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The Review of Economics and Statistics Vol. 97 No. 1 2015

Entry and Competition in Differentiated Products Markets

Catherine Schaumans1; Frank Verboven2,3

1 Tilburg University · 2 Center for Economic and Policy Research · 3 KU Leuven

Abstract

We propose a methodology for estimating the competition effects from entry when firms sell differentiated products. We first derive precise conditions under which Bresnahan and Reiss’s entry threshold ratios (ETRs) can be used to measure competition effects. We then augment the traditional entry model with a revenue equation. This serves to adjust the ETRs by the extent of market expansion from entry, giving unbiased estimates of the competition effects. We apply our approach to seven local service sectors. We find that entry typically leads to significant market expansion, implying that traditional ETRs may substantially underestimate the competition effects from entry.

DOI
10.1162/rest_a_00440
Volume
97
Issue
1
Pages
195-209
Language
en
Sources
openalex crossref

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