1. Chapter 7 Market Structures
Aww, Snap!

2. Perfect Competition
Perfect Competition – a market where a large number of firms are all producing essentially the same product

3. Perfect Competition Four Conditions for Perfect Market:
Many buyers and sellers participate
Sellers offer identical products
Products that are the same no matter who makes or sells them are commodities

4. Perfect Competition Four Conditions for Perfect Market:
Buyers and sellers are well informed about products
Sellers are able to enter and exit the market freely

5. Barriers to Entry
Barriers – factors that make it difficult for new firms to enter a market
Barriers lead to imperfect competition

6. Examples of Barriers
Start-Up Costs – The expenses a new business must pay before it can enter the market
High Start-Up Costs prevent new firms from entering

7. Examples of Barriers
Technology – how much training does it take to enter the market?

8. Examples of Barriers
Government – may require licensing, certification, approval, etc.

9. Price and Output
A perfectly competitive market produces the lowest sustainable prices possible
With many firms competing, each firm lowers its prices to the point of just covering their costs

10. Monopoly
Monopoly – Barriers prevent firms from entering a market that has a single supplier

11. Factors that Create a Monopoly
1. Economies of Scale – average cost of production always drops, never increases
2. Natural Monopoly – market runs most effectively when one large firm provides all output

12. Factors that Create a Monopoly
Natural Monopolies are usually given special status by the government, but the government is allowed to control their prices
New technologies can destroy a natural monopoly

13. Government Monopolies
Government Monopoly – a monopoly created by the government

14. Typical High School Boy Questions?
Wait… what’s a government monopoly?

15. Government Monopolies
Government Monopoly – a monopoly created by the government
There are 3 types of government monopolies, each with a different reason for being formed

16. Three Kinds of Government Monopoly
Technological Monopoly – government issues a patent
Patent – exclusive rights to sell a good or service for a specific period of time

17. Three Kinds of Government Monopoly
Franchises and Licenses
Franchises – government allows company to create an exclusive market for their brand name and products

18. Three Kinds of Government Monopoly
Franchises and Licenses
Licenses – government grants a firm the right to operate a business

19. Three Kinds of Government Monopoly
Industrial Organizations – government allows companies in an industry to restrict the number of firms in the market

20. Output Decisions Do you emphasize price or output?
Price-Takers – in a competitive market, businesses have no control over their own prices
Price-Setters – in a non-competitive market, business can choose what price to charge

21. Falling Marginal Revenue
MR = price in perfect competition, and does not change
In a monopoly, however, MR begins falling at a point
Therefore, monopolies set production where MR = MC, but charge a higher price

22. Falling Marginal Revenue
Price Qd TR
Change MR
$12
8,000
$96,000 -
$11
9,000
$99,000
+$3,000 $3
$10
10,000
$100,000
+$1,000 $1 $9
11,000
-$1,000
-$1 8
12,000
-$3,000
-$3

23. Price Discrimination
Do you think monopolies usually charge the same price to all of their customers?

24. Price Discrimination
NO!!

25. Price Discrimination
Price Discrimination – dividing consumers into different groups and charging different prices to each group

26. Price Discrimination
Monopolies are not the only companies that do this
Any company with market power, the ability to control prices and output, can use discrimination

27. Price Discrimination
The easiest way to maximize profit for a monopoly is to identify consumers who will not pay full price, and offer them a “discount”
These are called targeted discounts – think of airline fares, manufacturers rebates, student discounts

28. Limits to Price Discrimination
I am the limit to price discriminicization.

29. Limits to Price Discrimination
1. Firm must have some market power
2. There must be distinct consumer groups
3. It must be difficult for consumers to resell the product

30. Monopolistic Competition and Oligopoly
Presidenting is my anti-drug.

31. Monopolistic Competition
Monopolistic Competition – many companies compete in an open market, but sell products that are slightly different from one another

32. Example

33. 4 Characteristics of Monopolistic Competition
1. Many Firms
2. Few Artificial Barriers to Entry
3. Slight Control Over Prices
4. Differentiated Products

34. Other Means of Competition
In a Monopolistic Competition, firms compete in a variety of ways other than prices
Physical Characteristics
Location
Service Level/Quality
Advertising and Image

35. Monopolistic Competition
Economists contend that price, output, and profits in a monopolistic competition are very similar to a perfect competition

36. Oligopoly
Oligopoly – a market dominated by a few large, profitable firms
If 4 of the largest firms can claim 70% or more of the market share, it is an oligopoly

37. Example

38. Example

39. Characteristics of Oligopoly
1. Many Barriers to Entry
2. Cooperation and Collusion
Price Leadership – market leader raises prices, other firms follow suit (can also cause price war, though)

40. Characteristics of Oligopoly
1. Many Barriers to Entry
2. Cooperation and Collusion
Collusion – an agreement among members of an oligopoly to set prices and production levels

41. Characteristics of Oligopoly
1. Many Barriers to Entry
2. Cooperation and Collusion
Collusion causes price fixing, where firms agree to sell at the same or similar prices
It’s illegal, by the way

42. Characteristics of Oligopoly
1. Many Barriers to Entry
2. Cooperation and Collusion
Cartels – an agreement by producers to coordinate prices and production
Legal in some countries, not here

43. Regulation and Deregulation
What might a firm do to increase its market power?
Form a cartel
Merge with competitors
Predatory Pricing - Temporarily lower prices to put others out of business

44. Regulation and Deregulation
Government has Antitrust Laws in place to prevent such practices
Trust – a business combination similar to a cartel
Began with Sherman Antitrust Act in 1890

45. Fair or Unfair?
Nike is one of the world’s largest and most popular shoe manufacturers
Once Nike introduced clothing, it forced companies that wanted to buy its shoes to buy its clothes as well

46. Fair or Unfair? Disney, ABC, AOL, and Time-Warner have merged together
They now control the Disney Channel, Cartoon Network, and the WB, which is a basic monopoly on children's programming

47. Regulation and Deregulation
Government can step in and break up monopolies based on the Sherman Antitrust Act
Famous examples: John D. Rockefeller’s Standard Oil (1911), AT&T (1982)

48. Regulation and Deregulation
Government can also block mergers from happening
Merger – when one company joins with another
Government uses research to see whether the merger will help or hurt consumers

49. Regulation and Deregulation
The Republican Party has typically supported deregulation – when the government stops making decisions about what businesses can and cannot do
Government uses regulation and deregulation for the same purpose – to promote competition