Price disclosure rules and consumer price comparison

Arbeitspapier

Search frictions are regarded as a major impediment to active competition in many markets. In some markets, such as financial and retail gasoline, governments and consumer protection agencies call for compulsory price reporting. Consumers could then more easily compare the firms' offers. We showthat for a given level of price comparison, mandatory price reporting indeed generally benefits consumers. Such regulation, however, feeds back into firms' strategies, resulting in lower levels of price comparison in equilibrium. This effect may dominate so that the regulation lead to higher expected market prices.

Object Details

• Language: Englisch

References and Relationships

• Bibliographic citation: Series: CAWM Discussion Paper ; No. 74

Classification and Topics

• Classification: Wirtschaft ; Search; Learning; Information and Knowledge; Communication; Belief; Unawareness ; Oligopoly and Other Imperfect Markets ; Economics of Regulation
• Subject: Mixed Strategies ; Price Comparison ; Regulation

Contributors, Places and Time

• Event: Geistige Schöpfung
• (who): Stühmeier, Torben
• Event: Veröffentlichung
• (who): Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität Münster, Centrum für Angewandte Wirtschaftsforschung (CAWM)
• (where): Münster
• (when): 2014

Further information

• Handle: http://hdl.handle.net/10419/103732
• Last update: 10.03.2025, 11:43 AM CET