TY  - JOUR
AU  - Baye, Michael R
AU  - Santos, Babur De los
AU  - Wildenbeest, Matthijs R
TI  - Searching for Physical and Digital Media: The Evolution of Platforms for Finding Books
JF  - National Bureau of Economic Research Working Paper Series
VL  - No. 19519
PY  - 2013
Y2  - October 2013
DO  - 10.3386/w19519
UR  - http://www.nber.org/papers/w19519
L1  - http://www.nber.org/papers/w19519.pdf
N1  - Author contact info:
Michael Baye
India
E-Mail: mbaye@indiana.edu

Babur De los Santos
228 Sirrine Hall
Clemson, SC 29634
E-Mail: babur@clemson.edu

Matthijs Wildenbeest
1309 E 10th St
Bloomington, IN 47405
E-Mail: mwildenb@indiana.edu
M1  - published as Michael R. Baye, Babur De los Santos, Matthijs R. Wildenbeest. "Searching for Physical and Digital Media: The Evolution of Platforms for Finding Books," in Avi Goldfarb, Shane M. Greenstein, and Catherine E. Tucker, editors, "Economic Analysis of the Digital Economy" University of Chicago Press (2015)

M3  - presented at "The Economics of Digitization: An Agenda", June 6-7, 2013
AB  - This paper provides a data-driven overview of the different online platforms that consumers use to search for books and booksellers, and documents how the use of these platforms is shifting over time. Our data suggest that, as a result of digitization, consumers are increasingly conducting searches for books at retailer sites and closed systems (e.g., the Kindle and Nook) rather than at general search engines (e.g., Google or Bing). We also highlight a number of challenges that will make it difficult for researchers to accurately measure internet-based search behavior in the years to come. Finally, we highlight a number of open agenda items related to the pricing of books and other digital media, as well as consumer search behavior.
ER  -