The success of divestitures in merger enforcement: Evidence from the J&J-Pfizer transaction

Despite being a widely used tool in merger enforcement, there have been few studies of whether antitrust divestitures are successful. We help fill this void by conducting a study of the divestitures relating to Johnson & Johnson's $16.6 billion acquisition of Pfizer's consumer health division in 2006. Six brands were divested in this matter to alleviate antitrust concern. For three of the brands, their pre- and post-divestiture performances are similar, while the remainder underwent changes that do not appear to be divestiture related. Overall, the results are consistent with the view that the divestitures maintained the pre-transaction level of competition.     

Going the extra mile: Antecedents of salespeople's discretionary effort

Many sales organizations are scrambling for success in today's intensely competitive environment. An increasing number of firms are finding that tried and true traditional selling strategies are less effective, or not effective at all. Moreover, companies are discovering that what has been an acceptable level of performance no longer is adequate for maintaining or gaining competitive advantage. Consequently, managers need to focus on alternative means through which the organization can be successful. One alternative is for sales forces to engage in discretionary effort-work activities that entail going beyond the call of duty. This paper develops propositions regarding antecedents of salesperson discretionary effort, which provide managerial direction should the propositions be confirmed.     

The persistence of real estate cycles

This paper presents a model that attempts to explain the underlying causes of the prolonged cycles observed in real estate markets. In addition, the paper characterizes the features that make some property types more prone to such boom-and-bust behavior. The combination of demand uncertainty, adjustment costs, and construction lags leads to two phenomena that may help explain market persistence. The first phenomenon is the reluctance of owners to adjust occupancy levels, even in the face of large shifts in renter demand. The second phenomenon is the occurrence of periods of sustained overbuilding: the addition of new supply in the face of already high vacancy rates.     

Trade policy under imperfect competition: The economics of Russian roulette

Summary Neo-classical economic theory shows that managed trade or protectionism is (almost) always welfare decreasing. However, measurements of the welfare costs of protectionism based on neo-classical models seem to suggest that these costs are quite small. We discuss general new insights and developments in the theory, policy and empiricism of international trade. The observation that intra-industry trade and the services sector are important has led to a shift in theory away from constant returns to scale and perfect competition towards economies of scale and scope, externalities, market imperfections, and imperfect competition. Although this, in principle, opens the door to beneficial government intervention in the economic process, we emphasize that the true costs of protection can potentially be much higher than is generally acknowledged as a result of the above mentioned shift.We would like to thank, without implicating, Martin Fase, Harry Garretsen, Catrinus Jepma, Simon Kuipers, Ger Lanjouw, Tenn Schmidt, Albert de Vaal, and Jean-Marie Viaene for stimulating conversations and useful suggestions. We thank Thijs Knaap for excellent research assistance.     

Determinants of the 1991–1993 Japanese recession: Evidence from a structural model of the Japanese economy

The objectives of this paper are to determine the extent to which various factors contributed to the most recent recession in Japan and to assess whether the recent behavior of the Japanese economy differs from that in previous recessions. Toward that end, we develop a small, structural macroeconometric model of the Japanese economy and estimate it using data from 1971 Q1 to 1991 Q1, the period just prior to the recent downturn. The important results can be summarized as follows. First, the severity of the recent recession probably does not reflect structural economic changes. Second, the poor economic performance in 1991–1993 period was to some extent predictable, reflecting the unwinding of imbalances that developed during the preceding expansion. Finally, unpredictable movements in exchange rates, land prices, and stock prices occurring after 1991 played an important, but not predominant, part in accentuating the downturn, while unusually stimulative fiscal and monetary policies appear to have contributed substantially to GDP during the recession.     

Exploring deception and puffery in television advertising

Public policy decisions dealing with deceptive advertising have relied extensively on case-by-case adjudication with the Federal Trade Commission. Unfortunately, behavioral evidence has not been considered in the vast majority of these cases. The final determination rests with the Commission’s own expertise in judging an advertisement’s “capacity to deceive.” Consumer response data are not required, although recent developments suggest the FTC is seriously considering the inclusion of meaningful behavioral evidence in policymaking and adjudicative proceedings. This study is one of a series dealing with dimensions of perceived deception across different respondent populations (including students, lawyers, housewives, children, and minority groups). The focus here is on the semantics of deception, i.e., the way in which subjects evaluate selected television commercials which were unofficially rated for deception by FTC staff attorneys. The factor analytic paradigm provides one approach for generating summaries of viewer’s evaluative (affective) responses, and thereby providing some normative or benchmark data of potential value in the regulatory process.     

Firm reputation with hidden information

Summary. An adverse selection model of firm reputation is developed in which short-lived clients purchase services from firms operated by overlapping generations of agents. A firm's only asset is its name, or reputation, and trade of names is not observed by clients. As a result, names are traded in all equilibria regardless of the economy's horizon The general equilibrium analysis links the value of a name to the market for services. This causes a non-monotonicity that precludes higher types from sorting themselves through the market for names, and leads to “sensible” dynamics: reputations, and name prices, increase after success and decrease after failure. Received: July 31, 2001; revised version: December 20, 2001 RID="*" ID="*" I thank Jon Levin, Eric Maskin and Drew Fudenberg for valuable discussions, and Heski Bar-Isaac for comments on an earlier draft. Financial support from the National Science Foundation (NSF grants SBR-9818981 and SES-0079876) is gratefully acknowledged. This paper replaces an older (and incomplete) working paper titled “Reputation with Hidden Information”.     

A Qualitative Exploration into Voters' Ethical Perceptions of Political Advertising: Discourse, Disinformation, and Moral Boundaries

Political campaign advertising continues to be a controversial policy topic in advertising and marketing research. It is also a prime subject for investigating the ethical evaluations of consumers (or voters). The following study draws from postmodern communication theory and employs a qualitative research methodology in order to explore voters' intimate and subjective views about politics, candidates, and political advertising. The findings include emergent themes relating to significant media rituals in voters' lives, the cynical perspective of politics as a game, and the widespread disapproval and suspicion with which voters regard negative political advertising. Additionally, the a priori theme of political information as disinformation was proposed and expanded upon. Findings are discussed in light of a greater understanding of the appropriateness of the traditional versus the postmodern perspective of political communication, informants' construction of moral boundaries which help them determine right from wrong, acceptable vs. unacceptable political behaviours in this particular context.     

“Rational” and “Endogenous” exchange rate expectations and speculative capital flows in Germany

Zusammenfassung ?Rationale? und ?endogene? Wechselkurserwartungen und spekulative Kapitalbewegungen in Deutschland. —In diesem Aufsatz entwickeln wir zwei Verfahren, um sowohl die Wechselkurserwartungen selbst als auch ihren Einflu\ auf die Kapitalbewegungen zu sch?tzen — und zwar im Rahmen eines Bestandsanpassungsmodells der internationalen Kapitalbewegungen mit ?endogener? bzw. ?rationaler? Erwartungsbildung. Im ersten Verfahren spezifizieren wir eine endogene Funktion der Wechselkurserwartungen in einem komparativ-statischen Modell des monet?ren Gleichgewichts. Diese Erwartungsfunktion und die Wirkung solcher Erwartungen auf die Kapitalbewegungen werden gesch?tzt. Im zweiten Verfahren zeigen wir, wie McCallums Test der Wirkungen von ?rationalen? Erwartungen auf den Terminmarkt zu einem Test ihres Einflusses auf die Kapitalbewegungen erweitert werden kann. Dann sch?tzen wir die Wirkungen dieser beiden Ma\e für Wechselkurserwartungen auf die deutschen Kapitalbewegungen in den Jahren 1961–1968 und in ausgew?hlten kürzeren Perioden, die um die identifizierbaren Zahlungsbilanzkrisen in dem turbulenteren Zeitraum von 1968 bis 1973 liegen. Aus unseren empirischen Tests ergeben sich zwei wichtige Schlu\folgerungen. Erstens ist die Gleichung der Kapitalbewegungen in der Zeit sehr instabil, ein Ergebnis, das mindestens teilweise auf die Wechselkurserwartungen zurückzuführen ist. Zweitens liefern die endogene Funktion der Wechselkurserwartungen und die Sch?tzmethoden, die in diesem Aufsatz entwickelt wurden, sinnvolle Sch?tzungen der Wechselkurserwartungen als eine Funktion von realen ?konomischen Variablen in einem monet?ren Modell.

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Résumé Les attentes ?rationales? et ?endogènes? de taux de change et les flux des capitaux speculatifs en Allemagne. —Dans cet article nous développons deux techniques pour estimer les attentes de taux de change aussi bien que leur conséquence sur les flux des capitaux en cadre d’un modèle d’ajustement de stock des flux des capitaux internationaux qui sont en sens de ces approches ?endogènes? et ?rationales? à la formation d'attente. Dans cette première approche nous spécifions une fonction des attentes de taux de change étant endogène à un modèle comparatifstatique de l’équilibre monétaire. Nous estimons cette fonction d’attente et l’effet de telles attentes sur les flux des capitaux. Dans la deuxième approche nous montrons comment on peut élargir le test de McCallum de la conséquence des attentes ?rationales? sur le marché à terme à un test de leur conséquence sur le flux des capitaux. Puis nous estimons les effets de ces deux mesures des attentes de taux de change sur les flux des capitaux allemands de 1961–1968 et pour des sélectionnées périodes plus brèves autour des crises de taux de change identifiables pendant la période plus turbulente de 1968–1973. Il y a deux conclusions essentielles de notre test empirique. Premièrement, l'équation de flux des capitaux est très instable en cours de temps, un résultat au moins partiellement d? aux attentes de taux de change. Deuxièmement, la fonction des attentes endogènes de taux de change et les techniques d'estimation développées dans cet article livrent des estimations significatives des attentes de taux de change comme fonction des variables économiques réelles dans un modèle monétaire.

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Resumen Espectativas ?racionales? y ?endógenas? para el tipo de cambio y flujos de capital especulativos en Alemania. —En este articulo se desarrollan dos técnicas para estimar tanto las espectativas para el tipo de cambio como su impacto sobre los flujos de capital dentro del contexte de un modelo de ajuste de flujos de capital internacionales que están dentro del espíritu de estas aproximaciones para la formación de espectativas ?endógenas? y ?racionales?. En la primera aproximación se especifica una función de espectativas para el tipo de cambio que es endógena a un modelo estático-comparativo para el equilibrio monetario. Se estiman la función de espectativas y el efecto de esas espectativas sobre los flujos de capital. En la segunda aproximación se muestra, como el test de McCallum sobre el impacto de las espectativas ?racionales? sobre el mercado a futuro, puede ser extendido a un test sobre el impacto de estas espectativas sobre los flujos de capital. Luego se estiman los efectos de ambas medidas para las espectativas del tipo de cambio sobre los flujos de capital de Alemania desde 1961 a 1968 y para perlodos seleccionados más cortos alrededor de crisis de tipo de cambio identificables dentro del período más turbulento de 1968 a 1973. A partir de los tests empíricos se llega a dos conclusiones importantes. Primero, la ecuación de flujo de capital es muy inestable a traves del tiempo, un resultado debido por lo menos en parte a las espectativas para el tipo de cambio. Segundo, la función de espectativas para el tipo de cambio endógena y las técnicas de estimación desarrolladas en este articulo llevan a estimaciones sensatas de las espectativas para el tipo de cambio como una función de variables económicas reales en un modelo monetario.

     

Watching the FIFA World Cup 2010 in England: the sojourner perspective

Recent years have seen an emergence of a varied academic literature focused on the football fan, with a wealth of studies exploring issues such as hooliganism, fan behaviour and fan identification. No research, however, has documented the experiences and perspectives of the international sojourner, who follows the televised tournament far away from the home country. This paper offers a contribution to the literature on fandom by focusing on the experiences of becoming a temporary fan among a sample of nine international students in England during the period of the 2010 FIFA World Cup. It shows the importance of the tournament for students away from their home nation, acting as a point of celebration and as a means of bringing sojourners of the same nationality together to support their team. It reveals how the tournament offered escape from stress, became a focal point for social interaction, provided the opportunity for recreation of home, and for the reinforcement of feelings of national identity.