IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/trf/wpaper/202.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

The Choice of Prices vs. Quantities under Uncertainty

Author

Listed:
  • Reisinger, Markus
  • Ressner, Ludwig

Abstract

This paper analyzes a duopoly model with stochastic demand in which firms first choose their strategy variable and compete afterwards. Contrary to the existing literature, we show that firms do not always choose a quantity which is the variable that induces a smaller degree of competition. The reason is that demand uncertainty and the degree of substitutability have countervailing effects on variable choice. Higher uncertainty favors prices, while closer substitutability favors quantities. Moreover, for intermediate values firms choose different strategy variables in equilibrium.

Suggested Citation

  • Reisinger, Markus & Ressner, Ludwig, 2007. "The Choice of Prices vs. Quantities under Uncertainty," Discussion Paper Series of SFB/TR 15 Governance and the Efficiency of Economic Systems 202, Free University of Berlin, Humboldt University of Berlin, University of Bonn, University of Mannheim, University of Munich.
    • Handle: RePEc:trf:wpaper:202
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://epub.ub.uni-muenchen.de/13350/1/202.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Tasnadi, Attila, 2006. "Price vs. quantity in oligopoly games," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 24(3), pages 541-554, May.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    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. Xu, Lili & Lee, Sang-Ho, 2024. "Endogenous competition with an integrated public utility firm under an output subsidy policy," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 87(C).
    2. Fischer, Carolyn, 2011. "Market power and output-based refunding of environmental policy revenues," Resource and Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 33(1), pages 212-230, January.
    3. Yasuhiko Nakamura, 2015. "Endogenous Choice of Strategic Variables in an Asymmetric Duopoly with Respect to the Demand Functions that Firms Face," Manchester School, University of Manchester, vol. 83(5), pages 546-567, September.
    4. Sherrill Shaffer, 2008. "Earnings Valuation And Sources Of Growth," CAMA Working Papers 2008-32, Centre for Applied Macroeconomic Analysis, Crawford School of Public Policy, The Australian National University.
    5. Daisuke Hirata & Toshihiro Matsumura, 2011. "Price leadership in a homogeneous product market," Journal of Economics, Springer, vol. 104(3), pages 199-217, November.
    6. Haraguchi, Junichi & Matsumura, Toshihiro, 2014. "Price versus quantity in a mixed duopoly with foreign penetration," Research in Economics, Elsevier, vol. 68(4), pages 338-353.
    7. Nakamura, Yasuhiko, 2015. "Endogenous choice of strategic incentives in a mixed duopoly with a new managerial delegation contract for the public firm," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 35(C), pages 262-277.
    8. Satoh, Atsuhiro & Tanaka, Yasuhito, 2016. "Choice of Strategic Variables by Relative Profit Maximizing Firms in Oligopoly," Economic Review, Hitotsubashi University, vol. 67(1), pages 17-25, January.
    9. Montinaro, Marta & Pal, Rupayan & Scrimitore, Marcella, 2020. "Per Unit and Ad Valorem Royalties in a Patent Licensing Game," FACTS: Firms And Cities Towards Sustainability 307305, Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei (FEEM) > FACTS: Firms And Cities Towards Sustainability.
    10. Rupayan Pal, "undated". "The Cournot-Bertrand profit differential: A Reversal result in network goods duopoly," Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research, Mumbai Working Papers 2013-014, Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research, Mumbai, India.
    11. Montinaro, Marta & Scrimitore, Marcella, 2019. "Per unit and ad valorem royalties in a patent licensing game," MPRA Paper 96642, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    12. Matsumura, Toshihiro & Ogawa, Akira, 2012. "Price versus quantity in a mixed duopoly," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 116(2), pages 174-177.
    13. Luciano Fanti, 2017. "An Observable Delay Game with Unionised Managerial Firms," Scottish Journal of Political Economy, Scottish Economic Society, vol. 64(1), pages 50-69, February.
    14. Reisinger, Markus & Reßner, Ludwig, 2007. "The Choice of Prices vs. Quantities under Uncertainty," Discussion Papers in Economics 1916, University of Munich, Department of Economics.
    15. Nakamura, Yasuhiko, 2019. "Combining the endogenous choice of the timing of setting incentive parameters and the contents of strategic contracts in a managerial mixed duopoly," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 59(C), pages 207-233.
    16. Basak, Debasmita & Wang, Leonard F.S., 2019. "Cournot vs. Bertrand in mixed markets with R&D," The North American Journal of Economics and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 48(C), pages 265-271.
    17. Daniel Cracau & Benjamin Franz, 2012. "An experimental study of mixed strategy equilibria in simultaneous price-quantity games," FEMM Working Papers 120017, Otto-von-Guericke University Magdeburg, Faculty of Economics and Management.
    18. Hong-Ren Din & Chia-Hung Sun, 2016. "Combining the endogenous choice of timing and competition version in a mixed duopoly," Journal of Economics, Springer, vol. 118(2), pages 141-166, June.
    19. Nakamura, Yasuhiko, 2015. "Price versus quantity in a mixed duopoly: The case of relative profit maximization," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 44(C), pages 37-43.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    competition; strategy variables; demand uncertainty;
    All these keywords.

    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

    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:trf:wpaper:202. 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: Tamilla Benkelberg (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/vfmunde.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.