Assortment and Price Optimization under an Endogenous Context-Dependent Multinomial Logit Model

Motivated by empirical evidence that the utility of each product depends on the assortment of products offered along with it, we propose an endogenous context-dependent multinomial logit model (Context-MNL) under which the utility of each product depends on both the product's intrinsic value and the deviation of the intrinsic value from the expected maximum utility among all the products in the offered assortment. Under the Context-MNL model, an assortment provides a context in which customers evaluate the utility of each product. Our model generalizes the standard multinomial logit model and allows the utility of each product to depend on the offered assortment. The model is parsimonious, requires only one parameter more than the standard multinomial logit model, captures the assortment-dependent effect endogenously, and does~not require the decision-maker to determine in advance the relevant attributes of the assortment that might affect the product utility. The Context-MNL model also admits tractable maximum likelihood estimation and is operationally tractable, with efficient solution methods for solving assortment and price optimization problems. Our numerical study, which is based on data from Expedia, shows that compared to the standard multinomial logit model, the Context-MNL model substantially improves out-of-sample goodness of fit and prediction accuracy