TO TAX OR NOT TO TAX? THE CASE OF ELECTRONIC COMMERCE

Despite the intensifying debate over the taxation of Internet commerce, the relevant issues have not been given a systematic treatment in the context of the literature on optimal taxation. This article presents such an analysis and investigates separately the taxation of business purchases of intermediate goods, the taxation of consumer purchases of final goods and services, and the various issues of administration and compliance costs as they apply to the development of E-commerce. The authors conclude that generally the optimal tax literature cannot be used in support of a blanket tax exemption for Internet purchases. Certain conditions could lead to the optimality of an exemption, but those conditions are not likely to be met in practice.     

Market value effects of acquisitions involving internet firms: a resource‐based analysis

While most prior research suggests that the average change in market value of acquiring firms varies closely around zero, recent research grounded in the resource‐based view and organizational learning theory identify positive returns to acquirers. We contribute to this literature by focusing on acquisitions of Internet firms and the potential for the transfer of scarce resources. We hypothesize that acquisitions made by offline firms of Internet firms and by Internet firms of other Internet firms lead to positive market valuation for the acquirer. Results of an event study of 798 acquisitions of Internet firms provided support for these predictions. We also find that prior alliances with online firms do not reduce the gains from such acquisitions to offline firms. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Airport Concentration and Market Power: An Events Study Approach

This paper presents independent confirmation of the results obtained in recent studies that suggest mergers and acquisitions creating airline dominance at the airport level lead to market power. Using a different methodology – an events study for the 1986 merger of Northwest Orient Airlines and Republic Airlines – this paper confirms those results, indicating that concentration in the context of the sunk costs associated with the operation at a particular airport facility allows market power in the airline industry.     

A Cultural Hedonic Framework for Increasing the Consumption of Unfamiliar Foods: Soy Acceptance in Russia and Colombia

It is important to understand how a country's cultural influences may affect the introduction of a new or unfamiliar food. In this paper, we present a cultural hedonic framework that uses a culture's context (low versus high) and its view toward food consumption (hedonic versus utilitarian consumption) to assess the difficulty of introducing an unfamiliar food to this market. This framework is then applied to determine the most effective means to stimulate soy consumption in Russia and Colombia. General guidelines show how the cultural hedonic framework can be used to provide insights into distribution, message positioning, and marketing strategy for other foods and products in a variety of situations.     

The relationship between ethics and firm practices in Russia and the United States

One of the fundamental objectives of corporate governance is to promote a climate that fosters ethical decision-making. As transitioning economies move toward more transparent and democratic systems the existence of policies, such as codes of ethics, that attempt to monitor and control moral behavior will become increasingly important. The establishment of ethical standards not only encourages trust with potential trade partners but also is likely to cultivate foreign direct investment. In this study, data collected from 112 U.S. and 74 Russian respondents reveal some intriguing patterns across these two diverse economies. Managerial implications and future research directions are also discussed.     

Malaysia – Trade Policy Review 2006

The Trade Policy Review (TPR) is an important document for small open economies like Malaysia. It provides an outsider perspective of its trade policies and implementation. In this paper we provide an update of the Malaysian economy emphasising the degree of competitiveness vis‐à‐vis other Asian counterparts. We also discuss the issue of regional and bilateral trading agreements involving Malaysia with a focus on the services sector. Finally, we briefly consider the issue of tariff protection – an issue raised by many commentators of the TPR.     

Synthesizing R&D planning and business strategy: some preliminary findings

The need for firms to compete in the longer run by offering superior products at competitive prices requires better integration of R&D, and technology in general, into business strategy development. A survey based on personal interviews of 40 respondents from “Fortune 500” U. S. industrial firms reveals that their shift in emphasis toward new product/process R&D is providing the impetus for placing R&D in a strategic context. However, R&D has not been fully integrated into the strategic planning process of many organizations. The results of the survey reveal that certain communication channels can be more fully utilized to meld R&D planning into business strategy. Specific suggestions to facilitate information exchange, dissemination of planning data, and integration of various R&D plans into a cohesive technology strategy are given.