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Tying in two-sided markets and the honor all cards rule

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Author Info
Rochet, Jean Charles
Tirole, Jean

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Abstract

Payment card associations offer both debit and credit cards and sometimes engage in a tie-in on the merchant side through the so-called honor-all-cards (HAC) rule. This article analyzes the impact of the HAC rule, using a simple model with two types of transactions subject to different competitive pressures. In the no-HAC-rule benchmark model, the interchange fee (IF, the transfer from the merchant's bank to the cardholder's bank) on the card subject to platform competition is socially too low, and the IF on the card protected from competition is either optimal or too high. In either case, the HAC rule not only benefits the multi-card platform but also raises social welfare, due to a rebalancing effect. The paper then investigates a number of extensions of the benchmark model, including varying degrees of substitutability between the two cards; merchant heterogeneity; and platform differentiation. While the HAC rule may no longer raise social welfare under all values of the parameters, the basic and socially beneficial rebalancing effect unveiled in the benchmark model is robust.

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File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6V8P-4RP0MDB-1/2/8c5ed3f575e852ab5bfaa117eebb253a
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Publisher Info
Article provided by Elsevier in its journal International Journal of Industrial Organization.

Volume (Year): 26 (2008)
Issue (Month): 6 (November)
Pages: 1333-1347
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Handle: RePEc:eee:indorg:v:26:y:2008:i:6:p:1333-1347

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Web page: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/inca/505551

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Related research
Keywords: Tie-ins Two-sided markets Payment cards Price rebalancing;

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References listed on IDEAS
Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.:
  1. Jean-Charles Rochet & Jean Tirole, 2002. "Cooperation Among Competitors: Some Economics Of Payment Card Associations," RAND Journal of Economics, The RAND Corporation, vol. 33(4), pages 549-570, Winter.
  2. George-Marios Angeletos et al., 2001. "The Hyberbolic Consumption Model: Calibration, Simulation, and Empirical Evaluation," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 15(3), pages 47-68, Summer. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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Cited by:
(explanations, Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.)

  1. Jullien, Bruno, 2004. "Two-Sided Markets and Electronic Intermediation," IDEI Working Papers 295, Institut d'Économie Industrielle (IDEI), Toulouse. [Downloadable!]
  2. Bruno Jullien, 2004. "Two-Sided Markets and Electronic Intermediaries," CESifo Working Paper Series CESifo Working Paper No. , CESifo Group Munich. [Downloadable!]
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