Platform competition and seller investment incentives

Many products and services are not sold on open platforms but on competing for-profit platforms, which charge buyers and sellers for access. What is the effect of for-profit intermediation on seller investment incentives? Since for-profit intermediaries reduce the available rents in the market, one might naively suspect that sellers have weaker investment incentives with competing for-profit platforms. However, we show that for-profit intermediation may lead to overinvestment when free access would lead to underinvestment because investment decisions affect the strength of indirect network effects and, thus, access prices. We characterize the effect of for-profit intermediation on investment incentives depending on the nature of the investment and on which side of the market singlehomes.     

Barriers to investment in ICT

This paper studies the complementarity between investment in information and communication technologies (ICT) and the related investment in human and organizational capital. Using firm-level data taken from a large sample of Italian manufacturing firms, an ICT marginal product much higher than its user cost is estimated. It is then argued that missing complementary investments may have acted as barriers to investment in ICT. Results support the conjecture that the marginal product excess over the user cost is due to those firms that did not complement their ICT investment with an increase in the human capital of their labour force and with a reorganization of the workplace.     

网络效应的作用机制研究

很多学者对网络经济学中网络效应的作用机制存在不同的认识,这些认识表现在不同的经济模型中,本质上反映了这些学者对于网络的认识上的差异。网络是由位于节点上的用户构成的,这些用户通过使用相兼容的产品连接在一起。根据用户的不同连接方式,网络可以分为直接网络、间接网络与双边网络。直接网络效应理论强调了用户预期、过度惰性与过度动力以及安装基础等问题;间接网络效应理论强调了用户偏好多样化、互补品作用、一体化等问题;双边网络效应理论强调了用户需求相互依存性、小鸡与鸡蛋、单宿与多宿等问题。三种理论对网络效应的作用机制提供了不同的解释,它们之间既有区别又有联系,现实世界中的很多网络往往同时存在多种网络效应。     

Web2.0环境下网络效应对价值共创的影响机理研究

Web2.0环境下,众多网络平台注重用户参与、交流互动与开放共享,为生产者、消费者等多主体协同参与价值共创提供了条件。为了深入探究网络外部性效应对Web 2.0价值共创模式的影响,研究构建了考虑网络效应的网络平台双边用户参与价值共创的理论模型,模型均衡解表明,消费者参与Web2.0网络平台进行价值共创会增加产品或服务的附加价值,提升消费者满意度,提高消费者对产品或服务的认知价值,进而吸引更多消费者参与价值共创,而消费者数量的增加会进一步提高该服务的价值,并吸引更多商户参与,由此产生正向网络外部性效应。建立了分析消费者剩余的经济模型,剖析了Web2.0环境下消费者无法参与价值分配却仍愿意参与价值共创的内在驱动因素。     

Two-sided Markets,Competitive Bottlenecks and Exclusive Contracts

We provide a framework for analyzing two-sided markets that allows for different degrees of product differentiation on each side of the market. When platforms are viewed as homogenous by sellers but heterogeneous by buyers, we show that “competitive bottlenecks” arise endogenously. In equilibrium, platforms do not compete directly for sellers, instead choosing to compete indirectly by subsidizing buyers to join. Sellers are left with none of the gains from trade. Despite this, it is sellers who choose to purchase from multiple platforms (multihome). Finally, the role of exclusive contracts to prevent multihoming is explored. We are very grateful to Jose Miguel Abito for research assistance, and to the editor and a referee for helpful comments.     

网络产业组织理论的历史、发展和局限

自上个世纪80年代以来,网络产业的研究一直沿用着新古典经济学的理性经济人假定,普遍采用博弈论的方法,并依照产品的特征分别侧重对直接网络外部性与间接网络外部性的讨论。经典模型的研究发现,网络外部性的存在会影响消费者对网络的选择,以及企业的技术选择和兼容决策,进而影响社会福利,有可能出现并非最优的均衡。早期的拓展模型传承着经典模型的最基本的假定与函数形式,进一步考虑各种竞争状况。近十年,从双边市场的角度研究具有网络外部性的产业成为网络产业组织理论分析的热点。本文梳理了传统的网络产业组织理论及在此基础上的各种拓展与最近的进展,不仅对研究的内容进行了归纳,更重要的是对研究的思路与模型拓展的方式进行了总结。     

Paying positive to go negative: Advertisers׳ competition and media reports

This paper analyzes a two-sided market for news where two rival advertisers may pay a media outlet to conceal negative information about the quality of their own product (paying positive to avoid negative) and/or to disclose negative information about the quality of their competitor׳s product (paying positive to go negative). We show that competition in the product market does not necessarily prevent the emergence of commercial media bias. Whether or not competing advertisers end up having negative consequences on news accuracy ultimately depends on the extent of correlation in the quality of their products; the lower the correlation, the higher the expected accuracy of the media outlet׳s reports. These findings provide a rationale to explain the observed differences in the extent of commercial media bias across seemingly similar industries or products, within the same media market. The results are robust to the presence of multiple media outlets and to asymmetries between the advertisers. Overall, the paper provides theoretical insights for media regulators and for the empirical literature examining the link between advertising and news contents.     

基于公平心理偏好的投资博弈——敲竹杠问题的一个行为解决

敲竹杠问题是不完全合约理论的中心话题,经典文献认为,如果合约是不完全的,当事人的专用性投资会引发敲竹杠风险从而导致无效率的专用性投资。但是,关于敲竹杠问题的文献通常假定事后谈判结果对事前投资成本不敏感。通过在雇佣双方的投资博弈中引入投资成本相关性这种合作的谈判方式,将传统敲竹杠模型中影响谈判力的因素与当事人对公平偏好的行为因素二者融合,本文证明:与传统的投资博弈相比,在投资成本影响企业(雇员)谈判力的情况下,双方有更强的专用性人力资本投资激励。雇佣双方所面临的敲竹杠风险取决于双方的初始谈判力,且双方有可能在事前做出社会最优甚至过度的投资。这也从一个方面解释了现实中大量存在的有效投资现象。     

我国可再生能源发展的障碍分析及政策选择

充分利用可再生能源对我国实施可持续发展战略具有重要意义.回顾了我国可再生能源政策的发展历程,深入分析了我国发展可再生能源的障碍,最后从支持开发可再生能源市场,尤其是消费市场的视角来探讨我国可供选择的可再生能源政策.     

Market overreaction and investment strategies

We investigated the overreaction of the Korean market in response to shocks in the US stock market, and analysed the dynamic relationship between these two markets since 1996. We found that the KOSPI 200 index futures overreacted to the S&P 500 index returns during the period from 2000 to 2009 when the Korean market was in its growth stage. As the Korean market matured and the KOSPI 200 overnight futures were introduced in 2009, the overreaction disappeared. When investors employed the Kelly model or Value-at-Risk to exploit the overreaction, their trading strategies produced significant profits during the growth stage even after considering transaction costs and risk, but the profits attenuated once the overnight futures market was launched in 2009.     

Effect of credible quality investment with Bertrand and Cournot competition

We show how credible revelation and ability to commit to quality choice effect equilibrium qualities and welfare when product market is either Bertrand or Cournot competition. We show that results depend on the type of competition but not generally on the cost of quality function. We show that with Bertrand competition, the equilibrium qualities are lower with credible commitment. Competition is moderated and producer surplus is higher and consumer surplus lower. With Cournot competition, higher quality will be better but lower quality will be worse with credible commitment. Consumer surplus is always greater with credible commitment and if cost does not increase too quickly with quality, producer surplus will also increase. Thus credible commitment is a collusive device with Bertrand competition but it can improve social welfare with Cournot competition. Received: February 8, 2000; revised version: February 14, 2002 RID="*" ID="*" The idea of this paper originated in the weekly workshops of Mordecai Kurz at Stanford. I am forever in debted to Mordecai and fellow students – Luis Cabral, Peter DeMarzo, John Hillas, Michihiro Kandori, Steve Langois, Patrick McAllister, Steve Sharpe, Peter Streufert, Steve Turnbull and Gyu-Ho Wang – for their criticism and encouragement. I also benefited from comments from Yi-Heng Chen, Jin-Li Hu, Kala Krishna, Jinji Naoto, Thomas J. Prusa, and Shyh-Fang Ueng at various later stages of this work. Last but not least, I am grateful for the detailed comments of the referee.     

“新”由“和”生？社会资本激励创新驱动力的倒U型抑扬效应研究

中国正处于“大众创业、万众创新”的突破期,各行各业都积极倡导“共建创业创造、共谋创新创意”精神,深入剖析社会资本与创新驱动力的影响因素和抑扬效应,是打造高水平科研团队与提升组织绩效的关键。以中国文化情境下科技孵化器机构（科技企业孵化器、大学科技园和众创空间）的新创在孵企业项目团队为研究对象,基于关系承诺与网络惯例视角,构建“社会资本—网络惯例/关系承诺—创新驱动力”结构概念模型,借助多层回归分析方法进行实证检验。结果表明,社会资本对创新驱动力呈现先扬后抑的倒U型影响;网络惯例和关系承诺在正向显著影响创新驱动力的同时,分别在社会资本对创新驱动力的逻辑路径中发挥调节作用。     

Firm investment in transition

In this paper a model based on the Euler equation of optimal capital accumulation in the presence of convex adjustment costs is developed and estimated. The theoretical model explicitly allows for differential financial status across firms. The empirical analysis uses Romanian manufacturing firm panel data to estimate dynamic investment models with the generalized method of moments (GMM‐IV) technique and tests the derived hypotheses. The results indicate that the model based on the perfect market assumptions is rejected. The version of the model that allows for differential financial status of firms by using a theoretically derived sample selection rule is not rejected by the data. Controlling for soft budget constraints, common for transition economies, further improves the performance of the model.     

Import Contents of Final Expenditures in the United States

This paper applies the Kennedy and Thirlwall method of input-output formulation to study the differential import effect of final expenditures in the U.S. Import contents of consumption, investment, and government expenditures as calculated for 1958, 1963, 1967, 1972, 1977, 1981, and 1984. It also separates import effects of trade expansion, changes in the competitive position, shifts in the level of final demands and changes in the structure of final demands. It is found that the import fractions of the four final expenditures differ substantially, resulting in different income multipliers. [410]     

中国亟待创建期货投资基金

如何加快期货创新步伐,以十五规划提出的“稳步发展期货市场”为宗旨,推动我国期货市场的持续健康发展,以适应国民经济发展的需要,已经成为当前的一项重要课题,其中积极培育机构投资者,发展期货投资基金是创新发展的一项重要选择。     

Corrigendum to “On randomized matching mechanisms” [Economic Theory 8(1996)377–381]

Ma (in Econ. Theory 8, 377–381, 1996) studied the random order mechanism, a matching mechanism suggested by Roth and Vande Vate (Econometrica 58, 1475–1480, 1990) for marriage markets. By means of an example he showed that the random order mechanism does not always reach all stable matchings. Although Ma's (1996) result is true, we show that the probability distribution he presented – and therefore the proof of his Claim 2 – is not correct. The mistake in the calculations by Ma (1996) is due to the fact that even though the example looks very symmetric, some of the calculations are not as “symmetric.” We thank two anonymous referees for their helpful comments. B. Klaus’s and F. Klijn’s research was supported by Ramón y Cajal contracts of the Spanish Ministerio de Ciencia y Tecnología. The work of the authors was also partially supported through the Spanish Plan Nacional I+D+I (BEC2002-02130 and SEJ2005-01690) and the Generalitat de Catalunya (SGR2005-00626 and the Barcelona Economics Program of CREA).     

How the heterogeneity in investment horizons affects market trends

To investigate the relationship between the liquidity and the divergent degree of heterogeneous investors with different investment horizons, we propose an agent-based model based on the assumptions of the fractal market hypothesis. A laboratory market is used to investigate the impact of the divergent degree on the stability of the financial market. Simulation results indicate that the market becomes more stable as investors become increasingly divergent and are more likely to absorb the orders of the other side and maintain a narrow trade gap. Moreover, with highly heterogeneous investors, the market is more efficient, less liable to crash and less volatile. The simulation, based on the agent-based model, demonstrates that the interactions and herding behaviours of investors lead to a market crash when the divergent structure shrinks and only limited investment horizons are available. The result also suggests an alternate explanation of the anomaly of efficient market hypothesis, which shows why the momentum and contrarian strategies can earn excess returns in the short term and the long term, respectively. It also verifies the hypothesis that heterogeneous investors with different investment horizons provide market liquidity.     

我国期货市场亟需期货投资基金

我国期货行业自进入21世纪以来取得了飞速发展,无论品种规模还是成交量都已位居世界前列,然而,在国外已经成为期货市场主力的期货投资基金在我国却难觅其踪。期货投资基金可以优化和改善投资组合,规避股市系统性风险,实现专家理财保护中小投资者利益。实际上,从市场规模、运作现状、风险控制、资金充裕度以及证券投资基金在我国发展的成功经验来看,我国已基本具备设立期货投资基金的基础。但期货投资基金毕竟是一个高风险的投资工具,国内对它的研究还比较薄弱,法律体系和监管机制仍待完善,产品的种类和活跃程度仍待加强,在基金公司的设立方式上仍需谨慎选择,对于期货投资基金亟需的高端综合型人才的培养都是我国急需解决的问题。     

The stock market and investment in the small and open Norwegian economy

The relationship between the stock market and investment is analyzed by utilizing a multivariate vector autoregressive model, which also includes fundamentals represented by production and the bank interest rate. Two important results appear on the basis of data from the small, open economy of Norway. The financial market has no lead effect on real activity, as neither the stock market nor the credit market can predict future investment or production. On the contrary, current stock returns correlate negatively with lagged growth in investment, and positively with current growth in production. In addition, changes in the bank interest rate have a positive effect on future stock returns, production leads investment positively, and both production and the bank interest rate become exogenous variables in our model. First version received: November 1997/Final version received: October 2000     

网络型能源产业融合动因与改革进程

回顾网络产业融合理论以及电力产业和天然气产业的市场化改革历程,分析网络产业分拆式改革后融合化发展的动因,结果显示:放松规制、信息技术发展、市场竞争因素以及消费者需求是网络型能源产业分拆后再融合的主要动因.市场化改革历程表明在各种因素的推动下,我国网络型能源产业正在逐步形成融合化发展趋势.