ABSTRACT
John W. Wilson's article is the comprehensive effort to empirically delineate market structure characteristics in the petroleum industry since the earlier work of Melvin de Chazeau and Alfred Kahn. Prior to the evaluation of market structure in the petroleum industry, Wilson indicates the interdependence of market structure and the macro problems associated with inflation and recession. In Wilson's assessment of inadequate seller competition in the petroleum industry, there is a stress on both the political and economic power of the oil interests. Wilson maintains that the recent exposure of the OPEC cartel, petroleum product shortages, and environmental concerns have resulted in a new public awareness which provides the opportunity for remedial public policy initiatives. The massive evidence of joint venture arrangements, interlocks, and interties and the partnership arrangements points to the unique institutional characteristics of the petroleum industry. It undermines the reliance by various academics on concentration ratios as a gauge of control over supply.
