Exclusive Territories and Efficiency: Evidence From the Brewing Industry
48 Pages Posted: 9 Jun 2019 Last revised: 3 Sep 2021
Date Written: September 3, 2021
Abstract
Theories conflict as to whether vertically imposed exclusive territories have a positive or negative impact on welfare, and appropriate antitrust treatment is still debated. I examine the impact that the use of exclusive wholesale territories has in the brewing industry by studying beer sales in Indiana which banned the use of exclusive wholesale territories from 1979-2002. After the repeal of the ban, brewers specified exclusive wholesale territories in contracts. Estimates show that beer sales increased significantly and prices increased modestly. Downstream advertisements of beer also increased. Results are consistent with higher levels of product investments downstream and efficiency-based theories of exclusive territories.
Keywords: vertical relations, exclusive territories, antitrust, regulation, brewing industry
JEL Classification: L42, L51, L66
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation