We study asymmetric second-price auctions under incomplete information. The bidders have two potentially different, commonly known, valuations for the object and private information about their entry costs. The seller, however, does not benefit from these entry costs. We calculate the...

We study all-pay contests under incomplete information where the reward is a function of the contestant's type and also of his effort. We analyze the optimal reward for the designer when the reward is either multiplicatively separable or additively separable in effort and type. In the...

We find that two-stage contests could be ineffective, namely, there is a higher chance of low-ability players participating (and winning) than high-ability players. However, imposing a fee on the winner can guarantee that the contest will be effective.