Competition policy (mededingingsbeleid) aims to preserve well-functioning market competition by restricting the acquisition or abuse of corporate dominance. Competition economics (mededingingseconomie) looks at the economics behind this. This dissertation consists of four separate essays in competition economics. The first two essays use microeconomic theory and simulations to look at two novel competition concerns: algorithmic collusion and financial benchmark rate collusion. The third essay revisits classic cartel theory to show how results on cartel stability change when assuming firms require a margin before colluding. The last essay reviews event studies in merger analysis and provides a novel application using Hoberg-Phillips TNIC data to argue that U.S. merger control may have been too lenient.

ISBN 978-90-361-0617-7

Cover illustration: Joseph Mallord William Turner (1844) Rain, Steam and Speed - The Great Western Railway (oil on canvas), Copyright The National Gallery, London, United Kingdom. Turner Bequest, 1856.

This book is no. 766 of the Tinbergen Institute Research Series, established through cooperation between Rozenberg Publishers and the Tinbergen Institute. A list of books which already appeared in the series can be found in the back. 

Link to full dissertation on the UvA Digital Academic Repository: click here

Promotor

• prof. dr. M.P. Schinkel (Universiteit van Amsterdam)

Co-promotor

• dr. M.J.G. Bun (Universiteit van Amsterdam)

Committee members

• dr. A.V. den Boer (Universiteit van Amsterdam)

• prof. dr. J.E. Harrington (University of Pennsylvania)

• prof. dr. A.M. Onderstal (Universiteit van Amsterdam)

• prof. dr. U. Schwalbe (Universitat Hohenheim)

• prof. dr. J. Tuinstra (Universiteit van Amsterdam )