Big data: implications for competition, privacy and regulation. This project aims to provide economic analyses of the costs and benefits of business strategies driven by consumer data, while considering consumers’ privacy concerns. This is highly relevant and timely given the vast amount of consumer data collected, shared and used in the digital era. Expected outcomes include better understanding of how data may lead to market power and how to safeguard against abuse of market power and privacy ....Big data: implications for competition, privacy and regulation. This project aims to provide economic analyses of the costs and benefits of business strategies driven by consumer data, while considering consumers’ privacy concerns. This is highly relevant and timely given the vast amount of consumer data collected, shared and used in the digital era. Expected outcomes include better understanding of how data may lead to market power and how to safeguard against abuse of market power and privacy breach. This project should make significant contributions to the nascent academic research and policy discussions in this area. This should also place Australia at the forefront of international scientific community and policy circle on the regulation of data-driven business strategies and privacy regulation. Read moreRead less
Improving Corporate Governance in China's Largest 166 State-Owned Central Enterprise Groups. This is a pioneering study that takes advantage of a unique research opportunity for Australian researchers to be at the forefront of research in the corporate governance of China's largest 166 state-owned central enterprises with which the Australia business sector is increasingly engaged in both trade and investment.
The project will allow Australians to play a leading role in shaping a major reform ....Improving Corporate Governance in China's Largest 166 State-Owned Central Enterprise Groups. This is a pioneering study that takes advantage of a unique research opportunity for Australian researchers to be at the forefront of research in the corporate governance of China's largest 166 state-owned central enterprises with which the Australia business sector is increasingly engaged in both trade and investment.
The project will allow Australians to play a leading role in shaping a major reform in our second most important trading partner and will enhance Australian knowledge of impending trends in strategic areas of mutual interest. It will arm Australia with greater understanding of its many faceted engagements with China.Read moreRead less
Enhancing regional resource synergies through the application of industrial ecology strategies for sustainable development in the Kwinana Industrial Area. The project will investigate the potential contribution of industrial ecology strategies for sustainable development at the regional level in heavy industrial areas, in particular the Kwinana Industrial Area (WA). Industrial ecology mimics natural processes in industrial production and consumption to achieve better environmental, economic and ....Enhancing regional resource synergies through the application of industrial ecology strategies for sustainable development in the Kwinana Industrial Area. The project will investigate the potential contribution of industrial ecology strategies for sustainable development at the regional level in heavy industrial areas, in particular the Kwinana Industrial Area (WA). Industrial ecology mimics natural processes in industrial production and consumption to achieve better environmental, economic and social outcomes. Despite its compelling logic, industrial ecology faces a number of barriers. This research will investigate such barriers and develop and pilot test innovative ways for overcoming those, in particular through the provision of facilitating structures, operational arrangements and evaluation tools.Read moreRead less
Microeconomics of Professional Sporting Competitions and Labour Markets. This project will undertake theoretical and empirical research on the operation of labour markets in professional sporting competitions. It will examine two main topics - the effects of labour market regulations in sporting competitions; and the determinants of job tenure and job mobility of players and coaches. The main expected outcomes are new theories of how sporting competitions operate, and for the determinants of j ....Microeconomics of Professional Sporting Competitions and Labour Markets. This project will undertake theoretical and empirical research on the operation of labour markets in professional sporting competitions. It will examine two main topics - the effects of labour market regulations in sporting competitions; and the determinants of job tenure and job mobility of players and coaches. The main expected outcomes are new theories of how sporting competitions operate, and for the determinants of job tenure; and original empirical evidence on these issues. The significance of the research derives from its potential contribution to international knowledge of how labour markets operate, and to the improved operation of sporting competitions.Read moreRead less
Economic analyses of partial equity ownership arrangements: theory, evidence, and policy implications. Partial equity ownership (PEO) arrangements have become prevalent and significant phenomena in modern economies. This project will develop comprehensive analytical frameworks for antitrust agencies, including the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, to analyse the antitrust consequences of PEO arrangements and assess their impacts on consumers and society.
Price-Setting Rules and Allocative Efficiency in Oligopolies. This project aims to investigate under which circumstances restrictions on how often firms can change prices increase competition in an oligopoly and bring down prices. For this, we propose the use of laboratory experiments with a novel design followed by field experiments and a real price-data analysis for external validation. This study will result in both the advancement of theory describing how firms compete in dynamic oligopolies ....Price-Setting Rules and Allocative Efficiency in Oligopolies. This project aims to investigate under which circumstances restrictions on how often firms can change prices increase competition in an oligopoly and bring down prices. For this, we propose the use of laboratory experiments with a novel design followed by field experiments and a real price-data analysis for external validation. This study will result in both the advancement of theory describing how firms compete in dynamic oligopolies and practical policy advice on how price setting rules can be used to improve consumer welfare. This project has the potential to generate sizable benefits to Australian consumers, as the resulting policy advice would be applicable to large markets such as those for petrol, groceries and online retail.Read moreRead less
Economic Aspects of Wool in Western Australia. Over the past 15 years, the wool industry in WA has gone from bust to boom.. This project develops a general equilibrium model to analyse the impact of the world economic conditions on the wool industry and the WA economy in general. We will also investigate the reasons for the systematically lower wool prices in Fremantle and the interactions between Australian wool prices and exchange rates. The results will enhance understanding of the industry, ....Economic Aspects of Wool in Western Australia. Over the past 15 years, the wool industry in WA has gone from bust to boom.. This project develops a general equilibrium model to analyse the impact of the world economic conditions on the wool industry and the WA economy in general. We will also investigate the reasons for the systematically lower wool prices in Fremantle and the interactions between Australian wool prices and exchange rates. The results will enhance understanding of the industry, and offer insights as to how it might be made less volatile in the future by providing valuable information to woolgrowers and policy makers.Read moreRead less
Determinants of Variations in Productivity Growth across the States of Australia: Aggregate and Sectoral Analyses. This research project will investigate factors which account for differences in economic and productivity growth performance across the states of Australia. This is a topic of considerable significance to academic researchers, policy-makers, and the public at large. The proposed project will be at the forefront of international research in two sub-areas, namely analysis of inters ....Determinants of Variations in Productivity Growth across the States of Australia: Aggregate and Sectoral Analyses. This research project will investigate factors which account for differences in economic and productivity growth performance across the states of Australia. This is a topic of considerable significance to academic researchers, policy-makers, and the public at large. The proposed project will be at the forefront of international research in two sub-areas, namely analysis of interstate productivity growth at a sectoral level, and measurement of productivity growth in services industries. It will break new ground in Australian research in two respects, namely estimation of state capital stocks, and analysis of total factor productivity on an interstate basis.
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Uncertain Intellectual Property Rights and Start-Up Commercialisation Strategy. This project will consider a perviously unexploited fact about the patent process: that there is a lag between patent application and patent granting during which important trade in ideas (e.g., licensing or other cooperative agreements) can take place. At both theoretical and empirical, we will attempt to understand the drivers of pre-patent licensing and its impact on Coasian bargaining. The aim is to better unders ....Uncertain Intellectual Property Rights and Start-Up Commercialisation Strategy. This project will consider a perviously unexploited fact about the patent process: that there is a lag between patent application and patent granting during which important trade in ideas (e.g., licensing or other cooperative agreements) can take place. At both theoretical and empirical, we will attempt to understand the drivers of pre-patent licensing and its impact on Coasian bargaining. The aim is to better understand the effects of uncertain property rights on the efficient operation of markets for ideas.Read moreRead less
The Consistency of Price Regulation of Infrastructure Businesses across Australian Jurisdictions. The spread of regulation across the majority of the economy necessitates that regulatory policy should be consistent across jurisdictions and industries. This project would offer policy and regulatory institutions quantitative analysis of the consistency of regulatory decisions across Australia. This research would develop a new database that would maintain and supply details on regulatory decision ....The Consistency of Price Regulation of Infrastructure Businesses across Australian Jurisdictions. The spread of regulation across the majority of the economy necessitates that regulatory policy should be consistent across jurisdictions and industries. This project would offer policy and regulatory institutions quantitative analysis of the consistency of regulatory decisions across Australia. This research would develop a new database that would maintain and supply details on regulatory decisions across jurisdictions and industries. This project would enable the new Australian Centre of Regulatory Economics (ACORE) to supply independent database and quantitative analysis from an open, fully documented, scholarly environment to Australia's policy and regulatory agencies and its regulated firms.Read moreRead less