Question

Difficulty: MediumMonopoly: Price Discrimination Conditions, Types, and Effects

Match each type or condition of monopolistic price discrimination on the left with its corresponding economic strategy or market characteristic on the right.

  • First-Degree Price DiscriminationCharging each individual buyer the maximum price they are willing to pay, completely capturing consumer surplus.
  • Second-Degree Price DiscriminationCharging different rates based on blocks or volume of consumption, allowing consumers to self-select.
  • Third-Degree Price DiscriminationSegmenting buyers into distinct sub-markets based on differing price elasticities of demand.
  • Prerequisite Condition for Price DiscriminationEffective separation of sub-markets to prevent consumer arbitrage or resale between markets.

Answer

First-Degree Price Discrimination matches charging each consumer their maximum reservation price. Second-Degree Price Discrimination matches block pricing based on quantity consumed. Third-Degree Price Discrimination matches segmenting markets by price elasticity of demand. The Prerequisite Condition matches market separation to prevent resale and arbitrage.
First-degree price discrimination captures all consumer surplus by charging each buyer their maximum willingness to pay. Second-degree price discrimination alters prices by consumption volume. Third-degree price discrimination separates groups by price elasticity of demand. Market separation is the vital condition that prevents resale across markets.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze First-Degree Price Discrimination
Identify that it targets individual consumer reservation prices to eliminate all consumer surplus.
By definition, perfect price discrimination extracts the entire consumer surplus from every buyer.
2
Analyze Second-Degree Price Discrimination
Identify that it uses quantity schedules and block rates.
Consumers choose their preferred tier based on consumption volume.
3
Analyze Third-Degree Price Discrimination
Identify market segmentation based on price elasticity of demand.
Groups with inelastic demand are charged higher prices, while groups with elastic demand receive lower prices.
4
Identify the key market condition for price discrimination
Identify prevention of resale (arbitrage) and market separation.
If buyers can resell the commodity, price discrimination collapses as low-price buyers sell to high-price buyers.

Key Concept

Monopoly Price Discrimination Degrees and Prerequisites
Rate this question