We study equilibrium in a multistage race in which players compete in a sequence of simultaneous move component contests. Players may win a prize for winning each component contest, as well as a prize for winning the overall race. Each component contest is an all-pay auction with complete...

The role of the state is finally the decision of the citizens. The government, being a result of elections, can provide more or less protection and increase or decrease expenditures. Anyway for achieving goals and for being performant the state definitly has to promote a good governance. Good...

The past few years have seen a growing trend towards the focus on audit liability. In the UK, the Company Law Reform Bill which became the Companies Act 2006, has removed the previously existing limits on auditor liability and compelled an agreement between the company and the auditor. As well...

The purpose of this paper is to participate in the discussion of the effects of outward FDI in R&D on the home country. The main possible threat for home economies is the relocation of R&D activities to foreign regions and, as a result, the loss of technological capacity. This study contributes...

Public transport (urban and intercity) is organized in Spain both through concession contracts and public ownership. The regulator fixes prices and level of services,as well as the level of subsidy. This paper examines the regulated system in the Spanish bus industry in the last decades.

We measure the effect of R&D spillovers on plant productivity by taking account of (i) the national origin of the spillovers, (ii) the mechanism through which spillovers may flow (FDI and/or imports), (iii) the sectoral scope of spillovers, as well as (iv) their geographic scope, in a single...

This paper discusses the use of benchmarking in general and its application to the drinking water sector. It systematizes the various classifications on performance measurement, discusses some of the pitfalls of benchmark studies and provides some examples of benchmarking in the water sector....

This paper examines the social opportunity cost of a hypothetical public project in Australia and compares these values with the cost of the project as measured by factor prices. Since 2001, the Australian taxation system has included an ad valorem tax, the Goods and Services Tax, however...

This article analyses the competition between cash and payment cards against the backdrop of the dual role of central banks - as issuers of cash and as institutions with a mandate to foster the efficiency of payment systems in general. It is argued that this dual role results in a number of...

How does market organization affect quality innovation efforts and social welfare? Three stochastic dynamic market structures considered are monopoly, duopoly, and social planning. Products can be either linearly or nonlinearly substitutable. The introduction of a step function allows richer...