Paternalism and the iPod, Part II: The Behavioral Economics of Apple?
Dave Hoffman over at Concurring Opinions asks: “Is Apple Exploiting Consumer Irrationality?” Dave is worried that consumers’ continuing iPod purchases may be irrational in the face of evidence that many iPod’s fail within their one year warranty period or shortly after, and that this strategy might explain Apple’s “growing market strength.” How likely are consumer ... Paternalism and the iPod, Part II: The Behavioral Economics of Apple?
Social Networks and Vertical Integration
My friend and co-author, Wes Hartmann (Stanford Graduate School of Business) has posted a very interesting paper with Ricard Gil (UC Santa Cruz Economics) entitled, “Airing your Dirty Laundry: Social Networks, Reputational Capital, and Vertical Integration.” As the title implies, Hartmann and Gil examine the role of social networks (ethnic-based networks in this case) on ... Social Networks and Vertical Integration
Antitrust Law and Competition for Distribution
Thom recently posted about Judge Alito’s comments on the recent Lepage’s decision involving bundled discounts offered to retailers. There is presently much debate among antitrust scholars regarding the proper treatment of “above-cost” price cuts, such as the bundled discounts in Lepage’s. The anticompetitive theory in these cases is not that discounts mask what is effectively ... Antitrust Law and Competition for Distribution
An Antitrust Modernization Committee Update
For those of you who are not familiar with work of the Antitrust Modernization Committee, and I suspect that this includes most of our readers, the AMC was created by the Antitrust Modernization Committee Act of 2002, and is charged with the following tasks: (1) to examine whether the need exists to modernize the antitrust ... An Antitrust Modernization Committee Update
Of Prices and Price Gouging
Price gouging regulations (PGRs) have been a popular topic of late in the blogosphere, particularly in the wake of increased post-Katrina (and Rita) gasoline prices. Becker and Posner make the now familiar economic case against PGRs here and here. The basic economic argument against PGRs is well tread ground which I will not repeat here. ... Of Prices and Price Gouging
Will SCOTUS Tame the Exotic Beast?
It is a pretty exciting time in the antitrust world. This, of course, is bad news for firms. SCOTUS will decide three antitrust cases this term, each offering a promising opportunity to clarify murky doctrine or undo an erroneous application of relatively clear antitrust principles. Texaco v Dagher falls into the latter category. The bulk ... Will SCOTUS Tame the Exotic Beast?
