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Costs of Managerial Attention and Activity as a Source of Sticky Prices: Structural Estimates from an Online Market

Author

Listed:
  • Sara Fisher Ellison
  • Christopher Snyder
  • Hongkai Zhang

Abstract

We study price dynamics for computer components sold on a price-comparison website. Our fine-grained data—a year of hourly price data for scores of rival retailers—allow us to estimate a dynamic model of competition, backing out structural estimates of managerial frictions. The estimated frictions are substantial, concentrated in the act of monitoring market conditions rather than entering a new price. We use our model to simulate the counterfactual gains from automated price setting and other managerial changes. Coupled with supporting reduced-form statistical evidence, our analysis provides a window into the process of managerial price setting and the microfoundation of pricing inertia, issues of growing interest in industrial organization and macroeconomics.

Suggested Citation

  • Sara Fisher Ellison & Christopher Snyder & Hongkai Zhang, 2018. "Costs of Managerial Attention and Activity as a Source of Sticky Prices: Structural Estimates from an Online Market," NBER Working Papers 24680, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    • Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberwo:24680
    Note: EFG IO LE PR
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    Cited by:

    1. Ali Hortacsu & Olivia R. Natan & Hayden Parsley & Timothy Schwieg & Kevin R. Williams, 2021. "Organizational Structure and Pricing: Evidence from a Large U.S. Airline," Cowles Foundation Discussion Papers 2312R3, Cowles Foundation for Research in Economics, Yale University, revised Jan 2023.
    2. Michele Fioretti, 2022. "Caring or Pretending to Care? Social Impact, Firms' Objectives, and Welfare (former title: Social Responsibility and Firm's Objectives)," Sciences Po Economics Publications (main) hal-03393065, HAL.
    3. Victor Aguirregabiria & Jihye Jeon, 2020. "Firms’ Beliefs and Learning: Models, Identification, and Empirical Evidence," Review of Industrial Organization, Springer;The Industrial Organization Society, vol. 56(2), pages 203-235, March.
    4. Diego Aparicio & Roberto Rigobon, 2020. "Quantum Prices," NBER Working Papers 26646, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    5. David P. Brown & Andrew Eckert, 2022. "Pricing Patterns in Wholesale Electricity Markets: Unilateral Market Power or Coordinated Behavior?," Journal of Industrial Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 70(1), pages 168-216, March.
    6. Victor Aguirregabiria & Francis Guiton, 2022. "Decentralized Decision-Making in Retail Chains: Evidence from Inventory Management," Working Papers tecipa-722, University of Toronto, Department of Economics.
    7. Victor Aguirregabiria & Allan Collard-Wexler & Stephen P. Ryan, 2021. "Dynamic Games in Empirical Industrial Organization," NBER Working Papers 29291, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    8. repec:spo:wpecon:info:hdl:2441/7fsnj6af7v9ncrf76qn5p5on9e is not listed on IDEAS
    9. Aparicio, Diego & Rigobon, Roberto, 2023. "Quantum prices," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 143(C).
    10. Germán Reyes, 2024. "Coarse Wage-Setting and Behavioral Firms," CRC TR 224 Discussion Paper Series crctr224_2024_492, University of Bonn and University of Mannheim, Germany.
    11. Germ'an Reyes, 2022. "Coarse Wage-Setting and Behavioral Firms," Papers 2206.01114, arXiv.org, revised Mar 2024.
    12. Alderighi, Marco & Gaggero, Alberto A. & Piga, Claudio A., 2022. "Hidden prices with fixed inventory: Evidence from the airline industry," Transportation Research Part B: Methodological, Elsevier, vol. 157(C), pages 42-61.
    13. repec:spo:wpmain:info:hdl:2441/7fsnj6af7v9ncrf76qn5p5on9e is not listed on IDEAS
    14. Marcella Nicolini & Claudio A. Piga & Andrea Pozzi, 2023. "From uniform to bespoke prices: Hotel pricing during EURO 2016," Quantitative Marketing and Economics (QME), Springer, vol. 21(3), pages 333-355, September.
    15. Yiquan Gu & Leonardo Madio & Carlo Reggiani, 2019. "Exclusive Data, Price Manipulation and Market Leadership," CESifo Working Paper Series 7853, CESifo.
    16. Zemin (Zachary) Zhong, 2022. "Chasing Diamonds and Crowns: Consumer Limited Attention and Seller Response," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 68(6), pages 4380-4397, June.
    17. Andrea Mantovani & Claudio Piga & Carlo Reggiani, 2019. "Much ado about nothing? Online platform price parity clauses and the EU Booking.com case," Economics Discussion Paper Series 1909, Economics, The University of Manchester.
    18. Paolo Figini & Simona Cicognani & Lorenzo Zirulia, 2023. "Booking in the Rain. Testing the Impact of Public Information on Prices," Italian Economic Journal: A Continuation of Rivista Italiana degli Economisti and Giornale degli Economisti, Springer;Società Italiana degli Economisti (Italian Economic Association), vol. 9(3), pages 1329-1364, November.

    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • L11 - Industrial Organization - - Market Structure, Firm Strategy, and Market Performance - - - Production, Pricing, and Market Structure; Size Distribution of Firms

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