In this paper, we present several insights regarding the influence of institutional design on the process of Research Joint Venture (RJV) formation. Our results are obtained with a firm-level dataset on RJVs formed under the umbrella of the Eureka initiative and of the European Union's Framework...

This paper formalizes an empirically implementable framework for the definition of local antitrust markets in retail markets. This framework rests on a demand model that captures the trade-off between distance and pecuniary cost across alternative shopping destinations within local markets. The...

This paper formalizes an empirically implementable framework for the definition of local antitrust markets in retail markets. This framework rests on a demand model that captures the trade-off between distance and pecuniary cost across alternative shopping destinations within local markets. The...

We analyze collusion under demand uncertainty by cartels such as OPEC that care about the utility derived from profits by citizens. When citizens are sufficiently risk averse and fixed operating costs are non-trivial, it becomes difficult for cartels to collusively restrict output both when...

Research on cartel inspection has considered dynamic behaviors of firms but not of the regulator. The current paper allows the antitrust authority to choose the level of cartel monitoring intensity and its dynamic patterns. Specifically, we compare stationary monitoring policies with "switching"...

The common marketing practice of offering subscribers enticements to switch suppliers is explored. It is shown that this type of price discrimination is the natural mode of competition in subscription markets such as long distance telephony and banking and that it prevails even when the industry...

This study analyses antitrust decisions taken by the European Commission (the Commission) under the EC Merger Regulation (ECMR). We find that market share measures of dominance are highly significant in influencing the outcome of a decision. This runs contrary to some general pronouncements of...

This paper develops a model of the birth and death of cartels in the presence of enforcement activities by a Competition Authority (CA). We distinguish three sets of interventions: (a) detecting, prosecuting and penalizing cartels; (b) actions that aim to stop cartel activity in the short-term,...

We study antitrust enforcement that channels price-fixing incentives through setting fines and allocating resources to detection activities. Antitrust fines obey four legal principles: punishments should fit the crime, proportionality, bankruptcy considerations, and minimum fines. Bankruptcy...