Seit einigen Jahren zeichnet sich beim Kaufverhalten ein gewisser neuer "Trend" ab. Es gibt nicht mehr nur konsistentes Kaufverhalten, das von den Forschern einschätzbar ist, sondern immer mehr Menschen, die sich in bestimmten Situationen besonders preissensitiv verhalten, in anderen wiederum...

I show that Swan's (1970) independence result requires a multiplicative interaction between durability and all other quality attributes. Because there is no compelling argument for a multiplicativity in quality, monopolists tend to distort durability, even with constant marginal costs....

This paper examines a two-period duopoly where consumers are locked-in by switching costs that they face in the second period. The paper's main focus is on the question of how the consumer lock-in affects the firms' choice of product durability. We show that firms may face a prisoners' dilemma...