Two widely discussed pricing benchmarks in the literature on payment cards markets are the "tourist test" interchange fee (Rochet and Tirole, 2010), which internalizes usage externalities in payment card markets, and "perfect surcharging" by merchants (Rochet and Tirole, 2002). This paper shows...

This dissertation contains four independent chapters. Chapter 1 analyzes the impact of vertical integration on quality provision. Chapter 2 seeks to explain the pervasiveness of uncoordinated corruption. Chapter 3 proposes a theory of political agency. Chapter 4 is an inquiry into the...

This paper analyzes the impact of vertical integration on product quality. Contrary to previous findings, it is shown that integration decreases quality in many natural situations. In general, the direction of the quality change is governed by three effects that are isolated in the model. This...

We argue that there exists a problem of adverse selection in the provision of advertising which makes it impossible to establish direct markets for it. The media are regarded as intermediaries that can channel advertising and allocate it efficiently by screening consumers. This role of media may...

Two widely discussed pricing benchmarks in the literature on payment card markets are the "tourist test" interchange fee (Rochet and Tirole, forthcoming), which internalizes usage externalities in payment card markets, and "perfect surcharging" by merchants (Rochet and Tirole, 2002). This paper...

Myopic consumers underestimate the likelihood with which they will require follow-on services for products they purchase. Firms have an incentive to exploit this behavioral bias by skewing their price structure toward high add-on charges. Inadvertently, this skewed price structure provides...

Independent rent extraction by competing public officials produces a level of bribery that is too high both from the viewpoint of corrupt administrations and from the viewpoint of social welfare. Nevertheless, governments in many developing countries do not curb the harmful lack of coordination...

This paper characterizes the optimal quality regulation of a monopolist when quality is observable. In contrast to Sheshinski (1976) it is shown that a minimum quality standard may be desirable even if it induces the firm to reduce output.