THE UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO
LIST & LEVITT FIND UNEXPECTED PURCHASING PATTERNS FOR "VIRTUAL GOODS" (2016)
August 16, 2023
(last updated on November 22, 2023)
PUBLISHED ON AUGUST 18, 2016
Using field experiments, UChicago Economics' John List and Steve Levitt discovered something unusual about gamers' purchasing patterns: discounts tied to buying large quantities of virtual goods have little impact on profitability and do not increase the number of customers making purchases. According to Steve Levitt, "I think there is a lot to gain from partnerships between cutting edge firms and academic researchers...[M]any firms are now doing randomized experiments, but mostly testing incremental changes. This project was an example of using experimental methods to test a much more radical shift in strategy." Read full story ยป