Government firms and authorities often sell services in the free market via affiliated consulting firms (CFs). In this study, I analyze whether these agents have an unfair competitive edge compared to private CFs. The theoretical analysis shows that private and state-owned CFs operate under...

Analysis of military acquisition policies in Finland, Sweden, and Great Britain in the period from 1920 to 1938 produces evidence of rent seeking, both quantitative and qualitative, in all three cases. The Finnish institutional environment offered the most extensive rents and collusion...

The identification of markets is a standard feature of anti-trust investigations, and the substantive decision in many cases stands or falls on the precise market definition selected.Market shares are often used to help establish jurisdiction or, more generally, to sort out priorities for...

In reviewing the theoretical and empirical literature on collusion, this paper distills methods for detecting cartels and distinguishing collusion from competition.

Die weltwirtschaftliche Verflechtung hat in der Nachkriegszeit stetig zugenommen. Da diese Entwicklung mit beträchtlichen Handelsgewinnen verbunden war, ist sie grundsätzlich positiv zu bewerten. Das Zusammenwachsen der Märkte erzeugt aber auch zusätzliche Spannungen, denn mit der...

Nicht zuletzt durch eine Reihe spektakulärer Unternehmenszusammenschlüsse ist die Frage nach den Ursachen, den Folgen und den Möglichkeiten bzw. Notwendigkeiten staatlicher Eingriffe im Rahmen der Wettbewerbspolitik erneut in das Zentrum der wirtschaftspolitischen Diskussion geraten....

Gaining access to technological assets and patents, in particular, has long been a major motive and objective for firm acquisitions. On the one hand, patents are used as a building instrument for the acquirer's technology portfolio. On the other hand, patents can be attractive because of their...