Awarded the 2022 Robert F. Lanzillotti Prize for Best Paper in Antitrust Economics at the International Industrial Organization Conference for "Rising Markups and the Role of Consumer Preferences" with Hendrik Döpper, Nathan H. Miller, and Joel Stiebale.
Alexander J. MacKay
Assistant Professor of Business Administration
Assistant Professor of Business Administration
Alexander MacKay is an Assistant Professor of Business Administration at Harvard Business School. He co-leads the Pricing Lab of the Digital, Data, and Design Institute at Harvard.
Professor MacKay's research focuses on matters of competition, including pricing, demand, and market structure. His research has been cited by The New York Times, the Financial Times, TIME, National Public Radio, and the Economic Report of the President.
Professor MacKay earned his Ph.D. in economics from the University of Chicago. Prior to his doctoral degree, he worked at a consulting firm that specialized in the design and analysis of business experiments. He has a B.A. in economics from the University of Virginia.
Alexander MacKay is an Assistant Professor of Business Administration at Harvard Business School. He co-leads the Pricing Lab of the Digital, Data, and Design Institute at Harvard.
Professor MacKay's research focuses on matters of competition, including pricing, demand, and market structure. His research has been cited by The New York Times, the Financial Times, TIME, National Public Radio, and the Economic Report of the President.
Professor MacKay earned his Ph.D. in economics from the University of Chicago. Prior to his doctoral degree, he worked at a consulting firm that specialized in the design and analysis of business experiments. He has a B.A. in economics from the University of Virginia.
- Journal Articles
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- Farronato, Chiara, Andrey Fradkin, and Alexander MacKay. "Self-Preferencing at Amazon: Evidence from Search Rankings." AEA Papers and Proceedings 113 (May 2023): 239–243. View Details
- Brown, Zach Y., and Alexander J. MacKay. "Competition in Pricing Algorithms." American Economic Journal: Microeconomics 15, no. 2 (May 2023): 109–156. View Details
- Egan, Mark, Alexander J. MacKay, and Hanbin Yang. "Recovering Investor Expectations from Demand for Index Funds." Review of Economic Studies 89, no. 5 (October 2022): 2559–2599. View Details
- MacKay, Alexander, and Samuel N. Weinstein. "Dynamic Pricing Algorithms, Consumer Harm, and Regulatory Response." Washington University Law Review 100, no. 1 (2022): 111–174. (Direct download.) View Details
- MacKay, Alexander. "Contract Duration and the Costs of Market Transactions." American Economic Journal: Microeconomics 14, no. 3 (August 2022): 164–212. View Details
- Deryugina, Tatyana, Alexander MacKay, and Julian Reif. "The Long-Run Dynamics of Electricity Demand: Evidence from Municipal Aggregation." American Economic Journal: Applied Economics 12, no. 1 (January 2020): 86–114. View Details
- MacKay, Alexander, and David A. Smith. "Challenges for Empirical Research on RPM." Review of Industrial Organization 50, no. 2 (March 2017): 209–220. View Details
- MacKay, Alexander, Nathan H. Miller, Marc Remer, and Gloria Sheu. "Bias in Reduced-form Estimates of Pass-through." Economics Letters 123, no. 2 (May 2014): 200–202. View Details
- Working Papers
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- Döpper, Hendrik, Alexander MacKay, Nathan H. Miller, and Joel Stiebale. "Rising Markups and the Role of Consumer Preferences." Harvard Business School Working Paper, No. 22-025, October 2021. (Revised March 2023. Direct download.) View Details
- MacKay, Alexander J., Dennis Svartbäck, and Anders G. Ekholm. "Dynamic Pricing and Demand Volatility: Evidence from Restaurant Food Delivery." Harvard Business School Working Paper, No. 23-007, July 2022. (Revised March 2023.) View Details
- Egan, Mark, Alexander MacKay, and Hanbin Yang. "What Drives Variation in Investor Portfolios? Estimating the Roles of Beliefs and Risk Preferences." Harvard Business School Working Paper, No. 22-044, December 2021. (Revised April 2023. Direct download. NBER Working Paper Series, No. 29604, December 2021) View Details
- MacKay, Alexander, and Ignacia Mercadal. "Do Markets Reduce Prices? Evidence from the Electricity Sector." Harvard Business School Working Paper, No. 21-095, February 2021. (Revised November 2023. Direct download.) View Details
- MacKay, Alexander, and Marc Remer. "Consumer Inertia and Market Power." Harvard Business School Working Paper, No. 19-111, April 2019. (Revised January 2022. Direct download.) View Details
- MacKay, Alexander, and Nathan H. Miller. "Estimating Models of Supply and Demand: Instruments and Covariance Restrictions." Harvard Business School Working Paper, No. 19-051, October 2018. (Revised August 2023. Direct download.) View Details
- Cases and Teaching Materials
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- MacKay, Alexander J. "LIV Golf." Harvard Business School Teaching Note 724-384, August 2023. View Details
- MacKay, Alexander J. "Cost Plus Drugs." Harvard Business School Teaching Note 723-037, February 2023. View Details
- MacKay, Alexander J. "EnergyNow: Powering a New Market." Harvard Business School Teaching Note 723-036, February 2023. View Details
- MacKay, Alexander J. "Reshaping Competition: Introduction to the Course: Note for Students." Harvard Business School Course Overview Note 723-428, February 2023. (Revised August 2023.) View Details
- MacKay, Alexander J. "LIV Golf." Harvard Business School Case 723-371, December 2022. View Details
- MacKay, Alexander, and James Barnett. "Cost Plus Drugs." Harvard Business School Case 723-362, October 2022. View Details
- MacKay, Alexander J. "Blue Steel Investments." Harvard Business School Case 723-372, September 2022. View Details
- MacKay, Alexander, and James Barnett. "EnergyNow: Powering a New Market." Harvard Business School Case 723-361, September 2022. (Revised February 2023.) View Details
- Cullen, Zoë B., and Alexander J. MacKay. "The Spreadsheet." Harvard Business School Case 723-366, August 2022. View Details
- MacKay, Alexander J. "Commonwealth Joe: January 2020 Update from CEO Robert Peck." Harvard Business School Multimedia/Video Supplement 721-851, September 2020. (Link to Supplement.) View Details
- MacKay, Alexander J. "Uber: Competing Globally." Harvard Business School Teaching Note 721-387, September 2020. (Revised February 2023.) View Details
- MacKay, Alexander J. "Commonwealth Joe Coffee Roasters." Harvard Business School Teaching Note 721-388, September 2020. View Details
- MacKay, Alexander J., Amram Migdal, and John Masko. "Uber: Competing Globally." Harvard Business School Case 720-404, April 2020. (Revised January 2022.) View Details
- Collis, David, and Alexander MacKay. "Choosing the Right Esports Business Model." Harvard Business School Case 719-459, March 2019. (Revised March 2020.) View Details
- MacKay, Alexander, and Ramon Casadesus-Masanell. "Commonwealth Joe Coffee Roasters." Harvard Business School Case 719-451, December 2018. (Revised December 2019.) View Details
- Other Publications and Materials
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- Brown, Zach Y., and Alexander J. MacKay. "Are Online Prices Higher Because of Pricing Algorithms?" Brookings Series: The Economics and Regulation of Artificial Intelligence and Emerging Technologies (July 7, 2022). View Details
- Research Summary
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Professor MacKay combines theory and measurement to deliver new insights about price competition and consumer preferences. In current and published papers, his research addresses how strategic pricing decisions may be influenced by algorithms, long-term contracts, vertical restraints, and dynamic consumer behavior. His work considers the broader implications for firms and for competition authorities.
Professor MacKay has examined how individuals form beliefs and preferences over time, and he has studied the implications of evolving preferences for firm markups. For example, dynamic consumer behavior, which can arise from switching costs or brand loyalty, influences not only a firm's pricing in isolation, but it also affects strategic interactions with rival firms. Thus, the impacts of mergers, entry, and exit, may hinge on the degree to which consumers dynamically adjust their preferences over time.
An important angle of Professor MacKay’s research is the heterogeneity in beliefs and preferences across individuals. Why do different people make very different decisions given the same set of opportunities? And how do these differences change over time? A shift in the distribution of preferences can cause a significant change in market outcomes. Therefore, firms that are better able to forecast how tastes and beliefs are evolving may be able to make better strategic decisions.
His research suggests new considerations for regulators when it comes to price competition. In examining the use of pricing algorithms in online markets, he shows that the adoption of higher-frequency algorithms by one or more firms can allow all firms to charge higher markups, without resorting to tacit or explicit collusion. Thus, unregulated pricing technology may allow firms to increase prices, even to the collusive levels, without using classic collusive strategies.
- Awards & Honors
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Awarded the 2022 Robert F. Lanzillotti Prize for Best Paper in Antitrust Economics at the International Industrial Organization Conference for "Rising Markups and the Role of Consumer Preferences" with Hendrik Döpper, Nathan H. Miller, and Joel Stiebale.
- Additional Information
- Areas of Interest
- In The News