We introduce a new micropayment scheme, suitable for certain kinds of transactions, that requires neither online transactions nor trusted hardware for either the payer or payee. Each payer is periodically issued certi ed credentials that encode the type of transactions and circumstances under which payment can be guaranteed. A risk management strategy, taking into account the payers' history, a...

We explore product category and customer characteristics that affect the likelihood of engaging in unplanned purchases. Additionally, we examine consumer activities that can exacerbate or limit these effects. We employ a hierarchical modeling approach to test our hypotheses using a dataset of in-store intercept interviews conducted with 2,300 consumers across 28 stores. The results show that ca...

Based on accepted advances in the marketing, economics, consumer behavior, and satisfaction literatures, we develop a micro-foundations model of a firm that needs to manage the quality of a product that is inherently heterogeneous in the presence of varying customer tastes or expectations for quality. Our model blends elements of the returns to quality, customer lifetime value, and service prof...

This paper examines consumer adoption of a new electronic payment service, mobile payments. The empirical data for the explorative study was collected by establishing six focus group sessions. The results suggest that the relative advantages of mobile payments include time and place independence, availability, possibilities for remote purchases, and queue avoidance. The interviewees found mobil...

The consumer who purchases computational power ultimately purchases a reduction in the time interval between the initiation and the completion of work. This paper looks at computation as a commodity and the nascent industry of computational intermediation, and proposes a model for the market for computational power as distinct from the market for computers. Some interesting results emerge. The ...

We introduce a new micropayment scheme, suitable for certain kinds of transactions, that requires neither online transactions nor trusted hardware for either the payer or payee. Each payer is periodically issued certified credentials that encode the type of transactions and circumstances under which payment can be guaranteed. A risk management strategy, taking into account the payers’ history, ...

The authors explore product category and customer characteristics that affect consumers’ likelihood of engaging in unplanned purchases. In addition, they examine consumer activities that can exacerbate or limit these effects. The authors employ a hierarchical modeling approach to test their hypotheses using a data set of in-store intercept interviews conducted with 2300 consumers across 28 stor...

In contrast to decades of research reporting surprisingly weak relationships between consumption and happiness, recent findings suggest that money can indeed increase happiness if it is spent the "right way" (e.g., on experiences or on other people). Drawing on the concept of psychological fit, we extend this research by arguing that individual differences play a central role in determining the...