A discrete cost sharing model with technological cooperation

This article proposes a setting that allows for technological cooperation in the cost sharing model. Dealing with discrete demands, we study two properties: additivity and dummy. We show that these properties are insufficient to guarantee a unit-flow representation similar to that of Wang (Econ Lett 64:187–192, <CitationRef CitationID="CR19">1999</CitationRef>). To obtain a characterization of unit flows, we strengthen the dummy axiom and introduce a property that requires the cost share of every agent to be non-decreasing in the incremental costs generated by their demand. Finally, a fairness requirement as to the compensation of technological cooperation is examined. Copyright Springer-Verlag 2013