Exploring the Impacts of McService on Customers’ Loyalty: An Emerging Market’s Perspective

The aim of the study is to examine the key service quality attributes that affect Korean consumers’ loyalty toward McDonald’s in Korea. A survey instrument was developed to examine the key service quality attributes that influenc Korean consumers’ loyalty. The surveys were distributed to Korean college students. The results of the study suggest that social place and employee service quality are the two major dimensions that significantly affect Korean respondents’ intent to return to McDonald’s. Interestingly, convenience, value, and food quality were not found to be major dimensions that impact Korean respondents’ intention to return to McDonald’s. This finding is starkly different from the common belief that McService is based on value and covenience, as emphasized by McDonald’s value statements. The results of the study suggests that Korean consumers view McDonald’s as a social gathering place and expect high service quality from McDonald’s.     

Agricultural support in selected Eastern European and Eurasian countries

The goal of this article is to assess the agricultural policies of eight countries from the former Soviet Union. They hold great potential for agricultural production, and some are relatively unanalysed from the point of view of agricultural policy. The analysis was conducted using qualitative and quantitative evidence. The key challenges facing the region are food security and competitiveness. Policy approaches range from strong interventionism to almost complete liberalisation. Budgetary support is relatively low compared to EU and OECD averages. Transfers to producers dominate (especially input subsidies and on-farm investment support) in all countries, and support to rural development and general services is weak. While prices for crops are near world prices, prices for animal products are fairly high in some countries, indicating high developmental needs. It is possible to discern four broad clusters of countries.     

中国互联网平台市场垄断:形成逻辑、行为界定与政府规制

互联网平台创造的"价值生态系统"在优化资源配置、促进跨界融通、推进产业升级、拓宽消费市场等领域具有深远影响.平台企业凭借长期数据资源积累优势以及互联网发展特性,具备了天然的垄断集中趋势.同时,互联网平台伴随着资本盲目逐利的动机,也造成了其滥用垄断地位导致社会福利的损失.在此背景下,本文针对这一新经济业态展开研究:通过对传统企业垄断模式的分析,厘清平台企业竞争的基本规律并阐明垄断集中趋势存在的客观性;梳理互联网平台企业发展的独有属性,明晰平台市场垄断结构的形成逻辑及自我强化机制;围绕市场公平竞争秩序的经济学范畴,界定互联网平台的垄断行为导致的消极影响;直面平台经济中"市场失灵"以及"制度失灵"两端不相协调的困境,为健全我国互联网平台的反垄断规制体系提供建议,保障消费者能够分享创新与竞争带来的红利,营造公平且具活力的平台市场环境.     

“You know that's a rip-off”: policies and practices surrounding micro-enterprises and poverty alleviation in South African township tourism

Supporting the development of small tourism businesses has been seen by policy-makers as a valuable means of alleviating poverty in South African townships. This perspective has been endorsed by several “responsible” tourism businesses and academics. Following a literature review, this paper reports the findings of an empirical study that examined the practices of 80 micro-business owners and the factors that shape their behaviour in two South African townships. In spite of significant visitor numbers, it finds that their narrow social networks, the imbalances of power between them and intermediaries such as travel agencies and tour operators, ideas of Ubuntu and Umona, and complex family and ethnic ties all represent barriers that prevent them from developing their businesses and sharing in the material gains available through tourism. This analysis has important implications for local policy-makers and those advocating responsible tourism. For the former, it suggests a cessation of current initiatives in favour of greater regulation and alternative forms of investment. For the latter, it implies a need to reassess the utility of advocating responsible tourism to consumers in a context where they do not understand the dynamics which fashion what is on offer or the implications of their choices.