We endogenize the trade mechanism in a search economy with many homogenous sellers and many heterogenous buyers of unobservable type. We study how heterogeneity and the traders’ continuation values—which are endogenous—inßuence the sellers’ choice of trade mechanism. Sellers trade off the probability of an immediate sale against the surplus expected from it, choosing whether to trade with every...

This paper presents a mechanism to maintain metadata in a decentralized way, in order to flexibilize open electronic business. By defining instances as sets, data models can be manipulated in operational systems, together with those instances. Using the UN/Cefact Core Components Technical Specification as a framework, decentralized developed metadata becomes negotiable. The presented mechanism ...

In this paper, we propose a new comprehensive decision-making structure for the order entry stage in make-to-order (MTO) environments. The aim of the proposed structure is to manage the arriving orders so that the MTO system just proceeds to produce those arriving orders which are feasible and profitable for the system. The appropriate decisions on the arriving orders are taken based on two cri...

This paper presents a logical extension of Nash’s Cooperative Bargaining Theory. We introduce a concept of entrenchment measurement, which maps propositions to real numbers, as a vehicle to represent agent’s belief states and attitudes towards bargaining situations. We show that Nash’s bargaining solution can be restated in terms of bargainers belief states. Negotiable items, bargaining outcome...

We examine the effects of changes in competitive conditions on the structure of loan contracts. In particular, we present conditions in which greater loan market competition reduces the stringency of contractual collateral requirements, a prediction that is consistent with anecdotal evidence from loan markets. We also analyze the interaction between the degree of competition and the efficiency ...