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- A Difficulty With The Address Models Of Product Differentiation

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  • Martin Peitz

    (Universidad de Alicante)

Abstract

In models of product differentiation and location models it is implicitly assumed that consumers can afford to buy the differentiated goods in the market. I show that with income heterogeneity there are severe existence problems of a price equilibrium in models of horizontal product differentiation with unit demand because some consumers are income-constrained. The result generalizes to other models of product differentiation, search, and switching costs. I present an alternative specification of variable individual demand in which this kind of existence problem cannot arise.

Suggested Citation

  • Martin Peitz, 1998. "- A Difficulty With The Address Models Of Product Differentiation," Working Papers. Serie AD 1998-21, Instituto Valenciano de Investigaciones Económicas, S.A. (Ivie).
    • Handle: RePEc:ivi:wpasad:1998-21
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Bockem, Sabine, 1994. "A Generalized Model of Horizontal Product Differentiation," Journal of Industrial Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 42(3), pages 287-298, September.
    2. Caplin, Andrew & Nalebuff, Barry, 1991. "Aggregation and Imperfect Competition: On the Existence of Equilibrium," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 59(1), pages 25-59, January.
    3. Jaskold Gabszewicz, J. & Thisse, J. -F., 1979. "Price competition, quality and income disparities," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 20(3), pages 340-359, June.
    4. Beath,John & Katsoulacos,Yannis, 1991. "The Economic Theory of Product Differentiation," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9780521335263, August.
    5. Paul Klemperer, 1995. "Competition when Consumers have Switching Costs: An Overview with Applications to Industrial Organization, Macroeconomics, and International Trade," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 62(4), pages 515-539.
    6. ANDERSON, Simon P. & de PALMA, André & THISSE, Jacques-François, 1992. "Interpretations of the logit discrete choice models and the theory of product differentiation," LIDAM Reprints CORE 1017, Université catholique de Louvain, Center for Operations Research and Econometrics (CORE).
    7. Cremer, Helmuth & Thisse, Jacques-Francois, 1991. "Location Models of Horizontal Differentiation: A Special Case of Vertical Differentiation Models," Journal of Industrial Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 39(4), pages 383-390, June.
    8. Steven C. Salop, 1979. "Monopolistic Competition with Outside Goods," Bell Journal of Economics, The RAND Corporation, vol. 10(1), pages 141-156, Spring.
    9. Economides, Nicholas, 1989. "Symmetric equilibrium existence and optimality in differentiated product markets," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 47(1), pages 178-194, February.
    10. Peitz, Martin, 1997. "Differentiated Bertrand duopoly with variable demand," Research in Economics, Elsevier, vol. 51(2), pages 85-100, June.
    11. Mussa, Michael & Rosen, Sherwin, 1978. "Monopoly and product quality," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 18(2), pages 301-317, August.
    12. d'Aspremont, C & Gabszewicz, Jean Jaskold & Thisse, J-F, 1979. "On Hotelling's "Stability in Competition"," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 47(5), pages 1145-1150, September.
    13. Martin Peitz, 1998. "- Two-Stage Models Of Product Differentiation With Unit-Elastic Demand," Working Papers. Serie AD 1998-18, Instituto Valenciano de Investigaciones Económicas, S.A. (Ivie).
    14. Economides, Nicholas, 1984. "The principle of minimum differentiation revisited," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 24(3), pages 345-368, April.
    15. Peitz, Martin, 1995. "Utility maximization in models of discrete choice," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 49(1), pages 91-94, July.
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    Cited by:

    1. Peitz, Martin, 2000. "Aggregation in a Model of Price Competition," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 90(1), pages 1-38, January.
    2. Pia Weiß, 2001. "Product and Process Innovations in a Horizontally Differentiated Product Market," IWP Discussion Paper Series 07/2001, Institute for Economic Policy, Cologne, Germany.

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    JEL classification:

    • D43 - Microeconomics - - Market Structure, Pricing, and Design - - - Oligopoly and Other Forms of Market Imperfection
    • L13 - Industrial Organization - - Market Structure, Firm Strategy, and Market Performance - - - Oligopoly and Other Imperfect Markets

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