First-price auction with a stochastic head start

Doron Klunover

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

We consider a two-player first-price sealed-bid auction for an item with a common value, where one player has a head start with a stochastic value. We show that under mild conditions, there exists a unique Bayesian Nash equilibrium in pure strategies in which the player with the head start buys the item at a price equal to its value minus the minimal value of the head start rather than its expected value. Thus, the seller extracts an information rent. Applications of the results in professional sports are considered.

Original languageEnglish
JournalReview of Economic Design
DOIs
StateAccepted/In press - 2025
Externally publishedYes

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© The Author(s) 2024.

Keywords

  • First price auction
  • Hazard rate
  • Head start
  • Incomplete information

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'First-price auction with a stochastic head start'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this