Multi‐part tariffs and differentiated commodity taxation

A-Tier
Journal: RAND Journal of Economics
Year: 2020
Volume: 51
Issue: 3
Pages: 786-804

Score contribution per author:

1.341 = (α=2.01 / 3 authors) × 2.0x A-tier

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

Abstract

We study commodity taxation in markets where firms, such as Internet Service Providers, energy suppliers, and payment card platforms, adopt multi‐part tariffs. We show that ad valorem taxes can correct underprovision and hence increase welfare, provided the government applies differentiated tax rates to the usage and access parts of the tariff. We obtain this result in different settings, including vertically interlinked markets, markets where firms adopt menus of tariffs to screen consumers, and where they compete with multi‐part tariffs. Our results suggest that exempting these markets from taxation may be inefficient.

Technical Details

RePEc Handle
repec:bla:randje:v:51:y:2020:i:3:p:786-804
Journal Field
Industrial Organization
Author Count
3
Added to Database
2026-01-25