Showing results for: “Michael Vita”
The Economics of Drip Pricing at the FTC
The FTC is having a conference in the economics of drip pricing: Drip pricing is a pricing technique in which firms advertise only part of a product’s price and reveal other charges later as the customer goes through the buying process. The additional charges can be mandatory charges, such as hotel resort fees, or fees ... The Economics of Drip Pricing at the FTC
Taxing Regulatory Failure
Last month, the IRS and the US Treasury Department issued proposed rules to implement a new tax on health insurance providers and self-insured groups. The tax is part of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) and will be used to help fund the new Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI), which will conduct research ... Taxing Regulatory Failure
More Bailout Fallout: Non-buyer’s Remorse
An interesting story in the WSJ Online today about American International Group (AIG)’s use of a standard tax write-off and the political firestorm it is creating…all because the Washington establishment thought it could hide behind semantics during the bailout era. The benefits at issue were accrued by AIG as it amassed record losses amid the ... More Bailout Fallout: Non-buyer’s Remorse
A Tale of Two Subsidies
Last week’s business news highlighted two tremendous subsidy programs. In one case, the company received no direct payment for product development. None of its suppliers received targeted subsidies to produce parts. But consumers were subsidized to encourage them to buy the product. In the other case, the company received direct payments to underwrite the cost ... A Tale of Two Subsidies
The Magical World of Mandates
It seems President Obama has discovered a magical cure for his contraception controversy: simply force insurance companies to provide free coverage for contraceptive services, but only for women who work for organizations that qualify for exemption from the original mandate that requires contraceptive coverage be part of any respectable (i.e., Obama-approved) health plan. Never mind ... The Magical World of Mandates
Randomizing Regulation
An interesting post on the University of Pennsylvania Reg Blog from Michael Abramowicz, Ian Ayres, and Yair Listokin (AAY) on “Randomizing Regulation,” based upon their piece in the U Penn L. Rev. If legislators disagree about the efficacy of a proposed policy, why not resolve the disagreement with a bet? One approach would be to impose ... Randomizing Regulation
Collective Moral Hazard, Maturity Mismatch, and Systemic Bailouts
That’s the title of an interesting article by Emmanuel Farhi and Jean Tirole in the current issue of the American Economic Review. Here’s the abstract (emphasis added): The article shows that time-consistent, imperfectly targeted support to distressed institutions makes private leverage choices strategic complements. When everyone engages in maturity mismatch, authorities have little choice but ... Collective Moral Hazard, Maturity Mismatch, and Systemic Bailouts
Options Have Value, Even If DOT Doesn’t Get It
Last week Thom posted about the government’s attempt to hide the cost of taxes and regulatory fees in commercial airfares. Apparently Spirit Airlines is highlighting another government-imposed cost of doing business by advertising a new $2/ticket fee that the airline has imposed. According a CNN report yesterday: Spirit Airlines says a new federal regulation aimed ... Options Have Value, Even If DOT Doesn’t Get It
New Study Links Wireless Adoption to Jobs: It’s All About the Spectrum (and Siri)
Economists recognize that the source of sustainable, private-sector jobs is investment. Due to measurement problems with investment data, however, it is sometimes easier to link a byproduct of investment—namely, adoption of the technology made possible by the investment—to job creation. This is precisely what economists Rob Shapiro and Kevin Hassett have done in their new ... New Study Links Wireless Adoption to Jobs: It’s All About the Spectrum (and Siri)
A “Reasonable Profits Board”? If Only It Were From the Onion…
A Congressional Bill proposing a “Reasonable Profits Board” so that profits on the sale of oil and gas in excess of what is “reasonable” can be subjected to a windfall tax. A brief description: According to the bill, a windfall tax of 50 percent would be applied when the sale of oil or gas leads ... A “Reasonable Profits Board”? If Only It Were From the Onion…
A Decision-Theoretic Approach to Insider Trading Regulation
Regular readers will know that several of us TOTM bloggers are fans of the “decision-theoretic” approach to antitrust law. Such an approach, which Josh and Geoff often call an “error cost” approach, recognizes that antitrust liability rules may misfire in two directions: they may wrongly acquit harmful practices, and they may wrongly convict beneficial (or ... A Decision-Theoretic Approach to Insider Trading Regulation
Best Antitrust Articles and Books of 2011
Danny Sokol posted some nominations for best Antitrust Article from a variety of antitrust experts. I was supposed to include my nomination for that list but missed the deadline. Turns out my draft list doesn’t have much overlap with the articles nominated over there, so I figured I’d share my whole list here with all ... Best Antitrust Articles and Books of 2011
