We investigate the effect of a vertical merger on downstream firms' ability to collude in a repeated game framework. We show that a vertical merger has two main effects. On the one hand, it increases the total collusive profits, increasing the stakes of collusion. On the other hand, it creates...

This paper studies the competitive effects of a variety of publicly observable nonlinear contracts and vertical restraints in bilateral duopoly. When suppliers offer menus of contracts and inputs are sufficiently differentiated, there exist equilibria in which both retailers purchase from both...

We investigate the possibility for two vertically related firms to at least partially collude on the wholesale price over an in.nite horizon to mitigate or eliminate the e¤ects of double marginalisation, thereby avoiding contracts which might not be enforceable. We characterise alternative...

Alliances between competitors where an established firm provides access to its marketing and distribution channels are an important real-world phenomenon. 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,...

We consider a duopolistic industry in which pollution is a by-product of production and firms are given emission permits that they can trade. The common wisdom is that allowing for trade in emission permits promotes efficiency. We demonstrate that this common wisdom cannot automatically be...

The paper explores incentives for strategic vertical separation of firms in a framework of a simple duopoly model. Each firm chooses either to be a retailer of its own good (vertical integration) or to sell its good through an independent exclusive retailer (vertical separation). In the latter...

It is shown in this study that in the case of vertically differentiated products, Bertrand competition at the retail level does not prevent an incumbent upstream firm from using exclusivity contracts to deter the entry of a more efficient rival, contrary to what happens in the homogenous product...

This paper analyzes vertical integration incentives in a bilaterally duopolistic industry where upstream producers bargain with downstream retailers on terms of supply. In the applied framework integration does not affect the total output produced, but it affects the distribution of rents among...

We examine a model of suppliers selling to two segments of consumers, who have different preferences for quality (or some product characteristic). We show that if the firm is unable to price discriminate between the segments, then there is less investment in quality. We find that both consumer...

Lump-sum quota bonuses are a specific type of quota bonus that provides a lump-sum transfer from a manufacturer to a retailer when the retailer's sales exceed a pre- determined quota. This paper explores whether lump-sum quota bonuses and two other vertical restraints, two-part tariffs and...