Monopoly
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- A monopoly is a sole seller in a market that faces a downward-sloping demand curve. It is a price maker unlike competitive firms. - A monopoly maximizes profits by producing where marginal revenue equals marginal cost and charging a price above marginal cost. - This results in a lower quantity and higher price than would be socially optimal, causing deadweight loss. - Governments address monopoly power through antitrust laws, regulation, or public ownership to increase competition and efficiency.
Monopoly
- 1. 15Monopoly
- 2. While a competitive firm is a price taker, a monopoly firm is a price maker.
- 3. A firm is considered a monopoly if . . .it is the sole seller of its product.its product does not have close substitutes.
- 4. WHY MONOPOLIES ARISEThe fundamental cause of monopoly is barriers to entry.
- 5. WHY MONOPOLIES ARISEBarriers to entry have three sources:Ownership of a key resource.The government gives a single firm the exclusive right to produce some good.Costs of production make a single producer more efficient than a large number of producers.
- 6. Monopoly ResourcesAlthough exclusive ownership of a key resource is a potential source of monopoly, in practice monopolies rarely arise for this reason.
- 7. Government-Created MonopoliesGovernments may restrict entry by giving a single firm the exclusive right to sell a particular good in certain markets.
- 8. Government-Created MonopoliesPatent and copyright laws are two important examples of how government creates a monopoly to serve the public interest.
- 9. Natural MonopoliesAn industry is a natural monopoly when a single firm can supply a good or service to an entire market at a smaller cost than could two or more firms.
- 10. Natural MonopoliesA natural monopoly arises when there are economies of scale over the relevant range of output.
- 11. AveragetotalcostFigure 1 Economies of Scale as a Cause of MonopolyCostQuantity of Output0Copyright © 2004 South-Western
- 12. HOW MONOPOLIES MAKE PRODUCTION AND PRICING DECISIONSMonopoly versus CompetitionMonopolyIs the sole producerFaces a downward-sloping demand curveIs a price makerReduces price to increase salesCompetitive FirmIs one of many producersFaces a horizontal demand curveIs a price takerSells as much or as little at same price
- 13. DemandDemandFigure 2 Demand Curves for Competitive and Monopoly Firms(a) A Competitive Firm’s Demand Curve(b) A Monopolist’s Demand CurvePricePriceQuantity of OutputQuantity of Output00Copyright © 2004 South-Western
- 14. A Monopoly’s RevenueTotal RevenueP Q = TRAverage RevenueTR/Q = AR = PMarginal RevenueDTR/DQ = MR
- 15. Table 1 A Monopoly’s Total, Average, and Marginal RevenueCopyright©2004 South-Western
- 16. A Monopoly’s RevenueA Monopoly’s Marginal RevenueA monopolist’s marginal revenue is always less than the price of its good.The demand curve is downward sloping.When a monopoly drops the price to sell one more unit, the revenue received from previously sold units also decreases.
- 17. A Monopoly’s RevenueA Monopoly’s Marginal RevenueWhen a monopoly increases the amount it sells, it has two effects on total revenue (PQ).The output effect—more output is sold, so Q is higher.The price effect—price falls, so P is lower.
- 18. DemandMarginal(averagerevenuerevenue)Figure 3 Demand and Marginal-Revenue Curves for a MonopolyPrice$11109876543210Quantity of Water–112345678–2–3–4Copyright © 2004 South-Western
- 19. Profit MaximizationA monopoly maximizes profit by producing the quantity at which marginal revenue equals marginal cost.It then uses the demand curve to find the price that will induce consumers to buy that quantity.
- 20. 2. . . . and then the demand1. The intersection of thecurve shows the pricemarginal-revenue curveconsistent with this quantity.and the marginal-costcurve determines theprofit-maximizingBMonopolyquantity . . .priceAverage total costADemandMarginalcostMarginal revenueQQMAXFigure 4 Profit Maximization for a MonopolyCosts andRevenueQuantityQ0Copyright © 2004 South-Western
- 21. Profit Maximization Comparing Monopoly and CompetitionFor a competitive firm, price equals marginal cost.P = MR = MCFor a monopoly firm, price exceeds marginal cost.P > MR = MC
- 22. A Monopoly’s ProfitProfit equals total revenue minus total costs.Profit = TR - TCProfit = (TR/Q - TC/Q) QProfit = (P - ATC) Q
- 23. Marginal costMonopolyBEpriceMonopolyAverage total costprofitAverageCDtotalcostDemandMarginal revenueQMAXFigure 5 The Monopolist’s ProfitCosts andRevenueQuantity0Copyright © 2004 South-Western
- 24. A Monopolist’s ProfitThe monopolist will receive economic profits as long as price is greater than average total cost.
- 25. Priceduringpatent lifePrice afterMarginalpatentcostexpiresDemandMarginalrevenueMonopolyCompetitivequantityquantityFigure 6 The Market for DrugsCosts andRevenueQuantity0Copyright © 2004 South-Western
- 26. THE WELFARE COST OF MONOPOLYIn contrast to a competitive firm, the monopoly charges a price above the marginal cost. From the standpoint of consumers, this high price makes monopoly undesirable. However, from the standpoint of the owners of the firm, the high price makes monopoly very desirable.
- 27. Marginal costValueCosttotobuyersmonopolistDemandValue(value to buyers)CosttotobuyersmonopolistValue to buyersValue to buyersis greater thanis less thancost to seller.cost to seller.EfficientquantityFigure 7 The Efficient Level of OutputPriceQuantity0Copyright © 2004 South-Western
- 28. The Deadweight LossBecause a monopoly sets its price above marginal cost, it places a wedge between the consumer’s willingness to pay and the producer’s cost.This wedge causes the quantity sold to fall short of the social optimum.
- 29. Marginal costDeadweightlossMonopolypriceMarginalDemandrevenueEfficientMonopolyquantityquantityFigure 8 The Inefficiency of MonopolyPriceQuantity0Copyright © 2004 South-Western
- 30. The Deadweight Loss The Inefficiency of MonopolyThe monopolist produces less than the socially efficient quantity of output.
- 31. The Deadweight LossThe deadweight loss caused by a monopoly is similar to the deadweight loss caused by a tax.The difference between the two cases is that the government gets the revenue from a tax, whereas a private firm gets the monopoly profit.
- 32. PUBLIC POLICY TOWARD MONOPOLIESGovernment responds to the problem of monopoly in one of four ways.Making monopolized industries more competitive.Regulating the behavior of monopolies.Turning some private monopolies into public enterprises.Doing nothing at all.
- 33. Increasing Competition with Antitrust LawsAntitrust laws are a collection of statutes aimed at curbing monopoly power.Antitrust laws give government various ways to promote competition.They allow government to prevent mergers.They allow government to break up companies.They prevent companies from performing activities that make markets less competitive.
- 34. Increasing Competition with Antitrust Laws Two Important Antitrust LawsSherman Antitrust Act (1890)Reduced the market power of the large and powerful “trusts” of that time period.Clayton Act (1914)Strengthened the government’s powers and authorized private lawsuits.
- 35. RegulationGovernment may regulate the prices that the monopoly charges.The allocation of resources will be efficient if price is set to equal marginal cost.
- 36. Average totalcostAverage total costLossRegulatedMarginal costpriceDemandFigure 9 Marginal-Cost Pricing for a Natural MonopolyPriceQuantity0Copyright © 2004 South-Western
- 37. RegulationIn practice, regulators will allow monopolists to keep some of the benefits from lower costs in the form of higher profit, a practice that requires some departure from marginal-cost pricing.
- 38. Public OwnershipRather than regulating a natural monopoly that is run by a private firm, the government can run the monopoly itself (e.g. in the United States, the government runs the Postal Service).
- 39. Doing NothingGovernment can do nothing at all if the market failure is deemed small compared to the imperfections of public policies.
- 40. PRICE DISCRIMINATIONPrice discrimination is the business practice of selling the same good at different prices to different customers, even though the costs for producing for the two customers are the same.
- 41. PRICE DISCRIMINATIONPrice discrimination is not possible when a good is sold in a competitive market since there are many firms all selling at the market price. In order to price discriminate, the firm must have some market power.Perfect Price DiscriminationPerfect price discrimination refers to the situation when the monopolist knows exactly the willingness to pay of each customer and can charge each customer a different price.
- 42. PRICE DISCRIMINATIONTwo important effects of price discrimination:It can increase the monopolist’s profits.It can reduce deadweight loss.
- 43. ConsumersurplusDeadweightMonopolylosspriceProfitMarginal costMarginalDemandrevenueQuantity soldFigure 10 Welfare with and without Price Discrimination(a) Monopolist with Single PricePriceQuantity0Copyright © 2004 South-Western
- 44. ProfitMarginal costDemandQuantity soldFigure 10 Welfare with and without Price Discrimination(b) Monopolist with Perfect Price DiscriminationPriceQuantity0Copyright © 2004 South-Western
- 45. PRICE DISCRIMINATIONExamples of Price DiscriminationMovie ticketsAirline pricesDiscount couponsFinancial aidQuantity discounts
- 46. CONCLUSION: THE PREVALENCE OF MONOPOLYHow prevalent are the problems of monopolies?Monopolies are common. Most firms have some control over their prices because of differentiated products.Firms with substantial monopoly power are rare. Few goods are truly unique.
- 47. SummaryA monopoly is a firm that is the sole seller in its market.It faces a downward-sloping demand curve for its product.A monopoly’s marginal revenue is always below the price of its good.
- 48. SummaryLike a competitive firm, a monopoly maximizes profit by producing the quantity at which marginal cost and marginal revenue are equal.Unlike a competitive firm, its price exceeds its marginal revenue, so its price exceeds marginal cost.
- 49. SummaryA monopolist’s profit-maximizing level of output is below the level that maximizes the sum of consumer and producer surplus.A monopoly causes deadweight losses similar to the deadweight losses caused by taxes.
- 50. SummaryPolicymakers can respond to the inefficiencies of monopoly behavior with antitrust laws, regulation of prices, or by turning the monopoly into a government-run enterprise. If the market failure is deemed small, policymakers may decide to do nothing at all.
- 51. SummaryMonopolists can raise their profits by charging different prices to different buyers based on their willingness to pay. Price discrimination can raise economic welfare and lessen deadweight losses.