<h2>Tradeoffs of Imperfect Competition</h2>
<p>Monopolistic competition is probably the single most common market structure in the U.S. economy. It provides powerful incentives for innovation, as firms seek to earn profits in the short run, while entry assures that firms do not earn economic profits in the long run. However, monopolistically competitive firms do not produce at the lowest point on their average cost curves. In addition, the endless search to impress consumers through product differentiation may lead to excessive social expenses on advertising and marketing.</p>
<p>Oligopoly is probably the second most common market structure. When oligopolies result from patented innovations or from taking advantage of economies of scale to produce at low average cost, they may provide considerable benefit to consumers. Oligopolies are often buffeted by significant barriers to entry, which enable the oligopolists to earn sustained profits over long periods of time. Oligopolists also do not typically produce at the minimum of their average cost curves. When they lack vibrant competition, they may lack incentives to provide innovative products and high-quality service.</p>
<p>The task of public policy with regard to competition is to sort through these multiple realities, attempting to encourage behavior that is beneficial to the broader society and to discourage behavior that only adds to the profits of a few large companies, with no corresponding benefit to consumers. <a data-page="46" href="https://app.ulearngo.com/tutorials/monopoly-and-antitrust-policy/">Monopoly and Antitrust Policy</a> discusses the delicate judgments that go into this task.</p>
<div class="ns-school-defn2">
<header>
<h3 data-type="title">The Temptation to Defy the Law</h3>
</header>
<p>Oligopolistic firms have been called “cats in a bag,” as this tutorial mentioned. The French detergent makers chose to “cozy up” with each other. The result? An uneasy and tenuous relationship. When the <em>Wall Street Journal</em> reported on the matter, it wrote: “According to a statement a Henkel manager made to the [French anti-trust] commission, the detergent makers wanted ‘to limit the intensity of the competition between them and clean up the market.’ Nevertheless, by the early 1990s, a price war had broken out among them.” During the soap executives’ meetings, which sometimes lasted more than four hours, complex pricing structures were established. “One [soap] executive recalled ‘chaotic’ meetings as each side tried to work out how the other had bent the rules.” Like many cartels, the soap cartel disintegrated due to the very strong temptation for each member to maximize its own individual profits.</p>
<p>How did this soap opera end? After an investigation, French antitrust authorities fined Colgate-Palmolive, Henkel, and Proctor &amp; Gamble a total of €361 million ($484 million). A similar fate befell the icemakers. Bagged ice is a commodity, a perfect substitute, generally sold in 7- or 22-pound bags. No one cares what label is on the bag. By agreeing to carve up the ice market, control broad geographic swaths of territory, and set prices, the icemakers moved from perfect competition to a monopoly model. After the agreements, each firm was the sole supplier of bagged ice to a region; there were profits in both the long run and the short run. According to the courts: “These companies illegally conspired to manipulate the marketplace.” Fines totaled about $600,000—a steep fine considering a bag of ice sells for under $3 in most parts of the United States.</p>
<p>Even though it is illegal in many parts of the world for firms to set prices and carve up a market, the temptation to earn higher profits makes it extremely tempting to defy the law.</p>
</div>

3174eb1e-1f1a-441e-ab1c-3ea3bb79e46a

Tradeoffs of Imperfect Competition

Economics studies social behavior guiding the allocation of scarce resources to meet the unlimited needs and desires of the individual members of a given society, and for the production of goods and services, growth of production and welfare over time, and a great variety of other complex issues of vital concern to society. 

Economics

Explore the concepts of monopolistic competition and oligopoly, including topics such as differentiating products, perceived demand, pricing strategies, entry barriers, collusion, and competition, as well as understanding the benefits of product variety and summarizing key concepts.


Tradeoffs of Imperfect Competition

Track Your Learning Progress