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10.6: Key Terms

  • Page ID
    215659
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    Example and Directions
    Words (or words that have the same definition) The definition is case sensitive (Optional) Image to display with the definition [Not displayed in Glossary, only in pop-up on pages] (Optional) Caption for Image (Optional) External or Internal Link (Optional) Source for Definition
    (Eg. "Genetic, Hereditary, DNA ...") (Eg. "Relating to genes or heredity") The infamous double helix https://bio.libretexts.org/ CC-BY-SA; Delmar Larsen
    Glossary Entries
    Word(s) Definition Image Caption Link Source
    cartel a group of firms that collude to produce the monopoly output and sell at the monopoly price        
    collusion when firms act together to reduce output and keep prices high        
    differentiated product a product that consumers perceive as distinctive in some way        
    duopoly an oligopoly with only two firms        
    game theory a branch of mathematics that economists use to analyze situations in which players must make decisions and then receive payoffs based on what decisions the other players make        
    imperfectly competitive firms and organizations that fall between the extremes of monopoly and perfect competition        
    kinked demand curve a perceived demand curve that arises when competing oligopoly firms commit to match price cuts, but not price increases        
    monopolistic competition many firms competing to sell similar but differentiated products        
    oligopoly when a few large firms have all or most of the sales in an industry        
    prisoner’s dilemma a game in which the gains from cooperation are larger than the rewards from pursuing self-interest        
    product differentiation any action that firms do to make consumers think their products are different from their competitors'        

    acquisition

    when one firm purchases another

           

    antitrust laws

    laws that give government the power to block certain mergers, and even in some cases to break up large firms into smaller ones

           

    bundling

    a situation in which multiple products are sold as one

           

    concentration ratio

    an early tool to measure the degree of monopoly power in an industry; measures what share of the total sales in the industry are accounted for by the largest firms, typically the top four to eight firms

           

    cost-plus regulation

    when regulators permit a regulated firm to cover its costs and to make a normal level of profit

           

    exclusive dealing

    an agreement that a dealer will sell only products from one manufacturer        

    four-firm concentration ratio

    the percentage of the total sales in the industry that are accounted for by the largest four firms        
    Herfindahl-Hirschman Index

    approach to measuring market concentration by adding the square of the market share of each firm in the industry market share the percentage of total sales in the market

           

    merger

    when two formerly separate firms combine to become a single firm

           

    minimum resale price maintenance agreement

    an agreement that requires a dealer who buys from a manufacturer to sell for at least a certain minimum price

           

    price cap regulation

    when the regulator sets a price that a firm cannot exceed over the next few years

           

    regulatory capture

    when the supposedly regulated firms end up playing a large role in setting the regulations that they will follow and as a result, they “capture” the people usually through the promise of a job in that “regulated” industry once their term in government has ended        

    restrictive practices

    practices that reduce competition but that do not involve outright agreements between firms to raise prices or to reduce the quantity produced        

    tying sales

    a situation where a customer is allowed to buy one product only if the customer also buys another product        

    This page titled 10.6: Key Terms is shared under a CC BY 4.0 license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by .

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