In: Economics
Assume that there is a two-period market with 100 identical customers who demand one unit of the good per period. Each is willing to pay up to a maximum price of $10. In the first time period there is one firm that acts as a monopolist and has a constant marginal cost equal to 5. In the second period the incumbent faces the possible entry of another firm. The potential entrant’s marginal cost is unknown to the incumbent firm. However, the incumbent assumes that the marginal cost is a random variable distributed uniformly between 0 and $10 with an expected value of $5. Assume that the incumbent offers its customers the following contract: pay a price of $10 in the first period and $7 in the second period. However, customers who switch to the entrant in time period 2 must pay a fee to the incumbent equal to $4.
Will customers accept such a contract if offered? Is the contract profitable to the incumbent? What effect does the contract have on the expected profit of the potential entrant and the probability of entry? Be sure to explain your reasoning for each answer.
The price at which the incumbent firm is offering to the customers in the second period is $7 and if the customers switch to the new entrant in the second period they have to pay a fee to the incumbent that is equal to $4.
So the new entrant has to sell the product at $3 or less to attract the customers of the incumbent firm. The new entrant will enter the market only if its marginal cost is below $3.