On the Dampening-of-Competition Effect of Exclusive Dealing

The authors compare and contrast the profit and welfare effects of exclusive dealing, sales through a common retailer, and vertical integration. As did Y. J. Lin (1990), the authors find that imperfectly competitive manufacturers prefer to impose exclusive dealing on their retailers. Unlike Lin, the authors find that welfare is higher under exclusive dealing than when products are sold through a common retailer. This finding suggests a new interpretation of the Standard Stations v. United States 1949 antitrust case.