Using sportscard grading as an example, we employ field experiments to investigate empirically the informational role of professional certifiers. In the past 20 years, professional grading of sportscards has evolved in a way that provides a unique opportunity to measure the information provision...

Economists accept consumer frauds as an equilibrium outcome of information costs. This paper empirically investigates what information is costly, what contribute to the information costs, and what institutions are more effective in reducing the information costs. We focus on one of the most...

Every new method of trade offers an opportunity for economic agents to compare its costs and benefits relative to the status quo. Such comparison motivates sorting across market segments and reshapes the whole marketplace. The Internet provides an excellent example: it introduces substantial...

This study uses field experiments to investigate empirically the informational role of professional certifiers. We explore a certification market that has evolved in such a manner that provides a unique opportunity to measure the information provision of a monopolist certifier and that of...