讲座主题：Leveraging Network Effects for Connected Products: Strategies and Implications for the Value Chain

主讲嘉宾： 陆卓然 上海交通大学安泰经济与管理学院 助理教授

讲座时间：2025年10月29日周三14:00-16:00

讲座地点：沙河校区学院11号楼203

嘉宾简介： 陆卓然，现任上海交通大学安泰经济与管理学院助理教授。他于清华大学获得经济学学士学位，并在美国加州大学洛杉矶分校取得经济学博士学位。陆卓然是一位微观经济理论学者，研究领域涵盖契约理论、信息经济学、组织经济学、网络经济学和数字经济。目前，他的研究主要聚焦于信号产品的最优定价、基于网络结构的团队监督设计、具有网络效应的智能互联产品的商业策略，以及数字经济中的关系型契约等话题。他的研究成果已发表于 Journal of Economic Theory、MIS Quarterly 等国际顶尖期刊，并担任 Journal of Economic Theory、RAND Journal of Economics、Management Science 等多个顶尖期刊的匿名审稿人。他目前主持一项国家自然科学基金青年项目，并参与国家自然科学基金重大项目和专项项目各一项。

内容摘要： This paper examines how a value chain can strategically harness network effects in connected products. We consider a representative two-tier value chain, in which a manufacturer sells a connected product through a retailer. Consumers derive both a standalone value and a network benefit, which increases with the size of the user base and the strength of the network effect. We investigate two strategies to effectively leverage these network effects. First, we analyze network expansion through seeding, which involves providing the product for free to a targeted group of consumers. Our analysis shows that when the production cost is sufficiently low, seeding arises in equilibrium and exhibits a “bang-bang” pattern, with either the manufacturer or the retailer exclusively undertaking seeding. Under strong network effects, the manufacturer can induce retailer seeding through a quantity-forcing contract with a wholesale discount, thereby replicating the centralized outcome in which both firms are integrated and act as a central planner. Next, we explore engineering network effects through investment. The decentralized value chain results in less efficient investment than the centralized one, leading to lower social welfare. However, when both strategies are jointly employed, we uncover a striking result: the decentralized value chain can yield higher social welfare than the centralized one. This occurs because the central planner underinvests in network effects, as investment generates a positive externality for seeded users, whereas the manufacturer may overinvest to reduce the wholesale discount, potentially resulting in greater social welfare.