Because hedonic aspects of products are difficult to evaluate prior to consumption, consumers seek signals to reduce their uncertainty. Opinion leaders, such as critics, may serve as key informants to consumers. This study considers the different roles and incentives of literary critics and how...

Despite consumer's widespread interest in reading, enjoying, and buying books, very little research has considered the critical success factors of books. This article focuses on similarities and differences between success factors when selling fiction books sequentially in hardcover and...

The rise of peer-to-peer networks starting with Napster in 1999 and later KaZaA and eMule had a substantial impact on the online distribution of media content. Millions of users at any given point of time illegally offer copyright protected files and internalize the cost of their behavior....

The success of online communities depends heavily on the providers' abilities to motivate potential users to adopt the service and to actively participate. Because research in this field of media economics is rare, especially with regard to newly established communities, this study analyzes what...

Although the Internet features excess demand for media, especially movie downloads, the motion picture industry lacks sustainable business models for this market. An enriched form of the theory of planned behavior can identify drivers of consumer intentions to adopt a legal movie download...