Market Viability Research Articles

Moral Struggles in Markets

AbstractPractices within markets are widely regulated and sometimes contested on the basis of moral judgments. Moral entrepreneurs challenge markets and market practices while firms and industry actors defend them, leading to moral struggles opposing different orders of worth. Based on an historical case study, this paper develops a theoretical framework to study moral struggles in markets as social and political processes around commensurability. It identifies three core arenas in which moral struggles play out: ideas, where the morality of specific practices itself is contested and actors ground their moral claims in different institutional orders for legitimation; the economy, where the market viability of changing moral standards is at stake; and politics, where commensuration reflects political power struggles. Through a socio-historical analysis of the fight against battery cages in Swiss egg production in the 1970s and 1980s, the study fleshes out how this moral struggle played out along these dimensions, focusing on the competing discourses, strategies, and tactics of the main moral entrepreneurs and industry associations.

Breeding, Early-Successional Bird Response to Forest Harvests for Bioenergy.

Forest regeneration following timber harvest is a principal source of habitat for early-successional birds and characterized by influxes of early-successional vegetation and residual downed woody material. Early-successional birds may use harvest residues for communication, cover, foraging, and nesting. Yet, increased market viability of woody biomass as bioenergy feedstock may intensify harvest residue removal. Our objectives were to: 1) evaluate effects of varying intensities of woody biomass harvest on the early-successional bird community; and (2) document early-successional bird use of harvest residues in regenerating stands. We spot-mapped birds from 15 April– 15 July, 2012–2014, in six woody biomass removal treatments within regenerating stands in North Carolina (n = 4) and Georgia (n = 4), USA. Treatments included clearcut harvest followed by: (1) traditional woody biomass harvest with no specific retention target; (2) 15% retention with harvest residues dispersed; (3) 15% retention with harvest residues clustered; (4) 30% retention with harvest residues dispersed; (5) 30% retention with harvest residues clustered; and (6) no woody biomass harvest (i.e., reference site). We tested for treatment-level effects on breeding bird species diversity and richness, early-successional focal species territory density (combined and individual species), counts of breeding birds detected near, in, or on branches of harvest piles/windrows, counts of breeding bird behaviors, and vegetation composition and structure. Pooled across three breeding seasons, we delineated 536 and 654 territories and detected 2,489 and 4,204 birds in the North Carolina and Georgia treatments, respectively. Woody biomass harvest had limited or short-lived effects on the early-successional, breeding bird community. The successional trajectory of vegetation structure, rather than availability of harvest residues, primarily drove avian use of regenerating stands. However, many breeding bird species used downed wood in addition to vegetation, indicating that harvest residues initially may provide food and cover resources for early-successional birds in regenerating stands prior to vegetation regrowth.

ChemInform Abstract: Perovskite Materials for Light‐Emitting Diodes and Lasers

AbstractReview: 152 refs.

Winter bird use of harvest residues in clearcuts and the implications of forest bioenergy harvest in the southeastern United States

Increased market viability of harvest residues gleaned for forest bioenergy feedstocks may intensify downed wood removal, particularly in intensively managed forests of the Southeast. Downed wood provides food and cover for many wildlife species, including birds, yet we are aware of no study that has examined winter bird response to experimentally manipulated, operational-scale woody biomass harvests. Further, little research has investigated avian use of downed wood following timber harvests. As such, our objectives were to: (1) evaluate effects of varying intensities of woody biomass harvest on the winter bird community and (2) document spatial associations between winter bird species and available habitat structure, including downed wood, in regenerating stands. In January and February of 2012–2014, we surveyed birds using a modified version of spot-mapping in six woody biomass removal treatments in North Carolina, USA (n=4 regenerating stands). Treatments included clearcut harvest followed by: (1) traditional woody biomass harvest with no biomass harvesting guidelines; (2) 15% retention with harvest residues dispersed; (3) 15% retention with harvest residues clustered; (4) 30% retention with harvest residues dispersed; (5) 30% retention with harvest residues clustered; and (6) no woody biomass harvest (i.e., reference). We tested for treatment-level effects on avian relative abundance (overall and individual species), species diversity and richness, and counts of winter birds detected near (∼1m from pile), in, or on branches of downed wood piles and calculated proportional avian habitat use of harvest residues and vegetation in regenerating stands. In 69 visits over three winters, we observed 3352 birds in treatments. In 2013, counts of birds detected in piles were greater in the no biomass harvest and 30% clustered treatments than the no biomass harvesting guidelines treatment. In 2012 and 2013 combined, mourning dove (Zenaida macroura) had greater relative abundance in the no biomass harvest treatment compared to the 15% dispersed treatment and was more often detected within 1m of downed wood piles than in vegetation. We counted more winter birds in and near adjacent forest edge than in treatment interiors each year. Overall, we detected minimal treatment effects on winter bird relative abundance and no effects on species diversity and richness. Relative abundance of winter birds increased over time as vegetative cover established in regenerating stands. Our results suggest woody biomass harvests in intensively managed pine forests had no effect on the winter bird community, but winter birds used harvest residues. Further, vegetation structure and composition, rather than availability of harvest residues, primarily influenced winter bird use of regenerating stands.

Perovskite Materials for Light-Emitting Diodes and Lasers.

Organic-inorganic hybrid perovskites have cemented their position as an exceptional class of optoelectronic materials thanks to record photovoltaic efficiencies of 22.1%, as well as promising demonstrations of light-emitting diodes, lasers, and light-emitting transistors. Perovskite materials with photoluminescence quantum yields close to 100% and perovskite light-emitting diodes with external quantum efficiencies of 8% and current efficiencies of 43 cd A(-1) have been achieved. Although perovskite light-emitting devices are yet to become industrially relevant, in merely two years these devices have achieved the brightness and efficiencies that organic light-emitting diodes accomplished in two decades. Further advances will rely decisively on the multitude of compositional, structural variants that enable the formation of lower-dimensionality layered and three-dimensional perovskites, nanostructures, charge-transport materials, and device processing with architectural innovations. Here, the rapid advancements in perovskite light-emitting devices and lasers are reviewed. The key challenges in materials development, device fabrication, operational stability are addressed, and an outlook is presented that will address market viability of perovskite light-emitting devices.

Privacy and brain-computer interfaces

Brain-Computer Interfaces (BCIs) interpret neural activity, applying it to the control of external devices. As BCIs approach market viability, ethical implications come under consideration. This paper identifies potential privacy disruptions. BCI literature is reviewed in order to identify a BCI typology likely to support a privacy analysis. The typology describes the active, reactive, passive and hybrid types of BCI and, where possible, includes examples that are further classified as existing, prospective or speculative. A review of privacy theory supports an analysis that juxtaposes privacy theory and BCI technologies. The analysis finds that while all four types of BCI have potential for disrupting privacy, disruptions are more likely to arise from the use of reactive, passive and hybrid BCIs. Limitations and directions for future research close the paper.

An analysis of volumes, prices and pricing trends of the pediatric antiretroviral market in developing countries from 2004 to 2012.

BackgroundThe pediatric antiretroviral (ARV) market is poorly described in the literature, resulting in gaps in understanding treatment access. We analyzed the pediatric ARV market from 2004 to 2012 and assessed pricing trends and associated factors.MethodsData on donor funded procurements of pediatric ARV formulations reported to the Global Price Reporting Mechanism database from 2004 to 2012 were analyzed.Outcomes of interest were the volume and mean price per patient-year ARV formulation based on WHO ARV dosing recommendations for a 10 kg child. Factors associated with the price of formulations were assessed using linear regression; potential predictors included: country income classification, geographical region, market segment (originator versus generic ARVs), and number of manufacturers per formulation. All analyses were adjusted for type of formulations (single, dual or triple fixed-dose combinations (FDCs))ResultsData from 111 countries from 2004 to 2012 were included, with procurement of 33 formulations at a total value of USD 204 million. Use of dual and triple FDC formulations increased substantially over time, but with limited changes in price. Upon multivariate analysis, prices of originator formulations were found to be on average 72 % higher than generics (p < 0.001). A 10 % increase in procurement volume was associated with a 1 % decrease (p < 0.001) in both originator and generic prices. The entry of one additional manufacturer producing a formulation was associated with a decrease in prices of 2 % (p < 0.001) and 8 % (p < 0.001) for originator and generic formulations, respectively. The mean generic ARV price did not differ by country income level. Prices of originator ARVs were 48 % (p < 0.001) and 14 % (p < 0.001) higher in upper-middle income and lower-middle income countries compared to low income countries respectively, with the exception of South Africa, which had lower prices despite being an upper-middle income country.ConclusionsThe donor funded pediatric ARV market as represented by the GPRM database is small, and lacks price competition. It is dominated by generic drugs due to the lower prices offered and the practicality of FDC formulations. This market requires continued donor support and the current initiatives to protect it are important to ensure market viability, especially if new formulations are to be introduced in the future.

The Limits of Reflected Glory: The Beneficial and Harmful Effects of Product Name Similarity in the U.S. Network TV Program Industry, 1944–2003

The market fate of a product ultimately determines the success or failure of a firm. A name is a central feature of any product, yet how names affect product market longevity is not well understood. In this paper we develop a theory in which a new product’s name affects the product’s categorization by audiences and, as a result, impacts its survival chances on the market. We predict that the similarity of the new product’s name to names of other products in the industry affects its survival probability, but the direction and magnitude of this effect depends on the popularity and status of products, to names of which the new product’s name is similar. We test our predictions on the population of all TV programs that were introduced during prime time plus early evening and late night on networks in the United States from the beginning of the industry in 1944 through 2003. An event history analysis of this population supports our predictions and thus suggests the importance of names in product market viability.

Are multi-car households better suited for battery electric vehicles? – Driving patterns and economics in Sweden and Germany

Battery electric vehicles (BEVs) could reduce CO2 emissions from the transport sector but their limited electric driving range diminishes their utility to users. The effect of the limited driving range can be reduced in multi-car households where users could choose between a BEV and a conventional car for long-distance travel. However, to what extent the driving patterns of different cars in a multi-car household’s suit the characteristics of a BEV needs further analysis. In this paper we analyse the probability of daily driving above a fixed threshold for conventional cars in current Swedish and German car driving data. We find second cars in multi-car households to require less adaptation and to be better suited for BEV adoption compared to first cars in multi-car households as well as to cars in single-car households. Specifically, the share of second cars that could fulfil all their driving is 20 percentage points higher compared to first cars and cars from single-car households. This result is stable against variation of driving range and of the tolerated number of days requiring adaptation. Furthermore, the range needed to cover all driving needs for about 70% of the vehicles is only 220km for second cars compared to 390km for the average car. We can further confirm that second cars have higher market viability from a total cost of ownership perspective. Here, the second cars achieve a 10 percentage points higher market share compared to first cars, and to cars in single-car households for Swedish economic conditions, while for Germany the corresponding figure is 2 percentage points. Our results are important for understanding the market viability of current and near-future BEVs.

Drift operator in a viable expansion of information flow

A triplet (P,F,S) of a probability measure P, of an information flow F=(Ft)t∈R+, and of an F adapted asset process S, is a financial market model, only if it is viable. In this paper we are concerned with the preservation of the market viability, when the information flow F is replaced by a bigger one G=(Gt)t≥0 with Gt⊃Ft. Under the assumption of martingale representation property in (P,F), we prove a necessary and sufficient condition for all viable market in F remains viable in G.

Investigation into the Market Viability of Bitcoin: Measuring the Digital Currency's Speculative Nature

Among the recent attempts at developing a stable electronic payment system, Bitcoin is one of the few that shows actual progress in establishing its status as real money. Despite the progress it is making, due to inherent price volatility and instability, Bitcoin is still considered as more of a speculative vehicle than a currency. The purpose of this paper is to determine the extent to which Bitcoin market is dominated by speculative investments. The paper studies arbitrage opportunities in Bitcoin and how the trading volume and the price of Bitcoin react to them. The results of the empirical analysis show the existence of a positive relationship between the arbitrage opportunities and both the Bitcoin trading volume and the Bitcoin price. The findings of the study contribute to the literature on the economic viability of Bitcoin and provide a base ground for discouraging short-term investors.

The Management of Creative Vision and the Economics of Creative Cycles

This paper proposes a new theory of variability in innovation performance in managerial firms that contract ‘creative vision’. We argue that such firms are prone to ‘creative cycles’ that arise from uncertainty‐induced systemic overshooting that can threaten the firm's financial viability, requiring managers to shift control back to risk‐averse financial controllers. But this creates opportunities for competing firms to engage in bold creative visions, threatening the firm's market viability and inducing control to shift back to newly contracted suppliers of ‘creative vision’. We discuss how this ‘principal‐agent‐agent’ mechanism plays out, the types of uncertainty that drive it, and consider the industry‐level externalities it induces. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley &amp; Sons, Ltd.

Product Safety Spillovers and Market Viability for Biologic Drugs

Product Safety Spillovers and Market Viability for Biologic Drugs

Perovskite Solar Cells: Beyond Methylammonium Lead Iodide.

Organic-inorganic lead halide based perovskites solar cells are by far the highest efficiency solution-processed solar cells, threatening to challenge thin film and polycrystalline silicon ones. Despite the intense research in this area, concerns surrounding the long-term stability as well as the toxicity of lead in the archetypal perovskite, CH3NH3PbI3, have the potential to derail commercialization. Although the search for Pb-free perovskites have naturally shifted to other transition metal cations and formulations that replace the organic moiety, efficiencies with these substitutions are still substantially lower than those of the Pb-perovskite. The perovskite family offers rich multitudes of crystal structures and substituents with the potential to uncover new and exciting photophysical phenomena that hold the promise of higher solar cell efficiencies. In addressing materials beyond CH3NH3PbI3, this Perspective will discuss a broad palette of elemental substitutions, solid solutions, and multidimensional families that will provide the next fillip toward market viability of the perovskite solar cells.

Motion for a product to collect a sample of human stool and/or urine KITLAB

A marketing innovation is the key factor of any product to be launched in the consumer market. This research anticipates that had already been patented worldwide launch of a product (non- chemical) pharmaceutical industry to be called KITLAB, which will change for the better the procedure and user form to collect a single sample of feces or urine be taken for laboratory examination. The objective of this paper is to show product innovation to make a collection of these hygienically correct. The methods and techniques are their main advantages it has over its competitors, since it enables the user to make a collection without handling, that is, that a sample collection (feces/urine), is made by everyone (men/women, adults/children) hygienically, in a very different way of unhygienic today make such collections, which are, at best, made directly on the floor without any care with possible contamination toilet that such unsuitable sites can provide samples. The results observed in a study commissioned assessment of market viability showed that the product had total public approval , and in addition , he has numerous competitive advantages over other existing competing products in the market because its use eliminates the so inconvenient, self - embarrassing and unhygienic way of making today a collection of stools, and more, it will give the user a personal satisfaction and comfort, finally, this product will eliminate the so uncomfortable handling necessary that still exists today.

Novel Cruise Speed Highway Charging of Electric Vehicles in India

The utility of all-electric automobiles is limited by various factors. The most important one is the 'range anxiety'; this is a severe limitation on the adoption rates of battery electric vehicles (BEV). There is a periodic need to stop and re-charge or replace the batteries after traveling a relatively short distance. The long time needed to recharge the depleted battery usually necessitates exchanging the battery for a different one at each charging stop, similar to changing horses on a 19th century Stage Coach. Today three levels of recharging are available. Level 1 is using a home electrical system, taking roughly 8 hours to recharge the batteries after depletion at maximum range. Level 2 is charging from a commercial station, taking about 2 hours. Level 3 is high-current charging, which can complete the charging process in 30 minutes. Even Level 3 compares quite unfavorably to the 5 to 10 minutes needed to refill an automobile gasoline tank. Moreover, charging stations are not widely available outside major urban areas. for a few hours at highway speeds, are quite prohibitive. Obviously, these are major obstacles in increasing the market viability of electric automobiles. The issue addressed in this paper is an approach using emerging technologies to overcome the limitations of a BEV. With the current battery technology, the mass and volume needed to carry enough charge to travel. We address these issues by looking at the feasibility of charging automobiles while they are traveling at highway speeds. If this system is implemented, a BEV's effective range could be increased to match the range of an internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicle. This would imply that BEVs would be suitable for intercity highway travel, with the assurance of power being available on the go. We developed a model to optimize the number of wireless charging stations required depending on various factors. This model is discussed in detail later in the paper. As seen below, the requirement boils down to delivering roughly 1 kWh per charging station, while the automobile is moving at highway cruise speeds.

A AGRICULTURA FAMILIAR NO CENÁRIO DA PRODUÇÃO DE FLORESTAS ENERGÉTICAS

The aim of this study is to analyze the production of energetic forests of eucalyptus as an alternative economic in family farming region of Espumoso – RS, using resources from Harvest Plan 2012/2013. The methodology used for market research, survey implementation and maintenance cost and price was the application of open questions via phone, email and on-site for professionals, institutions and companies in the forest sector in the region. For the analysis of the economic viability of the energy market in the region has created a scenario of 1 hectare to produce wood for energy cut at 5 years of age, sale of forest standing, price and average increase of respectively R$ 50.00m³ and 250m³/ ha/year. The average costs of deployment and maintenance are R$ 2,905.50 and economic evaluation of the scenario was calculated using the NPV, IRR and B/C. The scenario was considered viable, with positive NPV, IRR greater than the minimum rate of attractiveness and B/C greater than 1. With this study we can conclude that investment in deployment of eucalyptus plantations in the region of Espumoso is a great option to increase the financial return provided by rural activity.

Diagnosis of Traditional Market's Viability through Comparative Analysis of Shopping Satisfaction in Traditional Market and Discount Store and of Recognition on Government Policy

Diagnosis of Traditional Market's Viability through Comparative Analysis of Shopping Satisfaction in Traditional Market and Discount Store and of Recognition on Government Policy

Two Stage Exits: An Empirical Analysis of the Dynamic Choice between IPOs and Acquisitions by European Private Firms

Using a dataset of European private firms, we undertake a dynamic empirical analysis of a private firm’s exit decision, previously modeled in the literature as a dichotomous, one-time choice between IPOs and acquisitions. We study how post-IPO considerations, such as the benefits arising from a potential post-IPO acquisition at a higher valuation, and the costs arising from a potential post-IPO delisting at a lower valuation, alter the initial exit trade-off between IPOs and acquisitions. Using a sequential logit model, we show that firms that are more viable against product market competition, characterized by larger private benefits of control, or lower information asymmetry, are more likely to choose an IPO over a direct acquisition as their initial exit mechanism. Post-IPO, firms that are more viable in the product market and are able to reduce information asymmetry to a greater extent using the IPO process are more likely to be acquired, while firms characterized by lower product market viability and higher residual information asymmetry are more likely to be delisted. We also quantify the valuation benefits and costs accruing to firms under alternative post-IPO scenarios. Overall, the results of our empirical analysis show how private firms may be able to incorporate the benefits and costs arising from post-IPO considerations into their initial exit decisions, and suggests how such incorporation may alter their initial exit choices.

Basic PARTS of the Suborbital Reusable Launch Vehicle Research Market “Game”

Abstract When evaluating the emerging market for suborbital reusable launch vehicle (sRLV) research, it is helpful to use a well-established, academically based framework to define the market. This article models the sRLV research market with a game theory-based structure created by Adam M. Brandenburger and Barry J. Nalebuff in their book Co-opetition. This framework could be helpful in determining strategic promotion of the long-term viability of the sRLV research market. This article defines the components of the sRLV research market using the market structure constructs described in Co-opetition.