Competition. Product Proliferation. and Welfare: A Study of the US Smartphone Market

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Fan, Ying; Yang, Chenyu
• 署名单位: University of Michigan System; University of Michigan; Center for Economic & Policy Research (CEPR); National Bureau of Economic Research; University of Rochester
• 刊物名称: AMERICAN ECONOMIC JOURNAL-MICROECONOMICS
• ISSN/ISSBN: 1945-7669
• DOI: 10.1257/mic.20180182
• 发表日期: 2020
• 页码: 99-134
• 关键词: variety; entry; selection; prices

摘要

This paper studies (1) whether, from a welfare point of view, oligopolistic competition leads to too few or too many products in a market, and (2) how a change in competition affects the number and the composition of product offerings. We address these two questions in the context of the US smartphone market. Our findings show that this market contains too few products and that a reduction in competition decreases both the number and variety of products. These results suggest that product choice adjustment may exacerbate the welfare effect of a merger.