INDUSTRIAL ECONOMICS AND POLICY (Cognomi A-K)
Academic year and teacher
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- Versione italiana
- Academic year
- 2022/2023
- Teacher
- GIORGIO PRODI
- Credits
- 8
- Didactic period
- Secondo Semestre
- SSD
- SECS-P/06
Training objectives
- The aim of the course is to provide the student with a broad view of the interpretative models and problems of industrial economics, on the one hand, and of industrial policy tools, on the other.
In this context, the course allows the acquisition of the following knowledge:
- basic concepts related to market structures and neoclassical theory
- variety of business models and production organization models
- mergers, acquisitions and strategic alliances
- product differentiation and different pricing strategies
- R&D, development phases of innovation, tools for the protection of intellectual property rights and the relationship between innovation and business strategies;
- definition of industrial policy, industrial policy motivations, market failures and other policy objectives
- government failures and remedies;
The course then aims to encourage the acquisition of the following skills, i.e. the ability to apply the knowledge acquired:
- analyze the dynamics of industrial development from a policy perspective;
- critically analyze the strategic choices of companies and their impact on the competitive dynamics of the sector;
- identify opportunities for patenting and protection of innovation;
- evaluate the government's intervention choices Prerequisites
- None, but having passed the exams in Political Economy I, Political Economy II and Public Economics would be an asset.
Course programme
- The course includes 56 hours of teaching, divided as follows:
PART 1: INTRODUCTORY CONCEPTS
Basic concepts: Supply and demand function - Consumer and producer surplus - The short term - The long term - The very long term - The condition of maximizing profit in the long term - Entry and exit barriers
Market structures and references to microeconomic theory: perfect competition, monopoly, oligopoly and monopolistic competition - Structure-Conducts-Performance (S-C-P) paradigm - Market concentration measures
PART 2: INDUSTRIAL ECONOMICS
Variety of business models: Neoclassical theory - Behavioral theory - Managerial theory - Transaction cost theory
Variety of production organization models: The Japanese case - The South Korean case - The public enterprise - The cooperative model - The social enterprise - The multinational enterprise - Business systems
Mergers, acquisitions and strategic alliances: Horizontal mergers - Vertical mergers - Conglomerate mergers - Strategic alliances
Pricing Strategies: Pricing Methods - Price Discrimination - Predatory Pricing - Limit Price - Government Regulated Prices
Product differentiation and advertising: From mass production to mass personalization - Horizontal and vertical differentiation - Natural and strategic differentiation - Advertising and its functions
Research and development and technological innovation in enterprises: the information paradox - Intellectual property protection tools - Patents - Markets for technology - Innovation and market structures - Innovation and business structures - Pioneers and followers - Open innovation - Innovation systems
PART 3: INDUSTRIAL POLICY
Evolution of the industrial policy debate: Definitions - targets and objectives - historical evolution of the debate
Reasons for industrial policy intervention: Market and antitrust failures - Externalities - Public goods - Information asymmetries - Non-competitive markets - Areas of intervention for competition policy - Economically strategic objectives - Selective policies - Metaeconomic objectives
Government Failures and Remedies: Definitions - Internal Government Organizations Failures - External Government Organizations Failures - Government and Interests - Beyond Government Failures. Didactic methods
- The course includes lectures on the main theoretical concepts, but with frequent use of examples taken from real cases and related to organization and industrial policy. During the lesson, interaction with students and professors is strongly encouraged.
Learning assessment procedures
- Attending students can divide the exam into two partial tests, consisting of 16 multiple choice questions. Each correct answer is worth 2 points. The first partial test is considered passed with a score equal to or greater than 14.
Non-attending students (or those attending who do not want to opt for partial exams) must instead take the exam in a single test which will consist of 16 multiple choice questions, each of which has 3 or 4 options. Each correct answer is worth 2 points;
Exam sessions
The exam sessions are available at: https://studiare.unife.it
Registration for the exam
Registration for the exam must be done before the date set through the site https: // Studying.unife.it. Registrations after the closure of the online lists will not be accepted.
Passing the exam is proof of having acquired the knowledge and skills specified in the educational objectives of the course. In particular, the questions are aimed at assessing the level of knowledge acquired and the ability to identify issues related to industrial organization and industrial policy with an adequate level of in-depth analysis. Reference texts
- The reference text is the Di Tommaso M.R., Rubini L., Barbieri E. e Tassinari M. (2021) Economia e politica industriale: Organizzazione della produzione, innovazione e politiche di interesse pubblico, Bologna, Il Mulino.
lecture slides are part of the program together with papers that will available on classroom
