TY  - UNPD
A1  - Andres, Maximilian
A1  - Bruttel, Lisa Verena
A1  - Friedrichsen, Jana
T1  - Choosing between explicit cartel formation and tacit collusion – An experiment
T2  - CEPA Discussion Papers
N2  - Numerous studies investigate which sanctioning institutions prevent cartel formation but little is known as to how these sanctions work. We contribute to understanding the inner workings of cartels by studying experimentally the effect of sanctioning institutions on firms’ communication. Using machine learning to organize the chat communication into topics, we find that firms are significantly less likely to communicate explicitly about price fixing when sanctioning institutions are present. At the same time, average prices are lower when communication is less explicit. A mediation analysis suggests that sanctions are effective in hindering cartel formation not only because they introduce a risk of being fined but also by reducing the prevalence of explicit price communication.
T3  - CEPA Discussion Papers - 19 
KW  - cartel
KW  - collusion
KW  - communication
KW  - machine learning
KW  - experiment
Y1  - 2020
UR  - https://publishup.uni-potsdam.de/frontdoor/index/index/docId/47388
UR  - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-473885
SN  - 2628-653X
IS  - 19
ER  -