Information Rules

Information Rules

A Strategic Guide to the Network Economy
Author	Carl Shapiro and Hal Varian
Language	English
Subject	Network economy
Genre	Non-fiction
Publisher	Harvard Business School Press
Publication date	1999
Publication place	United States
Media type	Print
ISBN	978-0875848631

Information Rules is a 1999 book by Carl Shapiro and Hal Varian applying traditional economic theories to modern information-based technologies.[1] The book examines commercial strategies appropriate to companies that deal in information, given the high "first copy" and low "subsequent copy" costs of information commodities, such as music CDs or original texts.

Content

The book examines competing standards, and how a company might influence widespread consumer acceptance of one over another, such as VHS versus Betamax, or HD DVD versus Blu-ray. The book mentions possible business strategies of such publishers as Encyclopædia Britannica who have to confront how to stay viable as technology changes the value and availability of information.

See also

• Knowledge and Decisions (book)

References

1. Shapiro; Shapiro, Carl; Carl, Shapiro; Varian, Hal R. (1998). Information Rules: A Strategic Guide to the Network Economy. Harvard Business Press. ISBN 087584863X.

External links

• Book excerpt in Google Books