Multi-object auction design beyond quasi-linearity: Leading examples

B-Tier
Journal: Games and Economic Behavior
Year: 2023
Volume: 140
Issue: C
Pages: 210-228

Authors (2)

Score contribution per author:

1.005 = (α=2.01 / 2 authors) × 1.0x B-tier

α: calibrated so average coauthorship-adjusted count equals average raw count

Abstract

In multi-object auction models with unit demand agents, two standard assumptions are the quasi-linearity of utility functions and the coincidence between price increment and valuation unit. Under these assumptions, the exact ascending auction of Demange et al. (1986), the sealed-bid Vickrey auction, as well as the approximate ascending auction of Demange et al. (1986) identify the minimum price equilibrium (MPE) while elegantly exhibiting efficiency and incentive-compatibility. We demonstrate that these auctions fail to identify the MPEs and are substantially inefficient and manipulable if these assumptions are dropped. We also discuss the implications of our negative results for multi-object auction models with multi-unit demand and matching with contracts models.

Technical Details

RePEc Handle
repec:eee:gamebe:v:140:y:2023:i:c:p:210-228
Journal Field
Theory
Author Count
2
Added to Database
2026-01-29