Anecdotal evidence and recent empirical work suggest that music piracy has differential effects on artists depending on their popularity. Existing theoretical literature cannot explain such differential effects since it is exclusively concerned with single-firm models. We present a model with two types of artists who differ in their popularity. We assume that the costs of illegal downloads increase with the scarcity of a recording, and that scarcity is negatively related to the artist’s popularity. Moreover, we allow for a second source of revenues for artists apart from CD sales. These alternative revenues depend on an artist’s recognition as measured by the number of consumers who obtain his recording either by purchasing the original or downloading a copy. Our findings for the more popular artist generalize a result found by Gayer and Shy (2006) who show that piracy is beneficial to the artist when alternative revenues are important. In our model, however, this does not carry over to the less popular artist, who is often harmed by piracy even when alternative revenues are important. We conclude that piracy tends to reduce musical variety.

This paper investigates the role performed by mothers in affecting their childrens’ performance at school. The article develops firstly a theoretical model in which household (parent – child pair) is treated as an individual, whose utility depends both on the performance at school of the student and on consumption. The model focuses on the different possibilities through which help of mothers may affect pupil’s performance both in terms of time devoted to supervision and spillover effects. Empirical evidence then, using PISA 2006 and focusing on Italian case, shows that education of mothers is an issue when interacted with her occupational status. Highly educated mothers have a positive impact on students’ score only when they are highly qualifed in the job market.

This paper provides evidence on the sources of differences in inequalities in educational scores in European Union member states, by decomposing them into their determining factors. Using PISA data from the 2000 and 2006 waves, the paper shows that inequalities emerge in all countries and in both period, but decreased in Germany, whilst they increased in France and Italy. Decomposition shows that educational inequalities do not only reflect background related inequality, but especially schools’ characteristics. The findings allow policy makers to target areas that may make a contribution in reducing educational inequalities.

Las investigadoras del IEB Núria Bosch y Maite Vilalta repasan las principales características del nuevo modelo de financiación autonómica, acordado el 15 de julio del 2009 y aprobado por la Ley 22/ 2009 de 18 de diciembre. Un modelo que, según las autoras, tiene aspectos muy positivos pero que, en su opinión, deja pendientes algunas cuestiones que se deberán tener en cuenta en la próxima revisión.

Un conjunto de trabajos realizados por el IEB por encargo de Diputación de Barcelona y la Federación Española de Municipios y Provincias (FEMP) cuantifica el volumen de gasto que los municipios hacen de forma no obligatoria, cuál es su destino y cómo se financian. Según el estudio, los municipios catalanes destinaron durante el periodo 2000-2005 una media de 247,37 euros por habitante a partidas de gasto no obligatorias, cifra que supone el 30,5% de su total de gasto. Otro elemento destacado es que no todo el gasto no obligatorio que hacen los municipios se puede considerar gasto de suplencia de otras administraciones.