Network Reputation Research Articles

Bilateral and Community Enforcement in a Networked Market with Simple Strategies

We present a model of repeated games in large buyer-seller networks in the presence of reputation networks via which buyers share information about past transactions. The model allows us to characterize cooperation networks - networks in which each seller cooperates (by providing high quality goods) with every buyer that is connected to her. To this end, we provide conditions under which: [1] the incentives of a seller s to cooperate depend only on her beliefs with respect to her local neighborhood - a subnetwork that includes seller s and is of a size that is independent of the size of the entire network; and [2] the incentives of a seller s to cooperate can be calculated as if the network was a random tree with seller s at its root. Our characterization sheds light on the welfare costs of relying only on repeated interactions for sustaining cooperation, and on how to mitigate such costs.

Measurement of Trust Transitivity in Trustworthy Networks

In this paper, we abstract the trust network as a weighted digraph. A path from node A to node B represents a transitive trust relationship. Parallel paths between a source and a target are associated with parallel trusts respectively. We introduce two measurements for computing the derived trust degree from a source to a target: Max- min trust degree and Max-mean trust degree. The Max operator formalizes the choice among parallel paths. The min and mean operators compute the transitive trust degree along a path. We focus on the analysis of the complexity of computing both kinds of trust degrees. We show that measuring the max-min trust degree is polynomial, however, measuring the max-mean one is NP-hard. Then we propose a matrix-based method to compute the max-mean trust degree, which can be done polynomially, but may produce non-simple paths. Finally, we give a simple example of a trust reputation network to illustrate the matrix-based method.

Marketing Alliances, Firm Networks, and Firm Value Creation

Prior research has found that the announcement of marketing alliances tends to produce no effect on firm value creation in a high-tech context. This article reexamines this issue and investigates whether the characteristics of a firm's network of alliances affect the firm value created from the announcement of a new marketing alliance. The authors investigate whether network centrality, network density, network efficiency, network reputation, and marketing alliance capability influence firm value creation. They examine this question using an event study of 230 announcements for marketing alliances in the software industry. The results indicate that, in general, marketing alliance announcements create value (i.e., abnormal stock returns) for the firm in the announcement period event window. Furthermore, network efficiency and network density have the strongest positive impact when they are moderate; network reputation and network centrality have no effect. These results point to the greater role of relational network characteristics than size-/status-based benefits. Finally, marketing alliance capability, which reflects a firm's ability to manage a network of previous marketing alliances, has a positive impact on value creation.

A Trust Ranking Method to Prevent IM Spam

The problem of IM (Instant Messaging) SPAM, also known as SPIM, has become a challenge in recent years. The current anti-SPAM methods are not quite suitable for SPIM because of the differences in system infrastructures and characteristics between IM and email service. In order to effectively eliminate SPIM, we propose a trust ranking method in this paper. The mechanism to build up reputation network, global reputation and local trust ranking algorithms, reputation management, and SPIM filtering methods are presented. The experiments under five treat modes and algorithms enhancement are also introduced. The experiment shows that the proposed method is resilient to deal with SPIM attacks under several threat models.

How Social Reputation Networks Interact with Competition in Anonymous Online Trading: An Experimental Study

Many Internet markets rely on ‘feedback systems’, essentially social networks of reputation, to facilitate trust and trustworthiness in anonymous transactions. Market competition creates incentives that arguably may enhance or curb the effectiveness of these systems. We investigate how different forms of market competition and social reputation networks interact in a series of laboratory online markets, where sellers face a moral hazard. We find that competition in strangers networks (where market encounters are one-shot) most frequently enhances trust and trustworthiness, and always increases total gains-from-trade. One reason is that information about reputation trumps pricing in the sense that traders usually do not conduct business with someone having a bad reputation not even for a substantial price discount. We also find that a reliable reputation network can largely reduce the advantage of partners networks (where a buyer and a seller can maintain repeated exchange with each other) in promoting trust and trustworthiness if the market is sufficiently competitive. We conclude that, overall, competitive online markets have more effective social reputation networks.

Geography of Reputation: The City as the Locus of Business Opportunity

Glückler J. (2007) Geography of reputation: the city as the locus of business opportunity, Regional Studies 41, 949–961. The paper discusses the limits of current cluster theory and theorizes trans-local network externalities as an important cause for the urban agglomeration of knowledge services. A survey of management consulting firms in the metropolitan region of Frankfurt demonstrates that the benefit of co-location in the city lies in the access to reputation networks rather than in the exploitation of local value chain linkages. The city is a locus of opportunity because firms in the city have a higher share of distant clients and because distant clients are won more often through referrals. Cities are reputational nodes for trans-local business development. Glückler J. (2007) La géographie de la réputation: la grande ville comme vivier d'opportunités commerciales, Regional Studies 41, 949–961. Cet article discute des limites de la théorie des grappes actuelle et émet des théories sur l'importance des effets externes translocaux en réseau comme cause de l'agglomération urbaine des services de la connaissance. Une enquête menée auprès des cabinets de conseil en gestion situés dans la région métropolitaine de Francfort montre que les avantages de l'emplacement en ville s'explique par l'accès à des réseaux de réputation plutôt que par l'exploitation des chaînes de valeur locales. La grande ville constitue un vivier d'opportunités car les entreprises y jouissent d'une part plus importante des clients lointains et parce que les clients lointains sont gagnés normalement par recommandation. Les grandes villes sont des noeuds de réputation pour le développement du commerce translocal. Réseau de villes à l'échelle mondiale Services aux entreprises Conseil Réputation Connaissance Théorie des grappes Glückler J. (2007) Geografie der Reputation: die Großstadt als Ort der Geschäftschancen, Regional Studies 41, 949–961. In diesem Beitrag werden die Grenzen der gegenwärtigen Cluster-Theorie erörtert, und die translokalen Netzwerk-Externalitäten werden als wichtige Ursache für die urbane Agglomeration von Wissensdiensten theoretisiert. Aus einer Erhebung über Unternehmensberatungsfirmen im Großraum Frankfurt geht hervor, dass der Nutzen einer gemeinsamen Großstadtlage weniger in der Nutzung von lokalen Verknüpfungen der Wertschöpfungskette als vielmehr im Zugang zu Reputationsnetzen begründet liegt. Die Großstadt ist ein Ort der Chancen, denn dort ansässige Firmen haben einen höheren Anteil an entfernten Kunden, und entfernte Kunden werden häufiger durch Weiterempfehlung gewonnen. Großstädte sind Reputationsknoten zur Entwicklung von translokalen Geschäften. Weltstadt-Netzwerk Geschäftsdienste Beratung Reputation Wissen Cluster-Theorie Glückler J. (2007) Geografía de reputación: la ciudad como centro de oportunidades comerciales, Regional Studies 41, 949–961. En este ensayo se analizan los límites de la teoría actual de agrupación y se argumenta que las externalidades de redes translocales son una causa importante para la aglomeración urbana de los servicios de conocimiento. Un estudio de empresas consultoras de gestión en la región metropolitana de Fráncfort demuestra que el beneficio del emplazamiento común en la ciudad radica en el acceso a las redes de reputación más que en la explotación de los vínculos con cadenas de valores locales. La ciudad es un centro de oportunidades porque las empresas urbanas tienen una cuota superior de clientes lejanos y este tipo de clientes se adquieren con frecuencia a través de referencias. Las ciudades son nodos de reputación para el desarrollo empresarial translocal. Red en las ciudades del mundo Servicios comerciales Consultoría Reputación Conocimiento Teoría de agrupaciones

A threshold scheme under peer-to-peer network

Resource sharing among peers is one of important application in Peer-to-Peer(P2P) network. Inexistence of server makes P2P network to be a less trustable tool for property owners to distribute their resource. In order to protect intelligent property, reputation management strategy is adopted in many P2P network. As long as a P2P network reputation strategy is confirmed, application designer can employ a special detailed distribution scheme to fulfill content distribution within the net. Shmir (k, n) threshold scheme, for example, is an encryption scheme to enhance the distribution security of this kind of design. (k', n) threshold scheme is a new tool similar to Shmir scheme is proposed in this paper. The new scheme based on polynomial expansion and its security is decided by the one way function used in the secret distribution procedure. The scheme efficiency and its features as well as comparison between new and Shmir scheme are also discussed in this paper.

UK Film Companies: Project‐Based Organizations Lacking Entrepreneurship and Innovativeness?

The growth of project‐based forms of organization has been interpreted as a response to rapidly changing technological and market environments. Companies operating in this way are assumed to be inherently innovative, continually breaking up and reconfiguring teams of workers whose highly developed skills enable them to multi‐task and apply their knowledge in novel situations, in which new technology is swiftly assimilated and deployed. Project workers, who may engage in repeat contracting with different employers, belong to technical communities wherein knowledge is developed and resides. The transformation from vertical integration to project‐based working in the film industry would thus appear to privilege innovation. However, in the UK film industry at least, this study suggests that, in spite of freelance working, crew and technicians follow highly specialized, hierarchical careers, and that the organization of production is virtually the same as it was at the height of the Hollywood ‘Studio System’. Furthermore, it will be argued that the informal, reputational networks that operate in the UK industry may act as a barrier to development rather than as an engine of change.

Firm networks and firm development: The role of the relational mix

This study examines the role of different networks, called the relational mix, on the development of the entrepreneurial firm. Our regression analysis of survey data from 60 venture capital-financed firms questions the importance of network size on firm development. Rather, our results suggest that different types of networks are more important for firm development. In particular, we found a significant positive relationship for reputational networks and a weak significant negative relationship for cooperative technology networks at founding with time-to-break-even. Social networks at founding have no direct effect on time-to-break-even and a significant negative relationship with sales in the years after foundation. Furthermore, our findings show the important role of marketing information and co-opetition networks (relationships with direct competitors) on firm development in the years after foundation. These results suggest that the relational mix is a more appropriate construct for explaining network development than network size alone.

Firm networks: external relationships as sources for the growth and competitiveness of entrepreneurial firms

Inter-firm networks, as an inter-organizational form, are increasingly perceived as a model for entrepreneurial firm growth. We study egocentric networks of high-growth entrepreneurial firms in the IT industry and explore how these firms grow through the use of external relations and become competitive. Based on case study research, we identify that firms are using relations for a variety of purposes and that every firm has an individual relational mix. This relational mix changes with the development of the firms. While the relative importance of social and reputational networks decrease with the firms' development, co-opetition networks increase over time. Knowledge and innovation networks are a function of reputation and management capacity while the development of marketing networks depends on the firm's culture and management style. Both weak ties and strong ties are important for the growth of the firm since they fulfil different functions. Firm growth is determined by path-dependent relational capability that eventually reaches its limits and leads to the reconfiguration of a rather stable network. Additionally, firm growth depends not only on the building of egocentric networks but also on the existence and development of healthy sociocentric networks.