society, vol. 44(1), pages 27-48, February.
    21. Orley Ashenfelter & Daniel Hosken & Matthew Weinberg, 2009. "Generating Evidence to Guide Merger Enforcement," CPI Journal, Competition Policy International, vol. 5.
    22. Chouinard Hayley H & Perloff Jeffrey M, 2007. "Gasoline Price Differences: Taxes, Pollution Regulations, Mergers, Market Power, and Market Conditions," The B.E. Journal of Economic Analysis & Policy, De Gruyter, vol. 7(1), pages 1-28, January.
    23. Unknown & Dennis Carlton, 2009. "Why We Need to Measure the Effect of Merger Policy and How to Do It," CPI Journal, Competition Policy International, vol. 5.
    24. Ellickson, Paul, 2005. "Does Sutton Apply to Supermarkets?," Working Papers 05-05, Duke University, Department of Economics.
    25. Orley C. Ashenfelter & Daniel S. Hosken & Matthew C. Weinberg, 2015. "Efficiencies brewed: pricing and consolidation in the US beer industry," RAND Journal of Economics, RAND Corporation, vol. 46(2), pages 328-361, June.
    26. Aileen Thompson, 2011. "The Effect of Hospital Mergers on Inpatient Prices: A Case Study of the New Hanover-Cape Fear Transaction," International Journal of the Economics of Business, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 18(1), pages 91-101.
    27. Robert DeYoung & Douglas Evanoff & Philip Molyneux, 2009. "Mergers and Acquisitions of Financial Institutions: A Review of the Post-2000 Literature," Journal of Financial Services Research, Springer;Western Finance Association, vol. 36(2), pages 87-110, December.
    28. Dario Focarelli & Fabio Panetta, 2003. "Are Mergers Beneficial to Consumers? Evidence from the Market for Bank Deposits," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 93(4), pages 1152-1172, September.
    29. Borenstein, Severin, 1990. "Airline Mergers, Airport Dominance, and Market Power," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 80(2), pages 400-404, May.
    30. Jean-Francois Houde, 2012. "Spatial Differentiation and Vertical Mergers in Retail Markets for Gasoline," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 102(5), pages 2147-2182, August.
    31. Montoriol-Garriga, Judit, 2008. "Bank mergers and lending relationships," Working Paper Series 934, European Central Bank.
    32. Paola Sapienza, 2002. "The Effects of Banking Mergers on Loan Contracts," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 57(1), pages 329-367, February.
    33. Ambarish Chandra & Allan Collard‐Wexler, 2009. "Mergers in Two‐Sided Markets: An Application to the Canadian Newspaper Industry," Journal of Economics & Management Strategy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 18(4), pages 1045-1070, December.
    34. Justine S. Hastings, 2004. "Vertical Relationships and Competition in Retail Gasoline Markets: Empirical Evidence from Contract Changes in Southern California," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 94(1), pages 317-328, March.
    35. Jason Allen & Robert Clark & Jean-Fran?ois Houde, 2014. "The Effect of Mergers in Search Markets: Evidence from the Canadian Mortgage Industry," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 104(10), pages 3365-3396, October.
    36. Michael G. Vita & Seth Sacher, 2001. "The Competitive Effects of Not‐for‐Profit Hospital Mergers: A Case Study," Journal of Industrial Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 49(1), pages 63-84, March.
    37. Robert W. Crandall & Clifford Winston, 2005. "Does antitrust policy improve consumer welfare? Assessing the evidence," Chapters, in: Colin Robinson (ed.), Governments, Competition and Utility Regulation, chapter 2, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    38. John Bitzan & Wesley Wilson, 2007. "Industry costs and consolidation: efficiency gains and mergers in the U.S. railroad industry," Review of Industrial Organization, Springer;The Industrial Organization Society, vol. 30(2), pages 81-105, March.
    39. repec:pri:cepsud:183ashenfelter is not listed on IDEAS
    40. Joseph A. Clougherty & Jo Seldeslachts, 2013. "The Deterrence Effects of US Merger Policy Instruments," The Journal of Law, Economics, and Organization, Oxford University Press, vol. 29(5), pages 1114-1144, October.
    41. Karikari, John Agyei & Brown, Stephen M & Nadji, Mehrzad, 2002. "The Union Pacific/Southern Pacific Railroads Merger: Effect of Trackage Rights on Rates," Journal of Regulatory Economics, Springer, vol. 22(3), pages 271-285, November.
    42. McCabe Mark J, 2004. "Law Serials Pricing and Mergers: A Portfolio Approach," The B.E. Journal of Economic Analysis & Policy, De Gruyter, vol. 3(1), pages 1-31, August.
    43. John Simpson & Christopher Taylor, 2008. "Do Gasoline Mergers Affect Consumer Prices? The Marathon Ashland Petroleum and Ultramar Diamond Shamrock Transaction," Journal of Law and Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 51(1), pages 135-152, February.
    44. Orley Ashenfelter & Daniel Hosken, 2010. "The Effect of Mergers on Consumer Prices: Evidence from Five Mergers on the Enforcement Margin," Journal of Law and Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 53(3), pages 417-466.
    45. Elzinga, Kenneth G, 1969. "The Antimerger Law: Pyrrhic Victories?," Journal of Law and Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 12(1), pages 43-78, April.
    46. Breen Denis A., 2004. "The Union Pacific/Southern Pacific Rail Merger: A Retrospective on Merger Benefits," Review of Network Economics, De Gruyter, vol. 3(3), pages 1-40, September.
    47. Deborah Haas-Wilson & Christopher Garmon, 2011. "Hospital Mergers and Competitive Effects: Two Retrospective Analyses," International Journal of the Economics of Business, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 18(1), pages 17-32.
    48. Matthew Weinberg, 2008. "The Price Effects Of Horizontal Mergers," Journal of Competition Law and Economics, Oxford University Press, vol. 4(2), pages 433-447.
    49. Orley Ashenfelter & Daniel Hosken & Matthew Weinberg, 2009. "Generating Evidence to Guide Merger Enforcement," CPI Journal, Competition Policy International, vol. 5.
    50. Mark J. Garmaise & Tobias J. Moskowitz, 2006. "Bank Mergers and Crime: The Real and Social Effects of Credit Market Competition," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 61(2), pages 495-538, April.
    51. Barton, David M & Sherman, Roger, 1984. "The Price and Profit Effects of Horizontal Merger: A Case Study," Journal of Industrial Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 33(2), pages 165-177, December.
    52. Louis Silvia & Christopher T. Taylor, 2013. "Petroleum Mergers and Competition in the Northeast United States," International Journal of the Economics of Business, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 20(1), pages 97-124, February.
    53. Steven Tenn, 2011. "The Price Effects of Hospital Mergers: A Case Study of the Sutter-Summit Transaction," International Journal of the Economics of Business, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 18(1), pages 65-82.
    54. Raymond Deneckere & Carl Davidson, 1985. "Incentives to Form Coalitions with Bertrand Competition," RAND Journal of Economics, The RAND Corporation, vol. 16(4), pages 473-486, Winter.
    55. Teresa D. Harrison, 2011. "Do Mergers Really Reduce Costs? Evidence From Hospitals," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 49(4), pages 1054-1069, October.
    56. Prager, Robin A & Hannan, Timothy H, 1998. "Do Substantial Horizontal Mergers Generate Significant Price Effects? Evidence from the Banking Industry," Journal of Industrial Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 46(4), pages 433-452, December.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    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. Brito, Duarte & Pereira, Pedro & Ramalho, Joaquim J.S., 2013. "Mergers, coordinated effects and efficiency in the Portuguese non-life insurance industry," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 31(5), pages 554-568.
    2. Franco Mariuzzo & Peter L. Ormosi, 2017. "Post-merger price dynamics matter, so why do merger retrospectives ignore them?," Working Paper series, University of East Anglia, Centre for Competition Policy (CCP) 2016-05, Centre for Competition Policy, University of East Anglia, Norwich, UK..
    3. Juan Luis Jiménez & Jordi Perdiguero, 2018. "Mergers and difference-in-difference estimator: Why firms do not increase prices?," European Journal of Law and Economics, Springer, vol. 45(2), pages 285-311, April.
    4. Packalen, Mikko & Sen, Anindya, 2013. "Static and dynamic merger effects: A market share based empirical analysis," International Review of Law and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 36(C), pages 12-24.
    5. Orley Ashenfelter & Daniel Hosken, 2010. "The Effect of Mergers on Consumer Prices: Evidence from Five Mergers on the Enforcement Margin," Journal of Law and Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 53(3), pages 417-466.
    6. Orley C. Ashenfelter & Daniel S. Hosken & Matthew C. Weinberg, 2015. "Efficiencies brewed: pricing and consolidation in the US beer industry," RAND Journal of Economics, RAND Corporation, vol. 46(2), pages 328-361, June.
    7. Orley C. Ashenfelter & Daniel Hosken & Matthew Weinberg, 2009. "Generating Evidence to Guide Merger Enforcement," Working Papers 1137, Princeton University, Department of Economics, Center for Economic Policy Studies..
    8. Orley C. Ashenfelter & Daniel S. Hosken & Matthew C. Weinberg, 2013. "The Price Effects of a Large Merger of Manufacturers: A Case Study of Maytag-Whirlpool," American Economic Journal: Economic Policy, American Economic Association, vol. 5(1), pages 239-261, February.
    9. Daniel S. Hosken & Luke M. Olson & Loren K. Smith, 2018. "Do retail mergers affect competition? Evidence from grocery retailing," Journal of Economics & Management Strategy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 27(1), pages 3-22, March.
    10. Orley Ashenfelter & Daniel Hosken, 2008. "The Effect of Mergers on Consumer Prices: Evidence from Five Selected Case Studies," NBER Working Papers 13859, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    11. Orley Ashenfelter & Daniel Hosken & Matthew Weinberg, 2009. "Generating Evidence to Guide Merger Enforcement," CPI Journal, Competition Policy International, vol. 5.
    12. Orley Ashenfelter & Daniel Hosken, 2008. "The Effect of Mergers on Consumer Prices: Evidence from Five Selected Case Studies," NBER Working Papers 13859, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    13. repec:pri:cepsud:160ashenfelter is not listed on IDEAS
    14. Luca Aguzzoni & Elena Argentesi & Lorenzo Ciari & Tomaso Duso & Massimo Tognoni, 2016. "Ex post Merger Evaluation in the U.K. Retail Market for Books," Journal of Industrial Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 64(1), pages 170-200, March.
    15. Marie-Laure Allain & Claire Chambolle & Stéphane Turolla & Sofia Villas-Boas, 2013. "The Impact of Retail Mergers on Food Prices: Evidence from France," Working Papers hal-00920460, HAL.
    16. Joel Stiebale & Florian Szücs, 2022. "Mergers and market power: evidence from rivals' responses in European markets," RAND Journal of Economics, RAND Corporation, vol. 53(4), pages 678-702, December.
    17. Gugler, Klaus & Szücs, Florian, 2016. "Merger externalities in oligopolistic markets," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 47(C), pages 230-254.
    18. Joseph Farrell & Paul Pautler & Michael Vita, 2009. "Economics at the FTC: Retrospective Merger Analysis with a Focus on Hospitals," Review of Industrial Organization, Springer;The Industrial Organization Society, vol. 35(4), pages 369-385, December.
    19. Zulehner, Christine & Gugler, Klaus Peter & Weichselbaumer, Michael, 2015. "Analysis of mergers in first-price auctions," CEPR Discussion Papers 10799, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    20. Genakos, Christos & Lamprinidis, Andreas & Walker, James, 2023. "Evaluating merger effects," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 121325, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    21. Christos Genakos & Andreas Lamprinidis & James Walker, 2023. "Evaluating merger effects," CEP Discussion Papers dp1921, Centre for Economic Performance, LSE.

    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • K21 - Law and Economics - - Regulation and Business Law - - - Antitrust Law
    • L1 - Industrial Organization - - Market Structure, Firm Strategy, and Market Performance
    • L4 - Industrial Organization - - Antitrust Issues and Policies
    • L41 - Industrial Organization - - Antitrust Issues and Policies - - - Monopolization; Horizontal Anticompetitive Practices

    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:ucp:jlawec:doi:10.1086/675862. 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: Journals Division (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/JLE .

    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.