"Real Estate & Planning Research Seminar by Professor Stefano Colombo from the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore." "Strategic anonymity and behavior-based pricing"

If you are interested in attending this Seminar please contact our Department School Office at repschooloffice@reading.ac.uk

Abstract: In a model of behavior-based price discrimination (BBPD), we argue that sellers may have discretionary power to let buyers decide whether to be identified (e.g., creating an account) or remain anonymous (no account creation). The price equilibria generate a more fragmented market segmentation than under the standard BBPD. Firms might prefer a policy where they leave buyers the decision to remain or not be anonymous, breaking the standard BBPD result. Furthermore, firms can realize higher profits than under uniform pricing, contrary to the standard BBPD. Also, firms may adopt asymmetric policies concerning the account creation requirement.

Bio: Stefano Colombo is Full Professor of Economics, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Milano, Italy. His main research interests are Spatial Economics, Industrial Organization, Regional Science and Game Theory. Stefano is among Top 100 by number of 10 core regional science publications (Rickman & Winters, 2016) and #1 (ex aequo) in the category “Top authors in Spatial Competition: 1979-2011” (Biscaia & Mota, 2013).