California Electricity Deregulation Positive Feedback...

California electricity deregulation: positive feedback loop of market and institutional failures Microeconomic theory holds that for a market to be perfectly competitive, it needs to have the following three properties: 1) product sold must be uniform across all sellers, i.e. there’s no differentiation between producers; 2) there must be many buyers and sellers, such that no one seller or buyer can affect the market price; 3) all agents participating in the market have perfect information. As opposed to commodities that might be well suited for this perfect competition framework, electricity has unique features that make the framework less applicable. The chief differentiating characteristic of electricity is that it cannot be stored. Although some amounts could be stored in batteries, that is not enough to power a country. Electricity must be generated and transmitted as it is consumed (Perez Arriaga 2013). The implication for market mechanism is that supply and demand at a particular time period would balance not based on extra storage but on additional generation capac ity available. Second, electricity is not a homogenous commodity. There’s a distinction between generators that supply power on a continual basis (e.g. electricity derived from coal, hydropower, nuclear power) and generators that are on only during peak hours (e.g. natural gas and oil-fired generators). Thus, generation sources are not perfect substitutes of one another. Third, the end-user of electricity isShow MoreRelatedStrategic Marketing Management337596 Words   |  1351 Pages215 221 223 223 230 236 241 246 248 250 251 255 261 4 Market and environmental analysis 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 4.7 4.8 4.9 4.10 Learning objectives Introduction: the changing business environment (or the new marketing reality) Analysing the environment The nature of the marketing environment The evolution of environmental analysis The political, economic, social and technological environments Coming to terms with the industry and market breakpoints Coming to terms with the very different future:Read MoreCase Study148348 Words   |  594 Pages Pages 30 37 47 59 69 79 88 99 108 115 122 132 144 150 162 Case Teaching Notes The LEGO Group: Working with Strategy The Global Pharmaceutical Industry: Swallowing a Bitter Pill Vodafone: Developing a Total Communications Strategy in the UK Market European Tour Operators: Confronting Competition in the Tourism Industry Evolution and Revolution in the Hi-Fi Sector Amazon.com ï £ ©2007 - Early 2009 The Formula 1 Constructors Web Reservations International: Challenging Industry Norms Manchester UnitedRead MoreMarketing Mistakes and Successes175322 Words   |  702 Pageswhich cases would be appropriate for the traditional coverage of topics as organized in typical marketing texts. With most cases it is not possible to truly compartmentalize the mistake or success to merely one topic. The patterns of success or failure tend to be more pervasive. Still, I think you will find the following classification of cases by subject matter to be helpful. I thank those of you who made this and other suggestions. Classification of Cases by Major Marketing Topics Topics