Search Results
Showing results 1 to 2 of approximately 2.
(refine search)
Working Paper
Costly Information Intermediation as a Natural Monopoly
In this paper, we show that information trade has similar characteristics to a natural monopoly, where competition may be detrimental to efficiency due either to the duplication of direct costs or the slowing down of information dissemination. We present a model with two large populations in which consumers are randomly matched to providers on a period-by-period basis. Despite a moral hazard problem, cooperation can be sustained through an institution that gives incentives to information exchange. We consider different information pricing mechanisms (membership vs. buy and sell) and different ...
Briefing
Price Changes and Monetary Non-Neutrality
Economists have not reached a consensus on the effectiveness of monetary policy for stimulating short-run consumption. While quantitative models are typically disciplined through average pricing moments in the data, this is not sufficient to draw conclusions on monetary non-neutrality. In this article, we quantify the importance of the age-dependence of pricing moments for monetary policy. In particular, we show that newer products change their prices more often and by a larger amount. Furthermore, these patterns are supported by a price experimentation narrative. Finally, we quantify that ...