Reflexões sobre a eficiência concorrencial em indústrias de rede

Abstract

Network industries are structural arrangements found in sectors with different specificities that share a set of characteristics. The paper demonstrates some of the ways these arrangements affect the behavior of competitive models theoretically capable of promoting economic Pareto-efficiency, pointing to the need to formulate another criterion for concrete assessments of efficiency in these structures. The approach is focused on the effect of switching costs and network externalities on the agents' behavior and operation of some competitive models, highlighting the interconnection elements and networks remuneration rules. The reflections help to understand the particular dynamics of network industries and can be useful in the development of regulatory policies involving these structures.