Edge providers have alleged that dominant tech platforms exploit their platform power to gain an artificial advantage in some ancillary, edge market. In May 2018, Yelp filed a complaint at the European Commission, alleging that Google abused its dominance in local search by giving preferred...

As recently as five years ago, markets for mobile wireless services in Europe were performing on par with, or even better than, markets in the United States. Today, there is broad agreement that the EU has fallen behind in at least some dimensions, especially with respect to the deployment of...

As recently as five years ago, markets for mobile wireless services in Europe were performing on par with, or even better than, markets in the United States. Today, there is broad agreement that the EU has fallen behind in at least some dimensions, especially with respect to the deployment of...

Dear Chairman Wheeler: Congratulations on your confirmation as Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission. As economists who study and write about communications policy and regulation, we agree with your comment during your confirmation hearing that “the role of the FCC has evolved from...

In this study, we examine the comparative performance of mobile wireless markets in Canada, the US and the EU. We find that Canada's wireless market is generally performing on par with the US, while the EU has fallen behind both Canada and the US in recent years. As in the US, Canadian wireless...

In a recent working paper, Nicholas Economides and Joacim Tåg analyze stylized models of two-sided markets in an attempt to assess the welfare effects of net neutrality. Alternate versions of the model are developed for ISP services offered by a monopoly and a duopoly. According to the models,...

After more than half a century of monopoly and public utility-type regulation of retail telephone rates, the United States embarked on a path of liberalization in the early 1980s. That process is now nearing completion. However, two areas of telephone service largely remain under traditional...

In recent years, twelve U.S. states have liberalized price controls on basic telephone services, and several others are considering doing so. To assess the impact of these changes, we collected and analyzed a comprehensive data set on basic telephone prices and on the specific characteristics of...

Section 13(a)(15) of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) exempts companion care providers from the FLSA's minimum wage and overtime provisions, while Section 13(b)(21) exempts live-in workers from its overtime provisions. In December 2011, the Department of Labor proposed to substantially narrow...

Bundling by a firm with monopoly power can be shown to reduce consumer welfare in one of two ways. First, by applying the “discount attribution standard,” bundling can be shown to exclude or impair equally efficient rivals in ancillary or “tied” markets. Second, by comparing the penalty...