Hardcover Books The marginal cost of printing a typical hard cover novel is $12.00 while the same book in paperback has a marginal cost of $2.00 lower. So why do publishers charge an average of $15 more for hard cover books?
Hard cover versus paperback is used as a price discrimination scheme. Paperback versions usually come many months after the hard cover version. Customers who really like a particular author are more demand inelastic and tend to be impatient for the next book. This way the publishers can extract a higher price from the inelastic customers before they charge a lower price to the more elastic segment of demand.
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Which of the following would not cause the supply curve for gasoline to shift?
A) A change in the wages paid to gas station attendants. B) A change in the number of gas stations. C) A change in the incomes of drivers. D) A change in the cost of refining oil.
Suppose an industry trade group has convinced legislators that a price floor should be used so that producer surplus is maximized in the market for milk. The group argues that such a policy would save the "family farm." Assuming a downward-sloping linear demand curve and a horizontal long-run supply curve, determine the resulting price, output and social welfare from such a policy. Compare this
result to the competitive equilibrium. What will be an ideal response?