Discusses the economic effects of collusive price agreements from the perspective of the firms involved, other firms in the market, and society as a whole.
Abstract This paper attempts to discuss the economic effects of collusive price agreements from the perspective of the firms involved, other firms in the market, and society as a whole, with the main focus on the first form of collusion, cartels. A discussion of the effect of antitrust authorities follows. Part 3 explains how market structure affects collusion and concludes with a discussion of the facilitating strategies.
Introduction-Layout
1.0 Cartels
2.0 Antitrust Authorities and Fines Imposed
3.0 Market Structure and Collusive Price Agreements.
4.0 Facilitating Practices
5.0 Conclusion
Bibliography
From the Paper "Carlton et al. (1999) describe cartels as a group of firms that explicitly acts collectively to promote its best interests. By restricting market output and raising the market price, these firms succeed a similar profit of that of a monopoly. R. A. Posner (1976) also defines cartels as ?The pure collusive practice that involves cooperation between competing sellers to raise the market price above the competitive level."
Abstract The paper reviews the theory of oligopolistic competition from the perspective of the non-collusive, conjectural variation models of Augustin Cournot and Heinrich Freiherr von Stackleberg, within which firms compete according to output. The paper then discusses the application of these theories in the evaluation of the contention that non-collusion is the inevitable outcome of oligopoly. The paper concludes that it is wrong to assume that non-collusion is the inevitable outcome of oligopoly, since collusion can and does occur. The paper notes, however, that in most situations arising from economic competition in oligopoly markets, collusion is rarely possible.
From the Paper "The study of oligopolistic markets is inherently more difficult than that of monopolistic or perfectly competitive markets as it deals with the way firms interact with each other as well as with consumers. In an oligopoly, a small number of large firms dominate a particular industry and produce identical or closely substitutable products. Firms in an oligopolistic industry are interdependent, thus the central problem faced by a firm in oligopoly is that its decisions affect the price and quantity choices of its rivals; the likely response of other firms is a major factor influencing its own price and output decisions. An oligopolist therefore cannot take its demand curve as given as equilibrium output depends on enterprise behaviour. Possibilities range from the competitive outcome of the Cournot model with competing firms to the monopoly equilibrium characteristic of a cartel. Hence there is a general indeterminacy that lies at the heart of the oligopoly market structure."
Abstract The following paper critically analyzes the Limit Pricing Model, which uses limit pricing which is when companies form collusion or a cartel and try to maintain price levels which may or may not not maximize their profits or stop the entry of new firms in the market. One of the major limitations of the model discussed in this paper is that the model assumes collusion. Another limitation examined is that the model assumes the products to be homogeneous. The writer concludes, after discussing eight limitations of the model, that it is completely inappropriate.
From the Paper "In an oligopoly there are a few entrepreneurs who are in tight competition with each other and due to this the market price is sticky or we can say downward rigid. Oligopolists do not usually decrease price ("sticky downward prices"), and tend to change prices together. Rivals match each others price decrease which leads to a "price- war" and obviously they do end up losing in it and form a cartel. Cartels are an example of a collusive industry. Collusion occurs when firms in an industry agree to fix prices, divide the market among themselves, or otherwise restrict competition in some way."
Abstract This paper discusses and analyses the oligopoly market structure and provides an explanation as to why some firms might choose to pursue collusive behaviours and tactics. The paper also explains how such firms maximize profit and survive within their market structure.
From the Paper "There are other circumstances that can facilitate the sustenance of any collusive agreement made by oligopolist firms, which are actually created by the firms themselves. The two most common of these are brand proliferation and advertising as an entry barrier and it works like this: the more the amount of differentiated products that are sold by existing oligipolists, the smaller the market share available to a new firm that is entering with a new, unknown single product8. The large scale and often aggressive advertising engaged in by oligopolies often inflate the set-up costs of new firms wanting to compete with already highly established and house hold name firms."
Abstract This paper discusses the phenomenon of passive support of international terrorism from a legal standpoint. It questions whether there is any normative ground to assess the relationship between terrorist organizations and their harbor states. The paper contends that there is a close relationship between the principle of territorial sovereignty and an international obligation to deny passive support, including both an obligation of due diligence and a proactive duty to prevent international terrorist acts.
Table of Contents:
Abstract
Passive Support Motivations
Domestic Politics
Types of Passive Support
Acquiescence, Connivance, and Collusion Encouraging and Tolerating
Toleration and Inaction
Some Concluding Observations
Territorial Sovereignty and Obligation to Deny Passive Support
Sovereign Integrity and the Due Diligence Obligation
The Attribution of Knowledge
Duty to Act and Prevent
Conclusions
From the Paper "The relationship between the principle of territorial sovereignty and an international obligation to deny passive support may be appraised in the light of at least two different legal obligations: the obligation of due diligence and the proactive duty to prevent international terrorist acts. In both cases, the attribution of knowledge may be critical in establishing the link between international terrorist organizations and their host states. The main criterion to attribute knowledge, as was established in the Corfu Channel case, is clear evidence that the same state knew or ought to have known. The evidence could also be indirect, proved, for example, by official notes. Applying this criterion to hold passive sponsors responsible for the failure to act in due diligence and prevent terrorist acts, however, may not answer the question of whether the argument of self-defense is lawful. As was discussed above, the legality of the argument of self-defense will instead depend on the normative framework of the use of force. Nevertheless, establishing a clear link between terrorist organizations and their host states may influence the way the international community will respond to the argument of self-defense against states that harbor international terrorist organizations."
Abstract This paper explores the economic principles of the recording industry's profit models. It illustrates the method of selective collusion among the large music corporations. The paper generates more awareness and understanding in the legal ramifications that ensued from the birth of Napster in the free distribution of copyrighted music files through the Internet.
From the Paper "The article "When the Music Stops" by Nick Wingfield in the November 2002 issue of the Wall Street Journal, relates an interview with the founder of Napster, Shawn Fanning, after the death of his company at the hands of the recording industry. Not only does it discuss Napster's creator's plans and what he thinks is the future of the on-line music industry, it also provides an insight into the economic principles at work in the recording industry. This paper endeavours to explore the economic principles concerning demand models and the practice of selective collusion among the big recording companies which are alluded to in the article, thereby generating more awareness and understanding in the legal ramifications that ensued from the birth of Napster."
Tags: copyright, shawn, fanning, on-line, digital, distribution
Abstract The writer of this paper argues that modern medicine is in collusion with the pharmaceutical and insurance industries to create a system of profit rather than health. It states that the only effective alternative is to turn back to natural cures, to proper nutrition and diet and a holistic approach to healing.
From the Paper "Every single week, more people die at the hands of doctors than in the entire World Trade Center disaster. (Smith, 2002) This is neither a new statistic, nor an unexpected one. In 1979 Robert Mendelsohn wrote a controversial best-seller, Confessions of a Medical Heretic, in which he claimed that modern physicians were nothing more or less than the witch doctors of the Church of Medicine. He suggested that modern treatments precluded the creation of modern cures, and that it was capital rather than caring that dominated the medical system. Today his words ring more true than ever. The allopathic approach to medicine has shown itself to be more kill than cure, and a change is desperately needed. Modern allopathic medicine oppresses women and treats childbearing and childhood as a pathology, and in general it takes a terrible toll with unnecessary and even dangerous techniques."
Abstract This paper discusses the topic of allopathic medicine or modern medicine. It examines how the allopathic approach to medicine has shown itself to be more kill than cure and how a change is desperately needed. It shows how modern allopathic medicine oppresses women and treats childbearing and childhood as a pathology and in general it takes a terrible toll with unnecessary and even dangerous techniques. It argues how modern medicine is in collusion with the pharmaceutical and insurance industries to create a system of profit rather than health and how the only effective alternative is to turn back to natural cures, to proper nutrition and diet and a holistic approach to healing.
From the Paper "While women are far more likely to have unnecessary surgeries (other than circumcision) performed on them, allopathic medicine's rush to operate is nearly criminal in all cases. In a review of New York hospitals, 43% of hysterectomies reviewed were shown to be unnecessary. Mendelsohn records that the most conservative estimates suggest that about 2.4 million unnecessary surgeries are performed every year. The number is likely far higher than that when one takes into account that even "officially" necessary surgeries may not always be the best choice. Men as well as women suffer in this regard. Doctors overprescribe pharmaceutical medicines designed to treat rather than to cure. They also perform hosts of unnecessary surgeries. Even surgeries that may seem necessary are no guarantees. For example, according to Smith's research, there is no difference in long term survival between those with cardiac problems who agree to undergo surgery (and survive it) and those who do not undergo surgery."
Abstract This essay considers how Dorothy West's novel, "The Wedding," portrays the conflicts of race and class during the 1950s, a time that has been hailed as the Harlem Renaissance. By contradicting the revival of African-American identity, West weaves a complex history of generational identities and relations that reveal the collusion of race and class, where wealth and respect are internalized as synonymous with whiteness.
Discusses the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, which was designed as a response to the wave of corporate fraud cases that riddled the corporate landscape in America in 2002.
Abstract This paper looks at the Sarbanes-Oxley Act that was enacted in order to rectify the constant corporate scandals, fraud, and failures sweeping across the United States. The paper discusses the purpose of the Act, outlines its contents, explains exceptions to the Act that apply to foreign companies, and includes a timetable chart for its implementation. Issues such as independence and corporate responsibility, independence within the accounting profession, accountability and disclosure, and how the Act affects banking organizations that are non-public are also discussed in this paper.
From the Paper "The Sarbanes-Oxley Act is aimed at private companies by definition, as Section 108 on Accounting Standards implies. However, despite this seemingly straightforward definition, non-public banking companies are finding themselves under the jurisdiction of the Act based on their former standing with regard to SEC and FDIC regulations."
This paper analyzes the way Enron used phantom and "barely there" companies to enrich a handful of wealthy Enron executives, fellow-travelers, and politicians at the immense expense of its stockholders.
Abstract This paper states that it appears collusion in the deception at the highest levels is part of the factors that allowed Enron to create shell companies while making real personal wealth for its top executives and others. The author points out that two LJM partnerships, LJM and LJM2 Co-Investment LP, were meant to provide Enron with an earnings stream from sale of its assets as well as protection for a decline in value of any of Enron's investments. The paper stresses that Enron is not by any means the first American business scandal; in the 19th century, lawmakers helped themselves by voting federal subsidies for railroad construction concerning the Union Pacific Railroad and got away with $23 million.
Table of Contents
The Stakeholders
Friends in High Places
Writing the Rules for the "Shell Game"
The Partnerships Themselves
The Solution
From the Paper "It was not only banks, however, and not only Merrill Lynch, that was asked to participate in what appears to be Fastow's scheme. In addition, the Dallas Morning News reported that "several Wall Street firms said Enron Corp. used the lure of future business to get them to invest in a partnership that led the company into America's largest bankruptcy" (Landers, 2002). Enron former Treasurer, Jeff McMahon, had told Enron's attorneys that several banks asked him to confirm that the LJM investments would give them an inside track on Enron business, a fact which, in itself, suggests that they really didn?t care if the businesses they were "investing in" were real, as long as their investment gave them future access to Enron business for their banks. Later, McMahon noted that the promises the banks claimed they had received had not been fulfilled in at least one instance."
Abstract This paper discusses the evolution of the digital art form that emerged as a combination of technological expertise and traditional artistic vision. The paper contends that the emerging digital technologies are creating new forms and genres of art, which are a result of the interaction between traditional views of art. The study of the collusion and interaction between technical knowledge and artistic imagination and innovation forms the central trajectory of this paper.
From the Paper "An important aspect to consider in the evolution of digital art is the issue of legitimacy and acceptance. While the acceptance of digital art is far from ubiquitous there is now a strong basis for the recognition of digital art forms. (ibid) However, the hectic pace of technological development has meant that many artists feel inadequate in the face of technology that requires, in many cases, training and a mindset which is oriented towards a technological rather than a traditionally artistic point of view. Connected to this issue is the fact that art theory and aesthetics are struggling to assimilate these new technological methodologies."
Abstract This paper describes the approach Ishmael Reed took to write his novel, "Mumbo Jumbo" and then presents an analysis of the novel's main characters. The paper also discusses Reed's use of cinematic techniques in writing "Mumbo Jumbo" and explains that the central purpose of the novel is to present a paranoid theory explaining all of history, from ancient Egypt to the present day, in terms of a struggle between two opposing camps.
Table of Contents
Introduction
Ishmael Reed's Approach
Main Characters
Mumbo Jumbo as a the Voo Doo Theory of History
Anachronism in the Novel
Conclusion
From the Paper "Ishmael Reed's Mumbo Jumbo (1972), his third and, perhaps, best novel, is an improvisation on the conventional detective narrative. Set in Harlem during the 1920s, the novel ingeniously employs cinematic techniques to juxtapose fact and fiction, ancient and modern history. It follows the cyclical path of HooDoo detectives PaPa LaBas and Black Herman in tracking down the Western conspiracy to destroy the creative spirit and vitality of man, which Reed calls Jes Grew, and to supplant it with the repressive order of Western civilization, whose museums are Centers of Art Detention for the treasures from Africa, Asia, and South America."
Abstract This paper explains that Richard Sheridan's "A School for Scandal" and Oscar Wilde's "Lady Windermere's Fan" are both comedies of wit and manners which provide audiences with an absurd look at London's so-called aristocratic society, by using such devices as gossip, collusion, hidden identities, reversal of attitudes, generational recurrence and the discovery of the unexpected lady. The author points out that central to both plays is the question of whether a disappointed wife might justifiably retaliate or console herself by having an affair; and, in both plays, it is the aspiring gallant or lover, who nearly succeeds in convincing the wife to compromise her marriage and her morals. The paper summarizes that, in Wilde's play, it is gossip, which first creates the disappointment and mistrust in Lady Windermere; while in Sheridan's play it is Lady Teazle's attempt to excel at gossip in order to gain a place in what she considers fashionable society as well as the malicious gossip generated by that very society, which threatens to destroy her marriage. Many quotes.
From the Paper "Most of the characters in Wilde's play are noble enough, though their actions are not always. Usually, they initially act out of love or concern, though as in the case of the Duchess of Berwick her concern for Lady Windermere is questionable but her conviction at least seems true. Darlington, too, believing Lord Windermere to be a lout, acts on his love for Lady Windermere not wanting her to endure a loveless life. Her mother, Mrs. Erlynn, though perhaps long ago selfish when she abandoned her family does in the end act in a selfless manner when she claims responsibility for the fan in Darlington's quarters. And of course Lord Windermere attempting to protect his wife from shame was acting out of love."
This paper reviews Eun Mee Kim's "Big Business, Strong State", which analyzes the influences involved in South Korean economic development from 1960 to 1990.
1,495 words (approx. 6 pages), 0 sources, 2005, $ 49.95
Abstract This paper explains that many scholars consider the "rags-to-riches" turn-around of the South Korean economy as a marvel especially when compared with other countries such as those in Latin America; thereby, various theories have been proposed to explain this success. The author points out that Eun Mee Kim in "Big Business, Strong State" argues that the rapid economic growth was not due to a static "South Korean model", which was based on the constant strength of either the government or business, but rather a collusion between the state and the chaebol, the large family-owned and managed businesses. The paper relates that Kim's thesis regarding the relationship between the chaebol and the state is weak, dismissing too easily the possibility that the chaebol's influence was actually stronger in the beginning of this economic development than stated.
From the Paper "Beginning with General Park Chung Hee's military coup in 1961, Kim argues that the state took on an authoritarian control over South Korea, launching an aggressive economic campaign called the Five-Year Economic Development Plan (EDP). The EDP focused on transforming the economy from agriculture to industry, mercantile to manufacturing, and production for domestic use to exportation. Park targeted the chaebol specifically rather than establishing state-owned enterprises or supporting small or medium-sized businesses. As Kim contends, the idea being here that growth would be faster if the state encouraged the big businesses to expand into export-oriented arenas. Via strong-arm tactics, economic sanctions involving low-interest-rate loans to successful exporters, internationalization, and colonial legacy, the chaebol became a model for other businesses in South Korea that would, according to Kim, eventually grow beyond the state's control."
Tags: chaebol, authoritarian, peasants, turn-around, theory
