Market entry strategy in the presence of market spillovers and efficiency differentiation

Firms form various alliances or use brand extensions to enter new markets in order to improve their operational efficiency and create a positive spillover. However, they do not always know the implications of these strategies for market entry and multimarket competition because the sale of products in one market can have negative spillover effects on product sales in other markets. We present an analytical framework to examine whether and how (i.e., by choosing alliance entry or independent entry) competing firms should enter a market in a situation where market spillovers occur when a firm enters a spillover-producing market to sell products that may increase or decrease the consumers' willingness to pay for products in the primary market. Our analysis shows that the operational efficiency (or quality differentiation ability) of firms in a spillover-producing market varies, and hence, the impact of market spillovers differs for firms. We identify the key factors, such as bargaining power, brand value difference in the primary market, and the extent of efficiencies and spillovers, that determine the firms benefitting from the different entry strategies. Specifically, we show that firms would be more willing to choose an alliance strategy to enter a spillover-producing market if the negative spillover is small and alliance efficiency is high. In contrast, if an alliance entry is not favored, the firms' relative operational efficiency is crucial for them to decide whether to enter the market independently under moderate spillover conditions. Finally, we show the implications of market entry strategies for managers.     

Strategy selection: an info-gap methodology

The evaluation and selection of military strategy requires consideration of myriad factors – social, historical, political, geographical and technological – together with vast uncertainties encompassing all these domains. Info-gap decision theory is a conceptual framework that can support these deliberations and that has substantive implications for the formulation, evaluation and selection of strategic goals and of the means to attain them. In particular, while the analyst may desire to reliably achieve the best possible outcome, info-gap theory provides a critique of, and alternative to, the paradigm of optimizing the outcome of a decision. In selecting between strategy alternatives, the analyst must sometimes choose between one alternative that is purportedly better than another, but also more uncertain. Such a choice is a dilemma whose resolution requires the analyst to balance between the different predicted qualities of each alternative and their different vulnerabilities to uncertainty. The dilemma can be managed with the info-gap methodology of robustly satisfying critical requirements.     

全球治理视角下奥巴马政府太空战略解读

作为重要的全球公域范围与全球治理对象之一,太空既面临着日益严峻的资源、环境与安全问题,又不断彰显着其极具地缘政治意义的战略地位,攸关国家利益与安全。自进入太空时代以来,争夺和维持太空领域的领先地位一直是美国不懈追求的目标。美国的经济、军事等国家实力越来越依赖太空,同时其太空资产的脆弱性也愈发凸显。面对新的国际国内形势与外空态势的复合挑战,奥巴马政府适时调整了美国的太空战略。文章以全球公域和全球治理为切入视角,在分析太空领域全球治理现状的基础上,从太空活动行为准则的制定、太空国际合作的深入、太空军备竞赛的规制三个层面解读奥巴马政府的新版太空战略,并探讨其深层次的动因与影响,进而为中国参与太空领域的全球治理提供有益的理论支撑与现实参考。     

山水自在 筑鉴非凡——重庆商务职业学院新校区规划设计

介绍了重庆商务职业学院新校区的校园规划策略。基于生态保护进行校园规划,通过建筑布局与地形环境的协调共生形成山水校园,结合历史人文营造个性化校园空间。同时,从生态保护、规划分区、建筑布局、景观空间等方面探讨文化内涵与个性校园的规划设计策略,得出自然山水形成了丰富的地域景观,并由此创造出具有个性的地区文化的结论。旨在为山地校园建设起到借鉴作用。     

Analysis of parameter estimation using the sampling-type algorithm of discrete fractional Fourier transform

Parameter estimation is analyzed using two kinds of common sampling-type DFRFT (discrete fractional Fourier transform) algorithm. A model of parameter estimation is established. The factors which influence estimation accuracy are analyzed. And the simulation is made to verify the conclusions. From the theoretic analysis and simulation verification, it can be drawn that, for the estimation of chirp-rate and initial frequency, Pei's method [10] is more suitable if the absolute value of chirp-rate is small relatively; Ozaktas' method [9] is more suitable if the absolute value of chirp-rate is large relatively; and the two methods are both workable if the absolute value of chirp-rate is moderate. The scope of moderate chirp-rate can be approximately determined as [40 Hz/s, 110 Hz/s].     

Inventory sharing under decentralized preventive transshipments

We consider preventive transshipments between two stores in a decentralized system with two demand subperiods. Replenishment orders are made before the first subperiod, and the stores may make transshipments to one another between the subperiods. We prove that the transshipment decision has a dominant strategy, called a control‐band conserving transfer policy, under which each store chooses a quantity to transship in or out that will keep its second‐subperiod starting inventory level within a range called a control band. We prove that the optimal replenishment policy is a threshold policy in which the threshold depends on the capacity level at the other store. Finally, we prove that there does not exist a transfer price that coordinates the decentralized supply chain. Our research also explains many of the differences between preventive and emergency transshipments, including differences in the optimal transfer policies and the existence or nonexistence of transfer prices that coordinate the system. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Naval Research Logistics, 2010     

More on the search for an infiltrator

We have asymptotically solved a discrete search game on an array of n ordered cells with two players: infiltrator (hider) and searcher, when the probability of survival approaches 1. The infiltrator wishes to reach the last cell in finite time, and the searcher has to defend that cell. When the players occupy the same cell, the searcher captures the infiltrator with probability 1 ? z. The payoff to the hider is the probability that the hider reaches the last cell without getting captured. © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Naval Research Logistics, 49: 1–14, 2002; DOI 10.1002/nav.1047     

适用于捷联惯性/星光组合导航的导航星表构建方法

构建满足完备性、精简性和查询快速性的导航星表是实现捷联惯性/星光组合导航系统的重要前提和保证。为了达到这一目标，本文选取天文学中的Tycho-2星表作为导航星表的初始星表，它与TRC星表相比具有明显的优势，在实践运用过程中更加完备。在Tycho-2星表基础上，对球矩形分区方法进行了改进，包括明确了分区及子分区的划分方法，提出了备选导航星的选择策略。实验结果表明，采用改进型球矩形分区方法的备选导航星数量最多只占赤纬带法导航星的19.39%，仅占全天遍历法导航星的3.12%。因此，改进型球矩形分区方法更加精准，查询更快捷，更适用于SINS/CNS组合导航系统。     

The logistic–exponential survival distribution

For various parameter combinations, the logistic–exponential survival distribution belongs to four common classes of survival distributions: increasing failure rate, decreasing failure rate, bathtub‐shaped failure rate, and upside‐down bathtub‐shaped failure rate. Graphical comparison of this new distribution with other common survival distributions is seen in a plot of the skewness versus the coefficient of variation. The distribution can be used as a survival model or as a device to determine the distribution class from which a particular data set is drawn. As the three‐parameter version is less mathematically tractable, our major results concern the two‐parameter version. Boundaries for the maximum likelihood estimators of the parameters are derived in this article. Also, a fixed‐point method to find the maximum likelihood estimators for complete and censored data sets has been developed. The two‐parameter and the three‐parameter versions of the logistic–exponential distribution are applied to two real‐life data sets. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Naval Research Logistics, 2008     

What you should know about simulation and derivatives

Derivatives (or gradients) are important for both sensitivity analysis and optimization, and in simulation models, these can often be estimated efficiently using various methods other than brute‐force finite differences. This article briefly summarizes the main approaches and discusses areas in which the approaches can most fruitfully be applied: queueing, inventory, and finance. In finance, the focus is on derivatives of another sort. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Naval Research Logistics, 2008