Knowledge Exchange And Pricing Research

Knowledge has more and more influences on the economy, and it is very urgent to built up the economic theory for knowledge. The finished research focused on how knowledge influence the economy system which is macro-analysis, it is obvious that the micro-anaysis for knowledge is not enough. The purpose of this paper is to better the micro-anaysis for knowledge.One question can summarize the topic of this paper: what will happen if knowledge be traded like the general merchandise?For answering the above question, firstly, this paper follows the research of Adam Smith, Schumpeter, Peter F. Drucker, Hayek, Sorrow, Arrow, David Romer, Paul Romer, etc. and finds out their conclusions about knowledge, attempts to use their conclusions to explain knowledge transaction. Secondly, to research the characters of knowledge, we need to discuss many disputed topics, such as how knowledge be transferred, the scarcity of knowledge, the public and private nature of knowledge, marginal return of knowledge. The above research is basic of the following research.Then this paper gives the definition of knowledge transaction, the concept and extension of knowledge transaction is very important to avoid the unnecessary controversy and confusion. For better understanding for knowledge transaction, the concept of Knowledge Return has been introduced, we can show the differences and relationships between knowledge transaction and other common knowledge activities. This paper offers eight characters of knowledge transaction through the comparison analysis between general merchandise transaction and knowledge transaction. By using the methods of New Institution Economics, we can analyze the transaction cost and the governing mechanisms of knowledge transaction.When the transaction cost is too high to bear, the possessor of knowledge has to use other channel, such as the pubic knowledge return channel, to get his or her return from knowledge, then the knowledge transaction be called off. At the same time, the economy system has developed many mechanisms to decrease the transaction cost for knowledge, so the knowledge transaction can be carried out.Another important task of this paper is to discuss the pricing of knowledge transaction, and the fruits from the above research support powerfully pricing research. All pricing research centers on the uncertainty of knowledge utility, the asymmetric information of knowledge transaction, and the time-sensitivity of knowledge value.Firstly, this paper discusses the common pricing problems the supplier will meet with whether the knowledge is transfer by the knowledge-article mode or by the service mode. The paper puts forward the pricing models based on utility, on both utility and cost, on the signal. The basic conclusion is following. Utility is the base for pricing. When knowledge transaction is bilateral-monopolized or tailored, the transaction will face bargaining, then, knowledge cost will enter the function of transaction price. Signal mechanism can resolve the puzzle of reversion selection, thehigher-level supplier signals high signal and gets higher price, the lower-level supplier signals lower signal and gets lower price.Secondly, this paper discusses the problem faced by the knowledge-article mode and by the service mode respectively. Under the knowledge-article mode, two topics will be researched: article-sharing and article-combination. Under the service mode, two topics will be researched: the supply rigidity and service contracts. The basic conclusion is: if the supplier can price based on the club utility, article-sharing can not decrease the welfare of supplier, giving more elasticity to knowledge-article transaction can improve the welfare of the supplier, the supply rigidity leads to lower efficiency and higher price, the service contracts (specially the sharing contracts) can restrict opportunisms in the knowledge transaction process, and lower the transaction risk and give more incentive to knowledge supplier.All above models abstract the key factors concerned knowledge transaction, and from the angle of knowledge suppliers, discuss the optimal pricing within respective restrictions, and show the many characters of pricing of knowledge transaction.