Price discrimination, copyright law, and technological innovation
Subtitle: evidence from the introduction of dvds
By: Julie Holland Mortimer.
Contributors: National Bureau of Economic Research.
Series: NBER working paper series ;; working paper 11676; Working paper series (National Bureau of Economic Research : Online) ;; working paper no. 11676.
Publisher: National Bureau of Economic Research
Published: 2005
Place of publication: Cambridge, MA
Language: eng
Format: Electronic resource
Subjects: Video recordings -- Prices -- Mathematical models.; DVDs -- Prices -- Mathematical models.; Copyright -- Economic aspects -- United States.; Copyright -- Europe.
Description: "This paper examines the welfare effects of intellectual property protection, accounting for firms' optimal responses to legal environments and technological innovation.  I examine firms' use of indirect price discrimination in response to U.S. copyright law, which effectively prevents direct price discrimination.  Using data covering VHS and DVD movie distribution, I explain studios' optimal pricing strategies under U.S. copyright law, and determine optimal pricing strategies under E.U. copyright law, which allows for direct price discrimination.  I analyze these optimal pricing strategies for both the existing VHS technology and the new digital DVD technology.  I find that studios' use of indirect price discrimination under US copyright law benefits consumers and harms retailers.  Optimal pricing under E.U.  copyright law also tends to benefit studios and consumers.  I also reanalyze these issues assuming continued DVD adoption"--National Bureau of Economic Research web site.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references.
Title from PDF file as viewed on 10/13/2005.
Also available in print.
System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader.
Mode of access: World Wide Web.