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Nonlinear Pricing in Vertically Related Duopolies

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  • Kai-Uwe Kuhn

Abstract

A vertically separated duopolistic market is analyzed in which manufacturers compete in wholesale price schedules and retailers in quantity. Under certainty there exists a continuum of equilibria. The introduction of an uncertain demand parameter, observed only by retailers, dramatically reduces the set of equilibria. Quantity discounts emerge in markets with only moderately decreasing returns to scale in manufacturing (and quantity competition downstream). With additive shocks to demand the equilibria coincide with those of markets in which vertically integrated firms compete in supply functions before market uncertainty is resolved. However, generically equilibria in my model are not supply function equilibria.

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  • Kai-Uwe Kuhn, 1997. "Nonlinear Pricing in Vertically Related Duopolies," RAND Journal of Economics, The RAND Corporation, vol. 28(1), pages 37-62, Spring.
    • Handle: RePEc:rje:randje:v:28:y:1997:i:spring:p:37-62
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    2. David Martimort & Salvatore Piccolo, 2010. "The Strategic Value of Quantity Forcing Contracts," American Economic Journal: Microeconomics, American Economic Association, vol. 2(1), pages 204-229, February.
    3. Hamilton, Stephen F & Stiegert, Kyle, 2000. "Vertical Coordination, Antitrust Law, and International Trade," Journal of Law and Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 43(1), pages 143-156, April.
    4. Juan Delgado, 2006. "Coalition-proof supply function equilibria under capacity constraints," Economic Theory, Springer;Society for the Advancement of Economic Theory (SAET), vol. 29(1), pages 219-229, September.
    5. Stiegert, Kyle W. & Wang, Shinn-Shyr, 2003. "Imperfect Competition And Strategic Trade Theory: What Have We Learned," Working Papers 14589, International Agricultural Trade Research Consortium.
    6. Matteo Bassi & Marco Pagnozzi & Salvatore Piccolo, 2015. "Product Differentiation by Competing Vertical Hierarchies," Journal of Economics & Management Strategy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 24(4), pages 904-933, October.
    7. Maggi, Giovanni, 1999. "Strategic Trade Policy under Incomplete Information," International Economic Review, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania and Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association, vol. 40(3), pages 571-594, August.
    8. Jakub Kastl & David Martimort & Salvatore Piccolo, 2011. "“When Should Manufacturers Want Fair Trade?”: New Insights from Asymmetric Information when Supply Chains Compete," Journal of Economics & Management Strategy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 20(3), pages 649-677, September.
    9. Liu, Yunchuan & Tyagi, Rajeev K., 2017. "Outsourcing to convert fixed costs into variable costs: A competitive analysis," International Journal of Research in Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 34(1), pages 252-264.
    10. Salvatore Piccolo & Jeanine Miklós-Thal, 2012. "Colluding through suppliers," RAND Journal of Economics, RAND Corporation, vol. 43(3), pages 492-513, September.
    11. Yunchuan Liu & Rajeev K. Tyagi, 2011. "The Benefits of Competitive Upward Channel Decentralization," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 57(4), pages 741-751, April.
    12. Bulut, Harun & Koray, Semih, 2008. "Competition and Regulation Via Supply and Demand Functions in Oligopolistic-Oligopsonistic Markets," Staff General Research Papers Archive 12930, Iowa State University, Department of Economics.
    13. Jakub Kastl & David Martimort & Salvatore Piccolo, 2009. ""When Should Manufacturers Want Fair Trade?": New Insights from Asymmetric Information," CSEF Working Papers 218, Centre for Studies in Economics and Finance (CSEF), University of Naples, Italy, revised 08 Apr 2010.
    14. Hamilton, Stephen F. & Stiegert, Kyle W., 2002. "An empirical test of the rent-shifting hypothesis: the case of state trading enterprises," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 58(1), pages 135-157, October.
    15. Hamilton, Stephen F. & Requate, Till, 2004. "Vertical structure and strategic environmental trade policy," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 47(2), pages 260-269, March.
    16. Steve McCorriston, 2002. "Why should imperfect competition matter to agricultural economists?," European Review of Agricultural Economics, Oxford University Press and the European Agricultural and Applied Economics Publications Foundation, vol. 29(3), pages 349-371, July.
    17. Vettas, Nikolaos & Petrakis, Emmanuel & Milliou, Chrysovalantou, 2003. "Endogenous Contracts Under Bargaining in Competing Vertical Chains," CEPR Discussion Papers 3976, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    18. Saggi, Kamal & Vettas, Nikolaos, 2002. "On intrabrand and interbrand competition: The strategic role of fees and royalties," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 46(1), pages 189-200, January.
    19. Zhou, Yong-Wu, 2007. "A comparison of different quantity discount pricing policies in a two-echelon channel with stochastic and asymmetric demand information," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 181(2), pages 686-703, September.
    20. Chidmi, Benaissa & Lopez, Rigoberto A. & Cotterill, Ronald W., 2004. "Vertical Relationships In The Ready-To-Eat Breakfast Cereal Market: A Brand-Supermarket Level Analysis," 2004 Annual meeting, August 1-4, Denver, CO 19916, American Agricultural Economics Association (New Name 2008: Agricultural and Applied Economics Association).
    21. Ziss, Steffen, 1999. "Divisionalization and strategic managerial incentives in oligopoly under uncertainty," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 17(8), pages 1163-1187, November.

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