Strategic interplays of an actor in a relationship with a distributor

In this article we describe the strategic interplay of actors involved in a tripartite relationship (supplier-distributor-end user), which aim at maintaining or modifying each actor's position relative to the other actors in the relationship and in the surrounding network, using both direct and indirect action. In the case of energy distribution in France (electricity and gas), certain specificities have to be taken into account: the electricity supplier's monopolistic position and its obligation to supply the service, and the distribution centers' mixed vocation (they propose two kinds of energy, gas from Gaz de France and electricity from Electricité de France) and their obligation to distribute both kinds of energy. On the basis of an analysis of ten relationships between the Electricity Production and Transportation Division and Energy Distribution Centers, we show the actors' search for an optimal distance between the supplier and the intermediary. According to its own resources, the intermediary tries to deal with its own end-user market in an autonomous way or to use resources represented by the supplier and other actors in the connected network. Some managerial implications concerning the management of supplier compulsory relationships with a differentiated approach are suggested.