Coalition Formation and Equilibrium in Oligopoly Models with Heterogeneous Firms

The thesis examines competition and cooperation among a small number of strategically interacting firms. Because firms may differ, such as in production costs, these differences can affect both their readiness to cooperate and the results of competition. It asks under what conditions stable coalitions can emerge and how firm heterogeneity shapes coalition formation. It also studies whether market equilibrium exists and whether it stays stable as firms change their choices over time. The work combines cooperation and competition models to clarify how differences between firms influence strategic choices and market outcomes. Its results add to research on heterogeneous firms whose decisions are closely linked.