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on Cultural Economics |
| By: | Karol Jan BOROWIECKI (Department of Economics, Trinity College Dublin); John W. O'HAGAN (Department of Economics, Trinity College Dublin) |
| Abstract: | The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate the potential for generating interesting aggregate data on certain aspect of the lives of thousands of composers, and indeed other creative groups, from large on-line dictionaries and to be able to do so relatively quickly. A purpose-built java application that automatically extracts and processes information was developed to generate data on the birth location, occupations and importance (using word count methods) of over 12,000 composers over six centuries. Quantitative measures of the relative importance of different types of music and of the different music instruments over the centuries were also generated. Finally quantitative indicators of the importance of different cities over the different centuries in the lives of these composers are constructed. A range of interesting findings emerge in relation to all of these aspects of the lives of composers, which might provide insight and productive lines of enquiry for further work as to why certain composers were so successful in different historical periods. |
| Keywords: | cliometrics, data collection, geographic concentration, creative individual |
| JEL: | O15 N01 N90 Z11 |
| Date: | 2011–10 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:tcd:tcduee:tep1411&r=cul |
| By: | Joel Waldfogel |
| Abstract: | Recent technological changes may have altered the balance between technology and copyright law for digital products. While file-sharing has reduced revenue, other technological changes have reduced the costs of bringing creative works to market. As a result, we don’t know whether the effective copyright protection currently available provides adequate incentives to bring forth a steady stream of valuable new products. This paper assesses the quality of new recorded music since Napster, using three independent approaches. The first is an index of the quantity of high-quality music based on critics’ retrospective lists. The second and third approaches rely directly on music sales and airplay data, respectively, using of the idea that if one vintage’s music is better than another’s, its superior quality should generate higher sales or greater airplay through time, after accounting for depreciation. The three resulting indices of vintage quality for the past half-century are both consistent with each other and with other historical accounts of recorded music quality. There is no evidence of a reduction in the quality of music released since Napster, and the two usage-based indices suggest an increase since 1999. Hence, researchers and policymakers thinking about the strength of copyright protection should supplement their attention to producer surplus with concern for consumer surplus as well. |
| JEL: | K11 L82 |
| Date: | 2011–10 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:17503&r=cul |
| By: | Nakanishi, Yasuo |
| Abstract: | The purpose of this study is to investigate the copyright protection of intellectual property under vertical relations. Vertical relations among author, manufacturer and retailer are considered. We develop several models, each with a different structure of vertical integration. R&D levels, total quantities, profits and social welfare levels are compared. We also investigate the effect of copyright protection by modeling the cases of perfect protection, partial protection and no protection. We analyze whether copyright benefits social welfare. We explain the policy implications of our results for the protection of copyright. |
| Keywords: | R&D; Patent; Copyright; Vertical Relations; Market Structure |
| JEL: | O34 O33 O32 O31 |
| Date: | 2011–10–18 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:34206&r=cul |
| By: | Ian David Soane; Rocco Scolozzi; Beatrice Marelli; Cristina Orsatti; Klaus Hubacek; Alessandro Gretter |
| Abstract: | This paper explores methods of applying resilience theory to a case study of natural resource management and the cultural landscape of upland and alpine pasture in northern Italy. We identify that the close interaction between alpine pastures and its managers offers a strong fit with the concept of a social-ecological system that maintains the cultural landscape. We first considered a descriptive approach looking historically at socio-economic development in the study area. We explored whether this can be related to resilience phenomena such as regime shifts, thresholds and/or regime stability through adaptive processes. However, we found it difficult at this overarching level to conceptually combine natural and social capital of alpine pastures and their managers in any quantitative way. We also interpreted our data through considering economic, social and ecological information as acting within separate but interacting domains. This led us to construct conceptual models of adaptive cycles to describe the alpine mountain grassland ecosystem of our study site and to conclude that a panarchy model can offer a powerful metaphor for its ecological dynamics. This has practical implications both for the management of Natura 2000 interest and the maintenance of the cultural landscape in which this Alpine interest occurs. We suggest that Resilience theory through its dynamic approach of interacting scales of adaptive cycles offers useful insights into the resource management (of valued cultural and natural attributes) but that care is needed in distinguishing between descriptive metaphor and predictive model or "real" system. |
| Keywords: | natural resource management, natural and social capital |
| JEL: | M1 M4 |
| Date: | 2011 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:trn:utwpol:1107&r=cul |
| By: | Kind, Hans Jarle (Dept. of Economics, Norwegian School of Economics and Business Administration); Schjelderup, Guttorm (Dept. of Economics, Norwegian School of Economics and Business Administration); Stähler, Frank (University of Würzburg) |
| Abstract: | Many countries levy reduced-rate indirect taxes on newspapers, with proclaimed policy goals of stimulating investment in journalism and ensuring low newspaper prices. However, by taking into account the fact that the media industry operates in two-sided markets, we find the paradoxical result that the consequences of a low-tax regime might be quite the opposite; low investments and high prices. We also show that the low-tax regime tends to increase newspaper differentiation. If the advertising market is relatively small, the newspapers might invest too little in journalism and be too differentiated from a social point of view. In this case a tax increase will be welfare-enhancing. |
| Keywords: | Two-sided markets; ad-valorem taxes. |
| JEL: | D43 H21 H22 L13 |
| Date: | 2011–09–08 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:nhheco:2011_016&r=cul |