Competitive markets can involve some behaviour which is not directly productive, but does help companies get a leg-up on one another (such that many or all companies involved would prefer if that behaviour weren’t an option for anyone). One example is advertising (advertising is useful for other reasons, I mostly have in mind “Pepsi vs Coke” style advertising).
It’s worth noting that this is a case of (and cause of) imperfect competition: perfect competition and the attendant efficiency results require the existence of perfect substitutes for any one producer’s goods.
It’s worth noting that this is a case of (and cause of) imperfect competition: perfect competition and the attendant efficiency results require the existence of perfect substitutes for any one producer’s goods.