The relationship among competitive advantage,catch-up,and linkage effects: a comparative study on ICT industry between South Korea and India

Service Business - This study examined the relationship among competitive advantage, catch-up, and linkage effects using Input–Output (IO) data of the information and communications...     

Temporal duration and attribution process of cause-related marketing: moderating roles of self-construal and product involvement

Applying the self-construal (SC) temporal match effect to a cause marketing context, this study investigated the conditions under which cause-related marketing campaigns generate stronger altruistic attributions of sponsor motives and subsequently purchase intention. As major factors, temporal duration (long-term vs. short-term), SC (independent vs. interdependent), and product involvement (high vs. low) were incorporated in the integrative model and the three-way interaction effect on altruistic attributions was assessed. With the use of online experimental data from 323 college students, the matching effect of temporal duration and SC was found, such that independent individuals were influenced by the message that was framed with the distant, long-term duration. Our findings further found that this matching effect was more pronounced for the high-involvement product, but not for the low-involvement product. In addition, this study discovered that altruistic attributions mediated the effect of temporal duration on purchase intention in the low-involvement product condition, but not in the high-involvement condition. Theoretical and managerial implications were discussed for researchers and practitioners.     

Estimating consumer demand in Korea

In this paper, time series annual data on five consumer goods for Korea are analyzed using the neoclassical model of consumer behavior. The approach taken is the indirect utility function and employs a translog form. Various restrictive specifications of consumer preferences with respect to homotheticity and separability are examined and rejected by the likelihood ratio test. Income and price elasticities are estimated, which appear to be generally high relative to those of developed countries. Growth in real income is primarily responsible for changes in commodity demand. Marginal utilities of income and associated income elasticities are calculated, which are consistent with normal expectations.     

The mediation of information technology on visitors’ experience at a cultural heritage site

This study identifies perceptual differences between the experiences of using an interactive ubiquitous access tourism service (U-tourism service) at a cultural heritage site and on-site participation-driven services. An interactive U-tourism service, “Hwaseong Haenggung Histour”, a smart phone application, was developed and implemented for this study. The study found (a) visitors who experienced the U-tourism service showed higher recognition on such dimensions as education, novelty, entertainment and fellowships, regarded as important components of on-site experiences, than those who joined on-site participation-driven services and (b) young visitors who used the interactive U-tourism service recorded higher in the dimensions of both education and novelty than those who joined on-site participation-driven services and showed higher satisfaction. These findings provide strong justification for the introduction of U-tourism services, particularly for young visitors. This study contributes to the understanding of a fast-growing and influential electronic tool for cultural heritage sites.     

Analyzing state government spending: balanced budget rules or forward-looking decisions?

We analyze US state government spending behavior with a general intertemporal model allowing for asymmetry in balanced budget rules in a panel data setting. We find no strong evidence for forward-looking behavior in state spending; balanced budget rules are a significant constraint. States with budget rules imposing lighter restrictions are more likely to exhibit habit formation, while those with stricter rules demonstrate asymmetric responses to revenue changes. Evidence for a precautionary savings motive is limited. Balanced budget requirements trigger substantial pro-cyclical spending, possibly amplifying state economic volatility for states with tight fiscal rules, especially after revenue increases.

     

Predicting Korean lodging firm failures: An artificial neural network model along with a logistic regression model

Using financial variables as predictors, this study developed logistic regression and artificial neural network (ANN) models to predict business failures for Korean lodging firms. While both models demonstrated comparable Type I errors, the ANN model showed considerably lower Type II errors for both in-sample and hold-out sample predictions. This study also found that interest coverage is the most important signal of business failure for the Korean hotel industry. This ratio is directly related to the hotel's solvency, ability to service debts and productivity of profits and can thus be regarded as a survival indicator of Korean hotel firms.     

LIFO adoption and dividend payout

Adoption of the LIFO inventory costing method tends to decrease reported earnings but increases cash flows to adopting firms. This study examines the change in dividend payout ratios (cash dividends divided by earnings) accompanying LIFO adoption. The question addressed is whether adopting firms likely paid out incremental cash flows or retained them to the benefit of management. The evidence suggests that managers and directors adjusted payout ratios to partially offset the negative earnings effect of LIFO. The adjustments made were not sufficient in magnitude to achieve a neutral LIFO effect on dividend payout, and the net result was the retention of incremental cash flows generated by LIFO adoption.     

Economic analysis of the introduction of the MVNO system and its major implications for optimal policy decisions in Korea

This study analyzes the anticipated economic effects arising from the introduction of the mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) system in the mobile communications service market. For the analysis, actual data (or estimated data)—such as price elasticity, the number of subscribers, traffic volume, rate, and access charge—were combined with an assumption about a competition scenario in the future market. Based on this analysis, consumer surplus, and change in the service provider's profits were estimated according to the type of policy that may be adopted for the MVNO system by the regulator. The results of the analysis indicate that consumer surplus appears to increase largely because of the reduction of the mobile service rate by the promotion of “service-based competition,” which occurs upon adoption of an MVNO policy in the mobile communication service market. Moreover, the introduction of an MVNO system into the mobile communication market seems to be socially beneficial regardless of policy type if access charges are set reasonably by a cost-plus or retail-minus method. In particular, in order to make sense of the introduction of a special MVNO, whether by the cost-plus method or the retail-minus method, the correct discount rate must be used in setting an access charge between the special MVNO and the significant market power (SMP) mobile network operator (MNO).     

Indeterminacy of competitive equilibrium in incomplete market structures with financial assets as an extreme form of market coordination breakdown

Market coordination breakdowns can be formulated in terms of Incomplete Market Structures, whatever is the assumption made about market power (monopoly or competition). When the assumption of competition is made, and financial assets generate an incomplete market structure, there are, generically, an infinite number of equilibria. It is shown that after embedding the model of incomplete markets in a more general model based on the absence of double coincidence of wants, a game theoretic concept of equilibrium, like the Core, allows us to prove an equivalence theorem, i.e. to show that indeterminacy is caused by the fact that the returns of financial assets have no direct utility.     

Style consumption: its drivers and role in sustainable apparel consumption

This study proposes style consumption (SC) as a way to foster sustainable apparel consumption. In doing so, we identify explanatory and outcome variables of SC and also examine gender differences in these variables. Based on an online survey with 586 consumers, we find that frugal apparel consumption (FAC), fashion consciousness (FC) and ecologically conscious consumption (ECC) enhance the likelihood of SC. SC in turn increases environmental apparel purchase (EAP) and sustainable apparel divestment (SAD). The results also suggest significant gender differences both in motivational and behavioural variables included in the model. Specifically, females are significantly higher than males in FAC, FC and ECC. The tendency of SC, EAP and SAD were also higher for females than males. In addition, we find that gender is a significant factor mediating the effect of FC and that of ECC on SC.