Measuring Substitution Patterns in the Attention Economy: An Experimental Approach.
Substitution patterns are a crucial input to antitrust analysis, but measuring them for free digital products has proved difficult due to the lack of price variation. I measure substitution patterns by installing software on experimental participants' Android phones that restricts access to Instagra...
| Publicado en: | RAND Journal of Economics (Wiley-Blackwell) Vol. 56; no. 3; pp. 302 - 325 |
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| Formato: | Artículo |
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Wiley-Blackwell
Fall2025
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| Acceso en línea: | Ver este registro en EBSCOhost |
| Sumario: | Substitution patterns are a crucial input to antitrust analysis, but measuring them for free digital products has proved difficult due to the lack of price variation. I measure substitution patterns by installing software on experimental participants' Android phones that restricts access to Instagram or YouTube—generating variation in choice sets—and monitoring how participants reallocate their time. I find that participants substitute to multiple product categories in both restrictions but also substantially for nondigital activities. These results imply that using product characteristics as a proxy for relevant markets may incorrectly specify the relevant set of substitutes in these contexts. |
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