1. Sources of monopoly power A monopolist, unlike a competitive firm, has some market power. It can raise its price, within limits, without the quantity demanded falling to zero. The main way it retains its market power is through barriers to entry-that is, other companies cannot enter the market to create competition in that particular industry. Complete the following table by indicating which barrier to entry appropriately explains why a monopoly exists in each scenario. Barriers to Entry Exclusive Ownership of a key Resource Government- Created Monopolies Economies of Scale Scenario In the public water industry, low average total costs are obtained only through large-scale production. In other words, the initial cost of setting up all the necessary pipes makes it risky and, most likely, unprofitable for competitors to enter the market. The Aluminum Company of America (Alcoa) formerly controlled all U.S. sources of bauxite, a key component in the production of aluminum. Given that Alcoa did not sell bauxite to any other companies, Alcoa was a monopolist in the U.S. aluminum industry from the late 19th century. until the 1940s. In order to own and operate a taxi, drivers are required to obtain a taxi medallion.

1. Sources of monopoly power A monopolist, unlike a competitive firm, has some market power. It can raise its price, within limits, without the quantity demanded falling to zero. The main way it retains its market power is through barriers to entry-that is, other companies cannot enter the market to create competition in that particular industry. Complete the following table by indicating which barrier to entry appropriately explains why a monopoly exists in each scenario. Barriers to Entry Exclusive Ownership of a key Resource Government- Created Monopolies Economies of Scale Scenario In the public water industry, low average total costs are obtained only through large-scale production. In other words, the initial cost of setting up all the necessary pipes makes it risky and, most likely, unprofitable for competitors to enter the market. The Aluminum Company of America (Alcoa) formerly controlled all U.S. sources of bauxite, a key component in the production of aluminum. Given that Alcoa did not sell bauxite to any other companies, Alcoa was a monopolist in the U.S. aluminum industry from the late 19th century. until the 1940s. In order to own and operate a taxi, drivers are required to obtain a taxi medallion.

ENGR.ECONOMIC ANALYSIS

14th Edition

ISBN:9780190931919

Author:NEWNAN

Publisher:NEWNAN

Chapter1: Making Economics Decisions

Section: Chapter Questions

Problem 1QTC

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1 . Profit maximization and loss minimization BYOB is a monopolist in beer production and distribution in the imaginary economy of Hopsville. Suppose that BYOB cannot price discriminate; that is, it sells its beer at the same price per can to all customers. The following graph shows the marginal cost (MC), marginal revenue (MR), average total cost (ATC), and demand (D) for beer in this market. PLEASE HELP ME
8. Can a monopolist that is not subject to any regulation lead the market to Pareto efficiency by his own initiative? Pareto efficiency is a situation that cannot be modified so as to make any one individual better off without making at least one individual worse off. In the model of monopoly, we assume that the ultimate goal of a monopolist is to maximize his profit, which means MC-MR. We have seen (for example, in the lecture or earlier problems, e.g., problem 5) that this equality leads the monopolist to produce less and charge a higher price than in perfect competition. This makes the monopolist better off but at the same time makes consumers worse off, as compared to perfect competition. This also leads to a deadweight loss. As we have the deadweight loss, the monopoly is definitely not Pareto efficient. See the lecture slide # 37. The transactions between Qm and Qk (quantities supplied in the monopoly and perfect competition, respectively) could take place to everyone's benefit,…
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**You only need to answer Question C*
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3. Natural monopoly analysis The following graph gives the demand (D) curve for water services in the fictional town of Streamship Springs. The graph also shows the marginal revenue (MR) curve, the marginal cost (MC) curve, and the average total cost (ATC) curve for the local water company, a natural monopolist. On the following graph, use the black point (plus symbol) to indicate the profit-maximizing price and quantity for this natural monopolist. PRICE (Dals per hundred cubicfe RREZRE MR 4 7 OP . QUANTITY Oundreds of cubic feet Monopoly Outcome
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8. Natural monopoly analysis The following graph gives the demand (D) curve for 5G LTE services in the fictional town of Streamship Springs. The graph also shows the marginal revenue (MR) curve, the marginal cost (MC) curve, and the average total cost (ATC) curve for the local 5G LTE company, a natural monopolist. On the following graph, use the black point (plus symbol) to indicate the profit-maximizing price and quantity for this natural monopolist. PRICE (Dollars per gigabyte of data) 20 18 16 14 12 10 80 6 4 2 0 0 1 MR 2 3 4 5 6 7 QUANTITY (Gigabytes of data) 8 ATC MC 9 10 D Monopoly Outcome Which of the following statements are true about this natural monopoly? Check all that apply.
1. Asssume the following equations describe the conditions for an unregulated monopoly: Qd = q = 25,000 -100P or P = 250-0.01q TC = 480,000 + 70q + 0.005q2 where Qd is the quantity demanded for the firm, P is the commodity's price in dollars, TC is total cost in dollars, and q is the quantity of output produced. Based upon the above equations, answer the following questions: a. What is the firm's profit maximizing quantity of output? b. What price will the firm charge for the commodity c. What does the firm's total economic profit equal? d. What is the amount of deadweight loss that exists given the monopoly is unregulated? Assume the government is now going to regulate this monopoly, and the regulators want to guarentee the monopolist produces the socially optimal quantity of output. e. What is the socially optimal quantity of output? f. What price would regulators establish to guarantee the monopolist produces the socially optimal quantity of output? g. What does the firm's…
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The graph depicts the market for cable where there is one natural monopoly; AC represents average (total) cost, D represents market demand, and MR represents marginal revenue. Assume that the marginal cost is equal to 0. Suppose that before the cable company lays any cable, the government decides to regulate the monopoly by setting the price. What is the lowest price that regulators can impose while ensuring that the cable company enters the market? 2 What will a monopolist charge in the absence of any regulation? 4 Price $10 9 8 7 6 5 4- 3- تیا 2 1 0 1 AC 2 MR نیا D 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Households (in millions)
3. Natural monopoly analysis The following graph gives the demand (D) curve for satellite TV services in the fictional town of Streamship Springs. The graph also shows the marginal revenue (MR) curve, the marginal cost (MC) curve, and the average total cost (ATC) curve for the local satellite TV company, a natural monopolist. On the following graph, use the black point (plus symbol) to indicate the profit-maximizing price and quantity for this natural monopolist. PRICE (Dollars per subscription) 100 90 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 0 2 4 MR True 10 12 14 QUANTITY (Number of subscriptions) 16 False ATC MC 18 20 D Which of the following statements are true about this natural monopoly? Check all that apply. Monopoly Outcome In order for a monopoly to exist in this case, the government must have intervened and created it. It is more efficient on the cost side for one producer to exist in this market rather than a large number of producers. The satellite TV company must own a scarce resource.…