The Thue-Siegel theorem implies that, for fixed $k$, there are only finitely many $m,n$ such that $m\geq n+k$ and $M(n,k)=M(m,k)$.

In general, how many solutions does $M(n,k)=M(m,l)$ have when $m\geq n+k$ and $l>1$? Erdős expects very few (and none when $l\geq k$).

The only solutions Erdős knew were $M(4,3)=M(13,2)$ and $M(3,4)=M(19,2)$.

In [Er79d] Erdős conjectures the stronger fact that (aside from a finite number of exceptions) if $k>2$ and $m\geq n+k$ then $\prod_{i\leq k}(n+i)$ and $\prod_{i\leq k}(m+i)$ cannot have the same set of prime factors.

See also [678], [686], and [850].

This is discussed in problem B35 of Guy's collection [Gu04].

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This page was last edited 30 September 2025.