Explaining Vertical Integration: Lessons from the American Automobile Industry
通过考察美国汽车工业的早期历史，发现没有单一理论能完美解释纵向一体化，需结合行业生命周期、需求、规模经济和可占用性等因素，动态交易成本方法比资产专用性方法更具一般性。
The early history of the American automobile industry provides fertile hunting grounds for theorists seeking corroboration of various, conflicting theories of vertical integration. An examination of the whole history suggests that no single theory always fits the facts perfectly. A complete explanation must combine specific theories in a way that is attentive to such factors as industry life-cycle, demand, economies of scale, and appropriability. If there is any “general” theory, it lies in the set of “dynamic” transaction-cost approaches rather than in the asset-specificity approach now dominant.