Transcript Price Customization by Customer Type

This Week’s Topics
 Review Class Concepts
- Simple Pricing
- Price Customization by Customer Type
- Two-Part Tariff
- Simple
- With Two Demand Curves
 Review Homework
 Practice Problems
Class Concepts – Simple Pricing
 Steps for Solving a Simple Pricing Problem
- 1) Identify your total cost function (TC) and inverse demand function
- Find the inverse demand function by finding the demand function and solving for P
- Revenue = P*Q = (inverse demand function)*Q
- 2) Solve for marginal cost (MC) and marginal revenue (MR) by taking derivatives of
Revenue and Total Cost functions
- 3) Set MC = MR, and solve for Q*
- 4) Insert Q* into your inverse demand function and solve for P*
- 5) Check that you are profitable:
- Profit = Total Revenue – Total Cost
- π = P* x Q* – TC ≥ 0
- ** Be sure to do the last step! Optimal Simple Pricing helps you figure out the most
profit you can make from selling a good, given available demand. Is that optimal
profit high enough to cover your fixed costs?
Class Concepts – Advanced Pricing
 Advanced Pricing
- Use price customization to sell the same good at different prices per unit
- Ideally, we would like to sell each unit at exactly the maximum willingness to pay
(WTP) of each customer. Since we don’t have enough information to do this, we
use the following types of customization:
 Types of Price Customization
- Price Customization by Group
- Two-Part Tariff
- Price Customization by Quantity
- Versioning
- Bundling
- Intertemporal Price Customization
Class Concepts – Price Customization by Customer Type
 Price Customization by Customer Type
- Sell your product to different customer types at different prices
 How to use Price Customization by Customer Type
- If, you have two identifiable customer types with two different demand curves then:
- Use Simple Pricing, Steps 1-3 for each customer type
- If you have two unknowns in two equations, use algebra to solve for Q*1 and Q*2
- Follow Simple Pricing, Steps 4-5 for each customer type
 Other Considerations
- Arbitrage?: Since you are charging different prices to different customers, think about
the potential problems with arbitrage between customers in different groups
- Better than simple pricing?: Always
Class Concepts – Price Customization by Customer Type
 Knowledge Check
- You are selling Cal season football tickets to students and alumni. Student demand
for tickets is QS = 15,000 – 100PS, and alumni demand is QA = 30,000 – 50PA. The
total cost to the university is: TC = 0.001Q2 + 10Q + 2,000,000. At what price
should the university sell tickets? Are there any other considerations?
 Solution
- Simple Pricing Steps 1 to 3
- Step 1: Find Inverse Demand and Cost Functions
- PS = 150 – 0.01QS
PA = 600 – 0.02QA
- RS = 150QS – 0.01QS2
RA = 600QA – 0.02QA2
- Step 2: Solve for MR and MC by taking derivatives of Revenue and Cost Functions
- MRS = 150 – 0.02QS
MRA = 600 – 0.04QA
- MC = 0.002Q + 10  MC = 0.002QA +0.002QS + 10
- Step 3: Set MR = MC
- 0.002QA +0.002QS + 10 = 150 – 0.02QS
- 0.002QA +0.002QS + 10 = 600 – 0.04QA
Class Concepts – Price Customization by Customer Type
 Solution
- Solve for Unknowns
- 0.002QA +0.002QS + 10 = 150 – 0.02QS  Simplify
- 0.002QA +0.022QS = 140
 Equation 1
- 0.002QA +0.002QS + 10 = 600 – 0.04QA  Simplify
- 0.042QA +0.002QS = 590
 Multiply by 11
- 0.462QA +0.022QS = 6490
 Subtract Equation 1 from this
- (0.462 – 0.002) QA +(0.022-0.022)QS = 6490-140
 Simplify
- 0.46QA = 5350
 Simplify
- QA* = 13,804.35
 Substitute into Equation 1
- 0.002(13,804.35) + 0.022QS = 140
- 27.61 + 0.022QS = 140
- 0.022QS = 112.39
- QS* = 5,108.70
Class Concepts – Price Customization by Customer Type
 Solution
- Step 4: Solve for P*
- QS* = 5,108.70
QA* = 13,804.35
- PS* = 150 – 0.01QS
PA* = 600 – 0.02QA
- PS* = 150 – 0.01(5,108.70)
PA* = 600 – 0.02(13,804.35)
- PS* = 150 – 51.09
PA* = 600 – 276.09
- PS* = 98.91
PA* = 323.91
- Step 5: Check for Profitability
- π = (PS* x QS*) + (PA* x QA*) – TC
- π = (PS* x QS*) + (PA* x QA*) – [0.001(QS* + QA*)2 + 10(QS* + QA*) +2,000,000]
- π = (98.91 x 5,108.70) + (323.91 x 13,804.35) –
[0.001(5,108.70 + 13,804.35)2 + 10(5,108.70 + 13,804.35) + 2,000,000]
- π = $505,316.64 + $4,471,408.32 – [$357,703.21 + $189,130.43 + $2,000,000]
- π = $4,976,724.95 – [$2,546,833.65]
- π = $2,429,891.30 ≥ 0
Class Concepts – Two-Part Tariff with One Customer Type
 Two-Part Tariff with One Customer Type
- Charge a “Fixed Fee” for the right to buy units
- Then sell each unit at a set “Unit Price”
 How to use the Two-Part Tariff with One Customer Type
- 1) Set the “Unit Price” equal to the Marginal Cost (MC) of producing a unit
- 2) Set the “Fixed Fee” equal to the Consumer Surplus (CS) when selling at Marginal
Cost (MC)  Find the area of the triangle
- If demand curve is linear:
- Set the Inverse Demand Curve = MC  Solve for QMC
- Area of CS = ½*(Constant from Inverse Demand Curve – MC)* QMC
 Requirements for using Two-Part Tariff
- This pricing method works best when all buyers have the same demand, and may
become less valuable (and more complicated) with more demand types
- Arbitrage?: No, you are not charging different prices to different customers
- Better than simple pricing?: Always with one type of customer
Class Concepts – Two-Part Tariff with One Customer Type
 Knowledge Check
- You are running an amusement park, where all customer demand is Q = 30 – 0.4P and
the marginal cost of each ride is 5. You would like to charge an entry fee to the
amusement park, and charge for tickets for each ride. How much should your entry fee
be? How much should a 1-ride ticket cost?
 Solution
- Each ride ticket should cost $5.
- Solve for the Inverse Demand Curve: P = 75 – 2.5Q
- Inverse Demand Curve at P = 5
- 5 = 75 – 2.5QMC
- 2.5QMC = 70
- QMC = 28
- Consumer Surplus = ½ * (75 – 5) * (28)
- Consumer Surplus = 980… hmmm, this seems unrealistically high
Class Concepts – Two-Part Tariff with Two Customer Types
 Two-Part Tariff with Two Customer Types
- Charge a “Fixed Fee” for the right to buy units
- Then sell each unit at a set “Unit Price”
 How to use the Two-Part Tariff with Two Customer Types
- You Need:
- Number of High Type, Low Type Customers (NHT, NLT), these will be numbers
- Demand for High Type, Low Type Customers, these will be functions
- Total Cost (may be based on number of customers and number of units sold), this will be a
function of the number of customers & number of units
- Follow the steps on the following slide:
Class Concepts – Two-Part Tariff with Two Customer Types
 How to use the Two-Part Tariff with Two Customer Types (cont.)
- Find High and Low Type Quantity Purchased functions (in terms of price, P)
- High Type Quantity = NHT*(High Type Demand)
- Low Type Quantity = NLT*(High Type Demand)
- Revenue (from Fixed Fee & Unit Price) and Costs in terms of an optimal price, P
- Unit Revenue = Q x P = [High Type Quantity + Low Type Quantity] x P
- Fixed Fee Revenue is based on the consumer surplus of the Low Type Customer
- Fixed Fee = ½*(Constant from Inverse Low Type Demand Curve – P)*(Low Type Demand)
- Fixed Fee Revenue = Fixed Fee* (NLT + NHT)
- Costs
- Costs = Cost for NLT & NHT + Cost for Quantity
- Costs = Cost for NLT & NHT + MC*(High Type Quantity + Low Type Quantity)
- Find MR and MC by Taking Derivative with respect to P
- Set MR = MC Solve for P
 Requirements for using Two-Part Tariff with Two Customer Types
- One customer type must demand more than the other customer type at every price
- Always check to see if you could make more by just selling to the high type!
Class Concepts – Two-Part Tariff with Two Customer Types
 Knowledge Check
- Number of High Type customers = 50, Number of Low Type customers = 30
- Low Type Demand: P = 12 – 4Q  Q = 4 – 0.25P
- High Type Demand: P = 16 – 2Q  Q = 8 – 0.5P
- TC = 4N + 3Q (Where N is the total number of customers)
- What is the optimal price?
 Solution
- High Type Quantity = NHT*(High Type Demand) = 50 * (8 – 0.5P)
- High Type Quantity = 400 – 25P
- Low Type Quantity = NLT*(High Type Demand) = 30 * (4 – 0.25P)
- Low Type Quantity =120 – 7.5P
Class Concepts – Two-Part Tariff with Two Customer Types
 Solution
- High Type Quantity = 400 – 25P
Low Type Quantity =120 – 7.5P
- Unit Revenue
- Unit Revenue = [High Type Quantity + Low Type Quantity] x P
- Unit Revenue = [(400 – 25P) + (120 – 7.5P)] x P = [520 – 32.5P]P
- Unit Revenue = 520P – 32.5P2
- Fixed Fee Revenue
- Fixed Fee = ½ * (12 – P)*(4 – 0.25P) = (6 – 0.5P)*(4 – 0.25P) = 24 – 1.5P – 2P + .125P2
- Fixed Fee = 0.125P2 – 3.5P + 24
- Fixed Fee Revenue = Fixed Fee* (NLT + NHT)
- Fixed Fee Revenue = (0.125P2 – 3.5P + 24) * (30 + 50) = (0.125P2 – 3.5P + 24) * (80)
- Fixed Fee Revenue = 10P2 – 280P + 1920
- Costs
- Costs = Cost for NLT & NHT + Cost for Quantity
- Costs = 4N + 3Q = 4(NLT + NHT) + 3*(High Type Quantity + Low Type Quantity)
- Costs = 4(30 + 50) + 3*[(400 – 25P) + (120 – 7.5P)] = 4*80 + 3*[520 – 32.5P]
- Costs = 320 + 1560 – 97.5P = 1880 – 97.5P
Class Concepts – Two-Part Tariff with Two Customer Types
 Solution
- Revenue = Unit Revenue + Fixed Fee Revenue
- Revenue = (520P – 32.5P2) + (10P2 – 280P + 1920)
- Costs = 1880 – 97.5P
- Solve for MR and MC
- MR = 520 - 65P + 20P – 280 = 240 – 45P
- MC = -97.5
- Set MR = MC
- 240 – 45P = -97.5
- 45P = 337.5
- P = 7.5
- Check Profitability
- π = Revenue – Cost = (520*7.5 – 32.5*7.52)+(10*7.52 – 280*7.5 + 1920) – (1880 – 97.5*7.5)
- π = (3,900 – 1828.125) + (562.5 – 2,100 + 1,920) – (1,880 – 731.25)
- π = 2,071.875 + 382.5 – 1,148.75
- π = 1,305.625
Class Concepts – Two-Part Tariff with Two Customer Types
 Solution
- What happens if we sell only to the high type?
- 50 Customers
- High Type Demand: P = 16 – 2Q  Q = 8 – 0.5P
- TC = 4N + 3Q = 4*50 + 3Q = 200 + 3Q
- Unit Price = MC = 3
- Find Quantity Purchased when Price = MC
- 3 = 16 – 2Q  2Q = 13
- Q = 6.5
- Consumer Surplus = ½ * (16 – 3) * (6.5) = ½ * 13 * 6.5 = $42.25
- Profit = Revenue – Cost = 50*[$42.25 + ($3*6.5)] – (200 + 3*6.5)
- Profit = 2,112.50 – 200 = $1,912.50
- Since this profit is higher, choose to sell only to the high type customers