This paper empirically analyzes how the use of vertical price restraints has impacted retail prices in the market for e-books. In 2010 five of the six largest publishers simultaneously adopted the agency model of book sales, allowing them to directly set retail prices. This led the Department of...

The nature of manufacturer's suggested retail prices (MSRPs) and whether their effect is pro- or anticompetitive is not well understood. We exploit a policy experiment in which a ban on MSRPs was imposed and then lifted a year later. We show that average prices increased by 2.1 percent as a...

Consumers engage in costly search to evaluate the increasing number of product options available from online retailers. Presenting the best alternatives at the beginning reduces search costs associated with a consumer finding the right product. We use rich data on consumer click-stream behavior...