This paper studies the impact of mergers between public and private firms in vertically-differentiated markets on product repositioning, profits, consumer surplus, and social welfare. We analyze a game-theoretical model with a public firm and two private firms in which the public firm’s...

This paper studies how horizontal mergers between cable providers impact the vertical contracting outcomes (per-subscriber fees that TV cable providers pay the upstream content creators) and consequently the prices and composition of bundles that cable providers offer to end consumers. The...

We analyze the optimal dynamic policy of an antitrust authority towards horizontal mergers when merger proposals are endogenous and occur over time. Approving a currently proposed merger will affect the profitability and welfare effects of potential future mergers, the characteristics of which...

Do horizontal mergers shape the way an industry evolves? I answer this question by investigating the non-merging rivals’ investments. Based on the stylized fact that the rivals’ performance on average declines in the three years following horizontal mergers, I find the rivals become more...

This paper presents theory and evidence on horizontal industry structure, focusing on situations where plant-level scale economies are small and market power is not an issue. At issue is the question: what makes industries necessarily fragmented? The theoretical model distinguishes between the...