In April 2013, the Assembly of the Budapest Municipality radically transformed the taxi market in Budapest. This case study analyses the events that led to this decision and also the measure's immediate impact. The study is part of the research project, titled "The Unexpected Consequences and...

Die Märkte im eigenwirtschaftlichen Schienenpersonenverkehr sind in Europa bisher nur teilweise geöffnet. Anbieter haben Zugang zu internationalen Strecken sowie in einigen Ländern zu nationalen Verkehren. Die EU-Kommission will 2012 einen Vorschlag für die vollständige Öffnung des Marktes...

In Deutschland und auf europäischer Ebene wird aktuell eine Neufassung eisenbahnrechtlicher Zugangs-, Entgelt- und Entflechtungsbestimmungen erörtert. Zentraler Diskussionspunkt ist neben der Frage, ob die Entflechtung von Infrastruktur- und Verkehrsbetrieb erweitert werden sollte, vor allem...

This paper analyses the incentives to upgrade input quality in vertically related (network) industries. Upstream investments have a biased effect on the downstream companies and lead to vertical product differentiation. Different vertical structures such as vertical integration, ownership and...

The U.S. federal government enacted fuel efficiency standards for medium and heavy trucks for the first time in September 2011. Rationales for using this policy tool typically depend upon frictions existing in the marketplace or consumers being myopic, such that vehicle purchasers undervalue the...

The Russian economy relies on the Russian freight railways to an extraordinary degree. In 2001, after years of debate, the Russian government adopted an ambitious plan to transform this vertically integrated, government owned monopoly into a system that would rely more on private investment and...

In this paper, we study how maritime ferry industries should be regulated. This is a fundamental issue in so far as maritime transport between islands and mainland is a service of general interest. We argue that the policy design crucially depends on the goals the collectivity pursues (pure...

In the wake of global recession, governments worldwide face increasing pressures to assist ailing domestic industries, especially companies deemed "too big to fail." The auto sector provides an excellent illustration of the tensions between the need to rescue ailing domestic producers without...

Often, fi xed-line incumbents also own the largest mobile network. We consider the effect of this joint ownership on market outcomes. Our model predicts that while fixed-to-mobile call prices to the integrated mobile network are more efficient than under separation, those to rival mobile...

In this paper, we analyse the specific national broadband plans which have been developed by some European governments to foster the deployment of next generation access networks, namely in France, Italy, and Portugal. In particular, we discuss the strategies adopted to achieve wide fibre...