We investigate how costly acquisition and exchange of customer-specific information affects industry profit and consumer welfare. Consumers differ in their preferences for competing brands and in their switching costs between brands. Brand-producing firms use their acquired knowledge of...

We develop methods for calculating profit-maximizing and socially optimal rates of partial refunds on customers' no-shows and cancellations. We demonstrate how partial refunds can be used to screen consumers according to their different probabilities of cancellation and no-shows. Finally, we...

The terms "window shopping" and "showrooming" refer to the activity in which potential buyers visit a brick-and-mortar store to examine a product but end up either not buying it or buying the product from an online retailer. This paper analyzes potential buyers who differ in their preference for...

This paper surveys a variety of topics related to network economics. Topics covered include: consumer demand under network effects, compatibility decisions and standardization, technology advances in network industries, two-sided markets, information networks and intellectual property, and...

The paper investigates the consequences of code-sharing agreements among airline firms competing on international routes, where some passengers interconnect to flights originating or terminating at cities not served by foreign airlines. The authors calculate the precise market share captured by...