Bertrand versus Cournot revisited

B-Tier
Journal: Economic Theory
Year: 1997
Volume: 10
Issue: 3
Pages: 497-507

Score contribution per author:

1.005 = (α=2.01 / 2 authors) × 1.0x B-tier

α: calibrated so average coauthorship-adjusted count equals average raw count

Abstract

Bertrand criticized Cournot's analysis of the competitive process, arguing that firms should be seen as playing a strategy of setting price below competitors' prices (henceforth, the Bertrand strategy) instead of a strategy of accepting the price needed to sell an optimal quantity (the Cournot strategy). We characterize Nash equilibria in a generalized model in which firms choose among Cournot and Bertrand strategies. Best responses always exist in this model. For the duopoly case, we show that iterated best responses converge under mild assumptions on initial states either to Cournot equilibrium or to an equilibrium in which only one firm plays the Bertrand strategy with price equal to marginal cost and that firm has zero sales.

Technical Details

RePEc Handle
repec:spr:joecth:v:10:y:1997:i:3:p:497-507
Journal Field
Theory
Author Count
2
Added to Database
2026-01-29