Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A market condition in which purchasers are so few that the actions of any one of them can materially affect price and the costs that competitors must pay.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun An economic condition in which a small number of buyers exert control over the market price of a commodity.

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[olig(o)– + (mon)opsony.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Ancient Greek ὀλίγοι (oligoi, "few") + ὀψωνία (opsōnia, "purchase"), corresponding to oligo- + -opsony.

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Examples

  • Medicare may have imperfect pricing due to oligopsony, but one might suppose that corporations' dedication to oligopolistic competition would be at least as worthy of this blog's commentary as to its impact on Welfare.

    Medicare and Overfishing, Arnold Kling | EconLog | Library of Economics and Liberty 2009

  • Olson never mentions oligopsony (many sellers to a very small number of buyers) even once in his book.

    They Trade in Taboo 2007

  • To clarify, the oligopsony, as referenced here, is not about the retail sale of gasoline.

    They Trade in Taboo 2007

  • For the record, oligopsony is the flip side of oligopoly, that is, a small number of buyers, in this case, of labor services.

    Rational Review 2009

  • As if the preceding were not enough, I also noticed, assuming that the program did not stop and offer choices if the word was in its memory, that oligopsony is in, but psychoneurotic is not; Winston is in,

    VERBATIM: The Language Quarterly Vol XV No 1 1988

Comments

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  • An economic condition in which a small number of buyers exert control over the market price of a commodity. (Wiktionary)

    July 26, 2008