IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/ube/dpvwib/dp0510.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

Horizontally Differentiated Market Makers

Author

Listed:
  • Simon Loertscher

Abstract

I present a model of competition between two market makers who are horizontally differentiated. I first show that absent a search market for buyers and sellers, there is a continuum of symmetric equilibria. These equilibria are payoff equivalent for market makers, but affect buyers' and sellers' welfare in opposite ways. Second, I analyze the model when buyers and sellers can also exchange the good in search markets. The model with search markets shares many features with existing models, yet allows competing intermediaries to net a profit in equilibrium. Interestingly, the model exhibits a complementarity between intermediaries' profits in the presence of search markets. Third, I show that every equilibrium in a game with market makers is also an equilibrium in an appropriately defined game with matchmakers

Suggested Citation

  • Simon Loertscher, 2005. "Horizontally Differentiated Market Makers," Diskussionsschriften dp0510, Universitaet Bern, Departement Volkswirtschaft.
    • Handle: RePEc:ube:dpvwib:dp0510
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://repec.vwiit.ch/dp/dp0510.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Daniel F. Spulber, 1996. "Market Microstructure and Intermediation," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 10(3), pages 135-152, Summer.
    2. repec:rus:hseeco:72158 is not listed on IDEAS
    3. John Rust & George Hall, 2003. "Middlemen versus Market Makers: A Theory of Competitive Exchange," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 111(2), pages 353-403, April.
    4. Daniel F. Spulber, 1996. "Market Making by Price-Setting Firms," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 63(4), pages 559-580.
    5. Yavas, Abdullah, 1994. "Middlemen in Bilateral Search Markets," Journal of Labor Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 12(3), pages 406-429, July.
    6. Yavas Abdullah, 1995. "Can Brokerage Have an Equilibrium Selection Role?," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 37(1), pages 17-37, January.
    7. Steven C. Salop, 1979. "Monopolistic Competition with Outside Goods," Bell Journal of Economics, The RAND Corporation, vol. 10(1), pages 141-156, Spring.
    8. Stahl, Dale O, II, 1988. "Bertrand Competition for Inputs and Walrasian Outcomes," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 78(1), pages 189-201, March.
    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. Simon Loertscher, 2007. "Horizontally Differentiated Market Makers," Journal of Economics & Management Strategy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 16(4), pages 793-825, December.
    2. Galeotti, Andrea & Moraga-González, José Luis, 2009. "Platform intermediation in a market for differentiated products," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 53(4), pages 417-428, May.
    3. Pieter Gautier & Bo Hu & Makoto Watanabe, 2023. "Marketmaking Middlemen," RAND Journal of Economics, RAND Corporation, vol. 54(1), pages 83-103, March.
    4. Simon Loertscher, 2008. "Market Making Oligopoly," Journal of Industrial Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 56(2), pages 263-289, June.
    5. Simon Loertscher, 2004. "Competition between market-making Intermediaries," Econometric Society 2004 North American Summer Meetings 515, Econometric Society.
    6. Simon Loertscher, 2005. "Market making oligopoly," Diskussionsschriften dp0512, Universitaet Bern, Departement Volkswirtschaft.
    7. Lars Boerner & Daniel Quint, 2023. "Medieval Matching Markets," International Economic Review, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania and Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association, vol. 64(1), pages 23-56, February.
    8. Daunfeldt, Sven-Olov & Engberg, Erik & Halvarsson, Daniel & Kokko, Ari & Tingvall, Patrik, 2019. "Wholesale firms: A catalyst for Swedish exports?," Ratio Working Papers 328, The Ratio Institute.
    9. Corentin Curchod, 2008. "Stratégies d’intermédiation et dynamiques de chaînes de valeur:leçons tirées de l’intermédiation électronique," Revue Finance Contrôle Stratégie, revues.org, vol. 11(2), pages 7-28, June.
    10. Hagiu, Andrei, 2009. "Why Do Intermediaries Divert Search?," Department of Economics, Working Paper Series qt3f34c5dk, Department of Economics, Institute for Business and Economic Research, UC Berkeley.
    11. Loertscher, Simon & Niedermayer, Andras, 2020. "Entry-deterring agency," Games and Economic Behavior, Elsevier, vol. 119(C), pages 172-188.
    12. Iaryczower, Matias & Oliveros, Santiago, 2016. "Power brokers: Middlemen in legislative bargaining," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 162(C), pages 209-236.
    13. Gehrig, Thomas & Ritzberger, Klaus, 2022. "Intermediation and price volatility," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 201(C).
    14. Hagiu, Andrei & Jullien, Bruno, 2007. "Designing a Two-Sided Platform: When To Increase Search Costs?," IDEI Working Papers 473, Institut d'Économie Industrielle (IDEI), Toulouse.
    15. Randall Wright & Yuet‐Yee Wong, 2014. "Buyers, Sellers, And Middlemen: Variations On Search‐Theoretic Themes," International Economic Review, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania and Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association, vol. 55(2), pages 375-397, May.
    16. Loertscher, Simon & Marx, Leslie M., 2017. "Club good intermediaries," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 50(C), pages 430-459.
    17. Simon Loertscher & Andras Niedermayer, 2008. "Fee Setting Intermediaries: On Real Estate Agents, Stock Brokers, and Auction Houses," Discussion Papers 1472, Northwestern University, Center for Mathematical Studies in Economics and Management Science.
    18. Gara Afonso & Ricardo Lagos, 2015. "The Over‐the‐Counter Theory of the Fed Funds Market: A Primer," Journal of Money, Credit and Banking, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 47(S2), pages 127-154, June.
    19. Lester, Benjamin & Weill, Pierre-Olivier & Hugonnier, Julien, 2022. "Heterogeneity in decentralized asset markets," Theoretical Economics, Econometric Society, vol. 17(3), July.
    20. Makoto Watanabe, 2018. "Middle Men: The Visible Market-Makers," The Japanese Economic Review, Springer, vol. 69(2), pages 156-170, June.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Market making; intermediation and search; horizontal differentiation; market microstructure;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • C72 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Game Theory and Bargaining Theory - - - Noncooperative Games
    • D41 - Microeconomics - - Market Structure, Pricing, and Design - - - Perfect Competition
    • 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:ube:dpvwib:dp0510. 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: Franz Koelliker (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/vwibech.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.