The disruptive effect of open platforms on markets for wireless services

Atanu Lahiri, Rajiv M. Dewan, Marshall L. Freimer

Research output: Chapter in Book/Entry/PoemConference contribution

1 Scopus citations

Abstract

Application-based discrimination is common in telecommunications. Wireless carriers charge consumers more per byte of traffic for SMS text messages than they do for wireless surfing or voice calls. Such discrimination is possible because carriers and handset manufacturers have the ability to tag and meter each application. While tagging and metering are possible in the case of proprietary platforms such as iPhone, they are not in the case of open platforms like Android. Android is open source with open application programming interfaces, and anyone can develop applications for it. Because the carriers have little control over applications, Android is inherently disruptive of discriminatory pricing across applications. Users and neutrality advocates support Android, believing that a disruption of discrimination can increase consumer surplus. We show why their belief does not always hold. Similarly, firms are expected to prefer discriminatory pricing. We show that this expectation is also not true under certain circumstances.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Title of host publicationProceedings of the 43rd Annual Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences, HICSS-43
DOIs
StatePublished - 2010
Externally publishedYes
Event43rd Annual Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences, HICSS-43 - Koloa, Kauai, HI, United States
Duration: Jan 5 2010Jan 8 2010

Publication series

NameProceedings of the Annual Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences
ISSN (Print)1530-1605

Other

Other43rd Annual Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences, HICSS-43
Country/TerritoryUnited States
CityKoloa, Kauai, HI
Period1/5/101/8/10

Keywords

  • Net neutrality
  • Nonlinear pricing
  • Open platforms
  • Quasi-bundling
  • Wireless services

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • General Engineering

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