The Impact Of Rate Of Return Regulation On Technological Innovation

This book contends that various forms of regulation have costs as well as benefits and it examines the impact of government regulation on the innovativeness of ’monopolies’ - in this book meaning firms with the power to affect market price. The government regulation analyzed in this case is limited to rate-of-return regulation. Using theoretical models such as the Averch-Johnson model and a two-stage Nash equilibrium model, this volume examines whether regulated monopolies engage in more or less technological innovation than unregulated monopolies. Furthermore, if the unregulated (or less regulated) monopolies do engage in more research and development than regulated ones, it questions whether social welfare would be greater with the former. Using a case study of ten privately-owned electric utilities in the State of Texas, USA, it then tests out the general propositions brought forward by the theoretical modelling and finally makes its conclusions taking into consideration both theoretical and empirical findings.

This guide helps officials use perception surveys for evaluating and communicating progress in regulatory reform. It explains the challenges involved in the design and use of business and citizen perception surveys – and ways to overcome them.

Risk and Return for Regulated Industries provides a much-needed, comprehensive review of how cost of capital risk arises and can be measured, how the special risks regulated industries face affect fair return, and the challenges that regulated industries are likely to face in the future. Rather than following the trend of broad industry introductions or textbook style reviews of utility finance, it covers the topics of most interest to regulators, regulated companies, regulatory lawyers, and rate-of-return analysts in all countries. Accordingly, the book also includes case studies about various countries and discussions of the lessons international regulatory procedures can offer. Presents a unified treatment of the regulatory principles and practices used to assess the required return on capital Addresses current practices before exploring the ways methods play out in practice, including irregularities, shortcomings, and concerns for the future Focuses on developed economies instead of providing a comprehensive global reviews Foreword by Stewart C. Myers

Americans praise medical technology for saving lives and improving health. Yet, new technology is often cited as a key factor in skyrocketing medical costs. This volume, second in the Medical Innovation at the Crossroads series, examines how economic incentives for innovation are changing and what that means for the future of health care. Up-to-date with a wide variety of examples and case studies, this book explores how payment, patent, and regulatory policiesâ€"as well as the involvement of numerous government agenciesâ€"affect the introduction and use of new pharmaceuticals, medical devices, and surgical procedures. The volume also includes detailed comparisons of policies and patterns of technological innovation in Western Europe and Japan. This fact-filled and practical book will be of interest to economists, policymakers, health administrators, health care practitioners, and the concerned public.

This advanced dictionary of marketing focuses on leading-edge terminology for use by people who are serious about the theory and practice of marketing. With over 1,000 entries ranging in length and depth, it is the ideal reference guide for researchers, directors, managers, and anyone studying marketing for a professional or academic qualification.

"Mathematical Optimization and Economic Analysis" is a self-contained introduction to various optimization techniques used in economic modeling and analysis such as geometric, linear, and convex programming and data envelopment analysis. Through a systematic approach, this book demonstrates the usefulness of these mathematical tools in quantitative and qualitative economic analysis. The book presents specific examples to demonstrate each technique’s advantages and applicability as well as numerous applications of these techniques to industrial economics, regulatory economics, trade policy, economic sustainability, production planning, and environmental policy. Key Features include: - A detailed presentation of both single-objective and multiobjective optimization; - An in-depth exposition of various applied optimization problems; - Implementation of optimization tools to improve the accuracy of various economic models; - Extensive resources suggested for further reading. This book is intended for graduate and postgraduate students studying quantitative economics, as well as economics researchers and applied mathematicians. Requirements include a basic knowledge of calculus and linear algebra, and a familiarity with economic modeling.

Regulation is a public policy approach closely related to calculations of the equilibrium of supply and demand and to cost-benefit analyses. Governments combine a variety of incentives and restrictions on behavior, including laws and regulations, in order to guide enterprises and smaller entities within the economy toward pursuing policies in the public interest. This book offers an in-depth and systematic review of the economic theory of regulation, with particular emphasis on the Chinese context. The basic concepts cover economic and social regulation, regulatory process, regulation under asymmetric information, and capture theory. Drawing on a broad range of cases from across the telecommunications, electric power, and water sectors since the founding of the People’s Republic of China in 1949, the author explores economic regulation in China with reference to natural monopoly, investment, price level and price structure, entry, and competition. In addition, he discusses theories of externalities and asymmetric information, which are analyzed in the light of China’s environmental and product quality regulation. The author argues that the Chinese government has deregulated its economy to a large extent in the past and proposes that the Chinese government will enforce more social regulation in the future. Students and scholars of government regulation, economics, and industrial organization will find this volume to be an essential guide.