Supplementary material made available during the course.
Learning Objectives
Introducing the essential ideas of the theoretical analysis of imperfect competition and some applications of microeconomics to business problems.
Learning Objectives
In this course students will learn what is competition policy and what it deals with. They will also develop a practical ability to dfiscuss competition policy cases. The idea is that a student that has passed this course should be able to give an opinion on a case concerning the firm in which he/she works and should be able to contribute to the development of a related antitrust strategy. The objective is also for such a student to be able to present such an opinion in a meeting within the firm or with consultants of the firm.
Prerequisites
Some simple Math (basic ideas of calculus, probability, statistics and finance) and Microeconomics (theory of consumption, production, perfect competition and monopoly).
Prerequisites
The knowledge of the models of monopoly, perfect competition and oligopoly studied in undergraduate Microeconomics and, more in dpeth, in the first module of this course.
Teaching Methods
Lectures, tutorials and lab classes.
Teaching Methods
Lectures and class presentations by students.
Further information
The supplementary material made available during the course is mostly written in English. In English is also the material students need to read to prepare the presentation of most of the cases in class.
Type of Assessment
Written exam with questions and exercises. More informations are available on the course website: http://e-l.unifi.it
Type of Assessment
For those attending the classes the final grade for this module will be based on: a) an oral discussion in a group in class of an anitrust case (60%); a written exam with questions on theory and cases (40%).
For those not-attending the classes the final grade will be based only on the written exam, which however will have an extra part requiring to discuss a mock antitrust case.
Course program
- An intruduction to Industrial Organization
- Basic microeconomics
- Market structure and market power
- Technology and production cost
- Price discrimination and monopoly
- Product variety and quality under monopoly
- Static games and cournot competition
- Oligopolistic price competition
- Dynamic Games and First and Second Movers
Course program
- Introduction to the history and objectives of competition policy
-Review of the concepts of market power and various types of efficiencies
-The definition of the relevant market
-The assessment of market power
-Horizontal agreements
-Vertical agreements
-Horizontal mergers
-Vertical mergers
-Abuses of dominant position