IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/crt/wpaper/0613.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

Alliances between competitors and consumer information

Author

Listed:
  • Paolo Garella

    (University of Milano, Italy)

  • Martin Peitz

    (International University in Germany, Bruchsal (Germany))

Abstract

Alliances between competitors in which established firms provide access to proprietary resources, e.g. their distribution channels, are important business practices. We analyze a market where an established firm, firm A, produces a product of well-known quality, and a firm with an unknown brand, firm B, has to choose to produce high or low quality. Firm A observes firm B's quality choice but consumers do not. Hence, firm B is subject to a moral hazard problem which can potentially be solved by firm A. Firm A can accept or reject to form an alliance with firm B, which is observed by consumers. If an alliance is formed, firm A implicitly certifies the rival's product. Consumers infer that firm B is a competitor with high quality, as otherwise why would the established firm accept to form an alliance? The mechanism we discover allows for an economic interpretation of several types of business practices.

Suggested Citation

  • Paolo Garella & Martin Peitz, "undated". "Alliances between competitors and consumer information," Working Papers 0613, University of Crete, Department of Economics, revised 01 2006.
    • Handle: RePEc:crt:wpaper:0613
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://economics.soc.uoc.gr/wpa/docs/garellapeitz_stratall_crete.pdf
    File Function: Revised version
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Wujin Chu & Woosik Chu, 1994. "Signaling Quality by Selling Through a Reputable Retailer: An Example of Renting the Reputation of Another Agent," Marketing Science, INFORMS, vol. 13(2), pages 177-189.
    2. Bernard Garrette & Pierre Dussauge & W. Mitchell, 2004. "Asymmetric performance: the market share impact of scale and link alliances in the global auto industry," Post-Print hal-00458748, HAL.
    3. Paolo G. Garella & Martin Peitz, 2007. "Alliances between Competitors and Consumer Information," Journal of the European Economic Association, MIT Press, vol. 5(4), pages 823-845, June.
    4. Sean Nicholson, 2005. "Biotech-Pharmaceutical Alliances as a Signal of Asset and Firm Quality," The Journal of Business, University of Chicago Press, vol. 78(4), pages 1433-1464, July.
    5. Pashigian, B Peter & Gould, Eric D, 1998. "Internalizing Externalities: The Pricing of Space in Shopping Malls," Journal of Law and Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 41(1), pages 115-142, April.
    6. Paolo G. Garella & Martin Peitz, 2000. "Intermediation Can Replace Certification," Journal of Economics & Management Strategy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 9(1), pages 1-24, March.
    7. Gary Biglaiser & James W. Friedman, 1999. "Adverse Selection with Competitive Inspection," Journal of Economics & Management Strategy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 8(1), pages 1-32, March.
    8. Joseph Farrell, 1986. "Moral Hazard as an Entry Barrier," RAND Journal of Economics, The RAND Corporation, vol. 17(3), pages 440-449, Autumn.
    9. Biglaiser, Gary & Friedman, James W., 1994. "Middlemen as guarantors of quality," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 12(4), pages 509-531, December.
    10. Carlin, Barbara A. & Dowling, Michael J. & Roering, William D. & Wyman, John & Kalinoglou, John & Clyburn, Greg, 1994. "Sleeping with the enemy: Doing business with a competitor," Business Horizons, Elsevier, vol. 37(5), pages 9-15.
    11. Pierre Dussauge & Bernard Garrette, 1999. "Cooperative Strategy - Competing Successfully through Strategic Alliances," Post-Print hal-00706251, HAL.
    12. Kohlberg, Elon & Mertens, Jean-Francois, 1986. "On the Strategic Stability of Equilibria," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 54(5), pages 1003-1037, September.
    13. Gary Biglaiser, 1993. "Middlemen as Experts," RAND Journal of Economics, The RAND Corporation, vol. 24(2), pages 212-223, Summer.
    14. Pierre Dussauge & Bernard Garrette & Will Mitchell, 2004. "Asymmetric performance: the market share impact of scale and link alliances in the global auto industry," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 25(7), pages 701-711, July.
    15. Pierre Dussauge & Bernard Garrette & Will Mitchell, 2000. "Learning from competing partners: outcomes and durations of scale and link alliances in Europe, North America and Asia," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 21(2), pages 99-126, February.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Choi, Jay Pil & Peitz, Martin, 2018. "You are judged by the company you keep: Reputation leverage in vertically related markets," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 61(C), pages 351-379.
    2. Xiao Huang & Tamer Boyacı & Mehmet Gümüş & Saibal Ray & Dan Zhang, 2016. "United We Stand or Divided We Stand? Strategic Supplier Alliances Under Order Default Risk," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 62(5), pages 1297-1315, May.
    3. Paolo G. Garella & Martin Peitz, 2007. "Alliances between Competitors and Consumer Information," Journal of the European Economic Association, MIT Press, vol. 5(4), pages 823-845, June.

    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. Choi, Jay Pil & Peitz, Martin, 2018. "You are judged by the company you keep: Reputation leverage in vertically related markets," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 61(C), pages 351-379.
    2. Martin Peitz & Paolo G. Garella, 1999. "- Exclusive Dealing Clauses Facilitate Entry," Working Papers. Serie AD 1999-17, Instituto Valenciano de Investigaciones Económicas, S.A. (Ivie).
    3. Martin Peitz, 2000. "Exclusionary Practices and Entry Under Asymmetric Information," Econometric Society World Congress 2000 Contributed Papers 1197, Econometric Society.
    4. Paolo G. Garella & Martin Peitz, 2000. "Intermediation Can Replace Certification," Journal of Economics & Management Strategy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 9(1), pages 1-24, March.
    5. Wilfred Amaldoss & Richard Staelin, 2010. "Cross-Function and Same-Function Alliances: How Does Alliance Structure Affect the Behavior of Partnering Firms?," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 56(2), pages 302-317, February.
    6. Choi, Jay Pil, 2003. "Bundling new products with old to signal quality, with application to the sequencing of new products," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 21(8), pages 1179-1200, October.
    7. Sofronis Clerides & Paris Nearchou & Panos Pashardes, 2004. "Intermediaries as Quality Assessors in Markets with Asymmetric," University of Cyprus Working Papers in Economics 3-2004, University of Cyprus Department of Economics.
    8. Gary Biglaiser & Fei Li & Charles Murry & Yiyi Zhou, 2020. "Intermediaries and product quality in used car markets," RAND Journal of Economics, RAND Corporation, vol. 51(3), pages 905-933, September.
    9. Muxin Li, 2023. "Do Lower Search Costs Benefit Intermediaries?," Review of Industrial Organization, Springer;The Industrial Organization Society, vol. 63(3), pages 373-405, November.
    10. de Man, Ard-Pieter & Luvison, Dave, 2019. "Collaborative business models: Aligning and operationalizing alliances," Business Horizons, Elsevier, vol. 62(4), pages 473-482.
    11. Hanna Hottenrott & Cindy Lopes-Bento, 2015. "Quantity or quality? Knowledge alliances and their effects on patenting," Industrial and Corporate Change, Oxford University Press and the Associazione ICC, vol. 24(5), pages 981-1011.
    12. Belleflamme,Paul & Peitz,Martin, 2015. "Industrial Organization," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9781107687899.
    13. Garrette, Bernard & Castaner, Xavier & Dussauge, Pierre, 2006. "The need for scale as a driver of alliance formation : choosing between collaborative and autonomous production," HEC Research Papers Series 821, HEC Paris.
    14. Liu, Chia-Ling (Eunice) & Ghauri, Pervez N. & Sinkovics, Rudolf R., 2010. "Understanding the impact of relational capital and organizational learning on alliance outcomes," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 45(3), pages 237-249, July.
    15. Clerides, Sofronis & Nearchou, Paris & Pashardes, Panos, 2008. "Intermediaries as quality assessors: Tour operators in the travel industry," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 26(1), pages 372-392, January.
    16. Chou, Ting-Kai & Ou, Chin-Shyh & Tsai, Shu-Huan, 2014. "Value of strategic alliances: Evidence from the bond market," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 42(C), pages 42-59.
    17. Piaskowska, D., 2005. "Essays on firm growth and value creation," Other publications TiSEM 89053610-79c6-4c52-9d1c-6, Tilburg University, School of Economics and Management.
    18. Lai, Jung-Ho & Chang, Shao-Chi & Chen, Sheng-Syan, 2010. "Is experience valuable in international strategic alliances?," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 16(3), pages 247-261, September.
    19. Pashardes, Panos & Clerides, Sofronis & Nearchou, Paris, 2005. "Intermediaries as Bundlers, Traders and Quality Assessors: The Case of UK Tour Operators," CEPR Discussion Papers 5038, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    20. Langinier, Corinne & Babcock, Bruce A., 2005. "Producer's choice of certification," 2005 Annual meeting, July 24-27, Providence, RI 19510, American Agricultural Economics Association (New Name 2008: Agricultural and Applied Economics Association).

    More about this item

    Keywords

    alliances; brand sharing; asymmetric information; signaling; exclusion; moral hazard; entry assistan;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • L15 - Industrial Organization - - Market Structure, Firm Strategy, and Market Performance - - - Information and Product Quality
    • L13 - Industrial Organization - - Market Structure, Firm Strategy, and Market Performance - - - Oligopoly and Other Imperfect Markets
    • L24 - Industrial Organization - - Firm Objectives, Organization, and Behavior - - - Contracting Out; Joint Ventures
    • L42 - Industrial Organization - - Antitrust Issues and Policies - - - Vertical Restraints; Resale Price Maintenance; Quantity Discounts

    NEP fields

    This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

    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:crt:wpaper:0613. 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: Kostis Pigounakis (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/deuchgr.html .

    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.