In network industries, a Universal Service Obligation (USO) is often seen as a burden on an incumbent, which requires compensation for the net cost of such service provision. This paper estimates the effects of consumer loyalty as an intangible benefit of USO in the postal sector. In doing so,...

The various actors in regulated industries relate to each other within a broader institutional framework, i.e. by way of formal and informal rules. An important role in the implementation of liberalization processes is given to the regulation and thus to regulatory institutions. Regulation...

Amidst the perils of industrialization in the forms of environmental impacts of mining and use of energy and destruction of urban biodiversity, it became imperative for the Latin American countries to design environmental policies in accordance with the respective historicity, demography, and...

Many products are made by technological processes that cause environmental damage. Current environmental concerns are affecting firms' technological processes as a result of government intervention in markets but also due to environmental awareness on the part of consumers. This paper assumes a...

Competition between insurance companies for employees of a firm often increases the prices and reduces the availability of high-quality health plans offered to employees. An insurance company can reduce competition by signing an exclusive contract, which guarantees that the company is the only...

We evaluate the impact of the Spanish car scrappage program introduced in May 2009 on short-run car purchases. The scrappage program was simultaneously discussed and implemented, and was therefore exogenous to the consumers. We analyse the effect of this program on household new car purchase...

This paper makes an attempt to link collaborative research in industry with Government initiative and market rate of interests. Two firms involved in Cournot competition in the market are deciding whether to conduct research to device a technique for cost reduction. Amount of cost reduction...