The Learning Curve,Predation, Antitrust,and Welfare |
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Authors: | Luí s M. B. Cabral,Michael H. Riordan |
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Abstract: | An economic definition of predation is applied to a dynamic model of duopoly competition with learning curves. It is shown that rational predation occurs in equilibrium, although below-cost pricing is neither a necessary nor a sufficient indicator of predation. A conceptual framework for antitrust analysis of predation shows that a prohibition of predation might help or harm consumer welfare depending on details of market structure, although the informational requirements of fashioning an effective legal rule against harmful predation are formidable. |
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