Estimating Markups Under Nonlinear Pricing Competition

WZB Working Paper No. SP II 2003-21

25 Pages Posted: 4 Feb 2004

See all articles by Eugenio J. Miravete

Eugenio J. Miravete

University of Texas at Austin; Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR)

Lars-Hendrik Röller

ESMT European School of Management and Technology; Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR); WZB Berlin Social Science Center - Competitiveness and Industrial Change

Date Written: December 2003

Abstract

This paper provides a structural interpretation to the estimates of the shape and position of nonlinear tariffs. We focus on the evaluation of price-cost margins, and thus we need to identify marginal cost from an equilibrium model of nonlinear pricing competition. We estimate these price-cost margins using quarterly data from the early U.S. cellular telephone industry between 1984 and 1988. Our results indicate that the margins are increased under duopoly, due to a significant reduction in marginal costs. Moreover, we find that the price-cost margins vary over the consumption levels and that low-end users are subject to higher price-cost margins than high-end users. The impact of consumption further increases the margins in the low-end user segment, relative to high-end users. In that sense the benefits of competition, which are largely due to increased efficiencies, are passed on relatively more to high-end users. We also show that these findings are robust even if one includes a number of observable market demand and cost variables.

Keywords: Estimation of Equilibrium Oligopoly Models, Competitive Nonlinear Pricing, Common Agency

JEL Classification: D43, D82, L96

Suggested Citation

Miravete, Eugenio J. and Röller, Lars-Hendrik, Estimating Markups Under Nonlinear Pricing Competition (December 2003). WZB Working Paper No. SP II 2003-21, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=493544 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.493544

Eugenio J. Miravete (Contact Author)

University of Texas at Austin ( email )

Department of Economics
1 University Station C3100
Austin, TX 78712-0301
United States
512-232-1718 (Phone)
512-471-3510 (Fax)

HOME PAGE: http://www.eco.utexas.edu/facstaff/Miravete

Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR)

London
United Kingdom

Lars-Hendrik Röller

ESMT European School of Management and Technology ( email )

Schlossplatz 1
Berlin, 10178
Germany

HOME PAGE: http://www.esmt.org/eng/faculty-research/lars-hendrik-roeller/

Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR)

London
United Kingdom

WZB Berlin Social Science Center - Competitiveness and Industrial Change ( email )

Reichpietschufer 50
10785 Berlin
Germany
+49 30 2549 1440 (Phone)
+49 30 2549 1442 (Fax)