Competitive Algorithms for Online Leasing Problem in Probabilistic Environments

Abstract. We integrate probability distribution into pure competitive analysis to improve the performance measure of competitive analysis, since input sequences of the leasing problem have simple structure and favorably statistical property. Let input structures be the characteristic of geometric distribution, and we obtain optimal on-line algorithms and their competitive ratios. Moreover, the introducing of interest rate would diminish the uncertainty involved in the process of decision making and put off the optimal purchasing date.

Firm behaviour under alternative bidding systems for US OCS hydrocarbon leases

One of the least settled issues in US offshore oil policy is the "best" scheme to capture resource rents arising from hydrocarbon production. This paper analyses the impact of alternative bidding systems on the intertemporal production path and on the firm's investment decision. It concludes that with the exception of the pure profit share system all other pure or mixed bidding systems are likely to have a distortive effect on production and, thus, eventually lead to a dissipation of economic rent. Further, no leasing system authorised by current public law is found to be neutral regarding investment decisions.

Investment and Pricing with Spectrum Uncertainty: A Cognitive Operator's Perspective

This paper studies the optimal investment and pricing decisions of a cognitive mobile virtual network operator (C-MVNO) under spectrum supply uncertainty. Compared with a traditional MVNO who often leases spectrum via long-term contracts, a C-MVNO can acquire spectrum dynamically in short-term by both sensing the empty "spectrum holes" of licensed bands and dynamically leasing from the spectrum owner. As a result, a C-MVNO can make flexible investment and pricing decisions to match the current demands of the secondary unlicensed users. Compared to dynamic spectrum leasing, spectrum sensing is typically cheaper, but the obtained useful spectrum amount is random due to primary licensed users' stochastic traffic. The C-MVNO needs to determine the optimal amounts of spectrum sensing and leasing by evaluating the trade off between cost and uncertainty. The C-MVNO also needs to determine the optimal price to sell the spectrum to the secondary unlicensed users, taking into account wireless heterogeneity of users such as different maximum transmission power levels and channel gains. We model and analyze the interactions between the C-MVNO and secondary unlicensed users as a Stackelberg game. We show several interesting properties of the network equilibrium, including threshold structures of the optimal investment and pricing decisions, the independence of the optimal price on users' wireless characteristics, and guaranteed fair and predictable QoS among users. We prove that these properties hold for general SNR regime and general continuous distributions of sensing uncertainty. We show that spectrum sensing can significantly improve the C-MVNO's expected profit and users' payoffs.Comment: A shorter version appears in IEEE INFOCOM 2010. This version has been submitted to IEEE Transactions on Mobile Computin

Antitrust Perspectives for Durable-Goods Markets

Markets for durable goods constitute an important part of the economy. In this paper I first briefly review the microeconomic theory literature on durable-goods markets, focusing mostly on the last ten years. I then discuss a number of my own recent analyses concerning optimal antitrust policy in durable-goods markets that mostly build on ideas in the larger literature. Specific topics covered include: (i) optimal antitrust policy for durable-goods mergers; (ii) practices that eliminate secondhand markets; (iii) tying in markets characterized by upgrades and switching costs; and (iv) antitrust policy for aftermarket monopolization in durable-goods markets.

Mineral Royalties: Historical Uses and Justifications

Governments and private landowners have collected royalties on mineral resources for centuries. When comprehensive measures to account for the environmental externalities of mineral extraction are politically or practically unavailable, federal and state governments may consider adjusting royalty rates as an expedient way to account for these externalities and benefit society. One key policy question that has not received attention, however, is whether a royalty rate can and should be manipulated in this way, assuming statutory discretion to do so. This article fills that gap by evaluating the argument for increasing federal or state fossil fuel royalty rates through historical, theoretical, and practical lenses. To that end, this article in turn considers the meaning of royalties, the economic justifications for royalties, the legislative history of the implementation of federal royalties, and the considerations that private landowners have relied upon in setting royalties. This article concludes that it would be appropriate for governments to adjust mineral royalty rates to account for negative externalities not otherwise addressed by regulation or to otherwise promote public welfare. Such use of royalties is consistent with the historical record. Royalties have been used as pragmatic policy tools from almost their inception, and federal and state governments have often exercised their existing statutory discretion to adjust mineral royalty rates to promote public welfare

Performance-Based Specifications: Exploring When They Work and Why

There is extensive research and attention on innovation and sustainable public procurement (SPP) in the European Union at present, with the 2014 revision of the Procurement Directives, the Innovation Union strategy and other European Union policy initiatives. This report seeks to contribute to this discussion through the investigation of the use of performance based specifications (PBSs) in public procurement in the European Union and the United States. The report outlines the benefits and limitations of the use of PBSs, even in the most "progressive" public procurement environments, such as the Netherlands, particularly around their ability to support sustainable development goals and deliver environmental benefits for a procuring authority, such as energy and resource efficiency. Additionally, this report aims to identify the sectors in which the enabling conditions for the successful use of PBSs in public procurement are in place and to understand what policies and regulations are needed to promote the use of PBSs in public tenders and public procurement framework agreements

The Evolution of Shopping Center Research: A Review and Analysis

Retail research has evolved over the past sixty years. Christaller\u27s early work on central place theory, with its simplistic combination of range and threshold has been advanced to include complex consumer shopping patterns and retailer behavior in agglomerated retail centers. Hotelling\u27s seminal research on competition in a spatial duopoly has been realized in the form of comparison shopping in regional shopping centers. The research that has followed Christaller and Hoteling has been as wide as it has been deep, including literature in geography, economics, finance, marketing, and real estate. In combination, the many extensions of central place theory and retail agglomeration economics have clearly enhanced the understanding of both retailer and consumer behavior. In addition to these two broad areas of shopping center research, two more narrowly focused areas of research have emerged. The most recent focus in the literature has been on the positive effects large anchor tenants have on smaller non-anchor tenant sales. These positive effects are referred to as retail demand externalities. Exploring the theoretical basis for the valuation of shopping centers has been another area of interest to researchers. The primary focus of this literature is based in the valuation of current and expected lease contracts