196,610 research outputs found
Intermediation can replace certification
No full textWe consider a market in which consumers do not have perfect information about products qualities. Producers can perfectly reveal that a good is of high quality through certification which entails socially wasteful costs. Firms can choose whether to sell through an intermediary or to sell independently (vertical integration). We show that multi-brand retailing, which leads to a redistribution of profits but not to social costs, can fully or partially replace certification by signaling product quality. Renting the image of a competing high-quality brand is shown to be an outcome which can be sustained through intermediatio
Alliances between Competitors and Consumer Information
No full textAlliances between competitors in which established firms provide access to proprietary resources, e.g. their distribution channels, are important business practices. We analyze a market where an established firm, firm A, produces a product of well-known quality, and a firm with an unknown brand, firm B, has to choose to produce high or low quality. Firm A observes firm B's quality choice but consumers do not. Hence, firm B is subject to a moral hazard problem which can potentially be solved by firm A. Firm A can accept or reject to form an alliance with firm B, which is observed by consumers. If an alliance is formed, firm A implicitly certificies the rival's product. Consumers infer that firm B is a competitor with high quality, as otherwise why would the established firm accept to form an alliance? The mechanism we discover allows for an economic interpretation of several types of business practices
Content and advertising in the media: pay-tv versus free-to-air
No full textWe compare the advertising intensity and content of programming in a market with competing media platforms. With pay-tv, media platforms have two sources of revenues, advertising revenues and revenues from viewers. With free-to-air, media platforms receive all revenues from advertising. We show that if viewers strongly dislike advertising, the advertising intensity is greater under free-to-air television. We also show that free-to-air television tends to provide less differentiated content whereas pay-tv stations always maximally differentiate their content. In addition, we compare the welfare properties of the two different scheme
Net neutrality: a fast lane to understanding the trade-offs
No full textThe “net neutrality” principle has triggered a heated debate and advocates have proposed policy interventions. In this paper, we provide perspective by framing issues in terms of the positive economic factors at work. We stress the incentives of market participants, and highlight the economic conflicts behind the arguments put forward by the different parties. We also identify several key open questions
Competition in telecommunications: An introduction
No full text10.1016/j.infoecopol.2004.01.003Information Economics and Policy163315-321IEPO
The European meeting on Helicobacter pylori: therapeutic news from Lisbon
No full textThe European meeting on Helicobacter pylori: therapeutic news from Lisbo
With a little help from my enemy: Comparative advertising as a signal of quality
No full textWe extend the theory of advertising as a quality signal, using a model where an entrant can choose to advertise by comparing its product to that of an established incumbent. Comparative advertising, comparing quality of one’s own product to that of a rival’s, empowers the latter to file for court intervention if it believes the comparison to be false or misleading. We show that comparative advertising can be a signal in instances where generic advertising is not viabl
Comparative Advertising and Competition Policy
No full textOnly recently, competition authorities tend to agree on comparative advertising being helpful in promoting competition. They now encourage firms to use it. They reason that comparative advertising, if fair and not misleading, increases consumers ’ information about alternative brands. For this to work, comparative claims must be credible. Competition policy and legal practice are essential in making comparative advertising (directly and indirectly) informative. In this paper, first we provide a legal background of comparative advertising in in Europe and the US. Second, we provide an economic analysis of comparative advertising. Here, we discuss the ways comparative advertising can affect market outcomes. Third, we provide an analysis of some recent legal cases in Europe and the US. Overall, we focus on the scope of information transmission through comparative advertising and on the way antitrust laws affect it
The European meeting on helicobacter pylori: Therapeutic news from lisbon
No full textThe current standard of Helicobacter pylori treatment has been confirmed by the studies presented at the Lisbon workshop-that is, one of three one week proton pump inhibitor (PPI) based triple therapies comprising a twice daily standard dose of a PPI in combination with two of the following antimicrobial agents: clarithromycin, amoxycillin, or a nitromidazole. This standard of treatment is also highly efficacious and cost-effective in routine community practice. The current data confirm the equivalence of ranitidine bismuth citrate to PPI, and of azithromycin to clarithromycin. The optimum dose for azithromycin has not yet been defined. There is some evidence that in certain regions treatment for more than one week may be advantageous. The reasons are still not clear. However, microbial resistance may be one important factor, as it has a substantial effect on treatment outcome and the prevalence of resistance varies considerably in different areas. The negative impact of resistance is increased by shortening the treatment time. At present, there is no general necessity to test for resistance before treatment. However, before selection of a second line treatment, testing for resistance is recommended
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