Industrial Economics / Industrial Organisation

Industrial organization is a field of economics that studies the organisation structure of industries and firms and also the study of boundaries between firms and markets, the competition amongst them and the strategic interactions of firms.                             Edward Chamberlin, Edward S. Mason and Joe S. Bain mainly contributed to the development of industrial organization as a separate field in economics

Industrial economics studies and analyse the economic problems of firms and industries and their relationship with society. It also examines traditional and alternative theories of the firm and market structures.

Curriculum / Topics / Contents:

• Basic concepts in Game Theory
• Technology, Production Cost and Demand
• Perfect Competition, Monopoly and Monopolistic Competition
• Foundations of Oligopoly Theory
• Markets for Homogeneous Products
• Markets for Differentiated Products
• Concentration, Mergers and Entry Barriers
• Strategic Behaviour: Investment in Entry Deterrence
• Pricing Tactics: Discriminatory Pricing
• Marketing Tactics: Bundling, Upgrading and Dealership
• Quality, Durability and Warranties
• Advertising
• Collusion and Cartels
• Market Structure, Entry and Exit
• Vertical Restraints
• Research and Development
• Empirical Studies on Structure-Conduct-Performance Relationship
• Empirical Studies on Market Performance
• Management, Compensation and Regulation

There are two major approaches to the study of industrial economics. The first approach provides an overview of industrial organization. The second approach comprises the application of the Price theory and uses microeconomic models to explain firm behaviour and market structures. Also, the Game theory has become the standard unifying method of analysis.