The Relative Rigidity of Monopoly Pricing

25 Pages Posted: 16 Jul 2004 Last revised: 26 Oct 2022

See all articles by Julio J. Rotemberg

Julio J. Rotemberg

Harvard University, Business, Government and the International Economy Unit (deceased); National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) (deceased)

Garth Saloner

Stanford Graduate School of Business

Date Written: June 1986

Abstract

This paper seeks to explain why monopolies keep their nominal prices constant for longer periods than do tight oligopolies. We provide two possible explanations. The first is based on the presence of a small fixed cost of changing prices. The second, on small costs of discovering the optimal price. The incentive to change price for duopolists producing differentiated products exceeds that of a single monopolistic firm which produced the same tange of products as the duopoly.

Suggested Citation

Rotemberg, Julio J. and Saloner, Garth, The Relative Rigidity of Monopoly Pricing (June 1986). NBER Working Paper No. w1943, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=344770

Julio J. Rotemberg (Contact Author)

Harvard University, Business, Government and the International Economy Unit (deceased) ( email )

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National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) (deceased)

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Garth Saloner

Stanford Graduate School of Business ( email )

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