ИСТИНА

Drawing from the literature on revenue management, vertical and horizontal differentiation, and competition models, this study proposes a theoretical framework to analyse the implications of ticket flexibility on competition dynamics, pricing strategies, and social welfare. We built a theoretical duopoly model that provides a useful paradigm to study the liberalization process in it’s the early stages. It assumes asymmetrical duopolistic competition, considering the advantages of incumbents in terms of capacity and departure times, and incorporating the concept of usage flexibility in ticket fares, the paper elucidates equilibrium fares, revenues, and social welfare. A survival model is developed and calibrated using empirical data on ticket availability, fares, departure times, and other relevant variables to validate the theoretical model and assess real-world implications. Our findings suggest that ticket flexibility is pivotal in shaping competition strategies, with implications for revenue management and consumer welfare.