Technological change, production efficiency, and regulation in the equine industry

The equine industry has seen dramatic structural changes in recent years. Advances in production techniques, medical breakthroughs, and a changing legal environment have all created a much different industry structure. Industry participants must make choices in dealing with these changes. This investigation develops a framework for the analysis of the equine industry. Models of the stallion service and horse markets are developed and used to investigate the recent introduction of Artificial Insemination. Not all segments of the industry have accepted Artificial Insemination in the production of horses. The existence of regulation and the anti-trust implications of regulation are also investigated.

The models of the industry were developed with information provided by industry participants, breed registries, and national organizations. Additional data used for empirical tests and case studies were also provided by breed registries. The investigation outlines the basic structure of the industry, then uses regression and probit techniques and case studies to analyze elements of industry conduct. Based on industry structure and conduct, the effect of technological change on industry performance is evaluated. The results show that within the industry, different strategic groups and segments within those groups will be affected differently when Artificial Insemination is introduced. Based on these findings, it is expected that choices made by industry participants in response to changes in industry structure will vary.