Prior to yesterday, if you wanted an iPad that worked just like your computer, you pretty well needed to buy a Microsoft Surface. But thanks to Parallels Access that has all changed. This is an app on your iPad that allows you to control applications on your Mac or PC. But unlike some other remote …
Is Microsoft of the 1990s similar to Apple of today?
That's Paul Krugman's claim today in the NYT. He argues that when Steve Ballmer took over, Microsoft was secure in its core business on the basis of operating system -- applications network externalities that raised switching costs for consumers. That led to Microsoft being blind to new developments, such as the smart phone, and hence …
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What to do about data and privacy
I was at a conference early this week hosted by the Technology Policy Institute. One of the keynote address was by the Chair of the FTC where she talked about big data and privacy. It struck me in listing to the speech that there was insufficient attention being paid as to what might be effective …
The Economic Policy of Data Caps
It is the one year anniversary of the Open Internet Advisory Committee (as noted earlier). Today the committee issued a report of its work over the last year. You can access it here. Today’s post discusses the report about data Caps, which was written by the Economic Impacts working group. I am a member of …
How to paywall: ESPN Version
Just a pointed to an interesting new paper by Anja Lambrecht and Kanishka Misra who examine ESPN's online paywall. Plummeting advertising revenues have lead many online content providers to experiment with additional sources of revenues. Most often, firms aim to compensate for a loss in advertising revenues by charging consumers for access to online content. …
2013 Next 36 Best Ventures
Today was Venture Day for the Next 36. This is a program that takes 36 of Canada's finest undergraduate would-be entrepreneurs, puts them into teams, gives them starting capital and legal resources and teaches them business while they explore setting up their ventures. Today we got to take stock of where they had come in …
KeyMe's interesting pricing model
A new app, KeyMe, has been released for iOS. The idea is that you take a picture of your keys and then, if you lose one, you can show the picture to a locksmith and get a new key. I tried it out and it is very straightforward to use. One can imagine that if …
Should Apple be forced to host rival book retailers for free?
That appears to be a key part of the DOJ's proposed remedy for Apple in the eBook pricing case. To reset competition to the conditions that existed before the conspiracy, Apple must also for two years allow other e-book retailers like Amazon and Barnes & Noble to provide links from their e-book apps to their …
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Information and the AEA Elections
Over at the Freakonomics blog, I have a short essay arguing that the AEA should consider providing more information about candidates for its officer elections. It may be of some interest to readers of this blog.
Do books compete with one another?
In a very interesting post, Geoffrey Manne makes the case that the Judge in the Apple eBooks trial got it wrong and that a successful appeal is possible. His analysis in lengthy but this hits at the central premise of his argument: While the opinion asserts that each publisher "could also expect to lose substantial …
Digitopoly 