AN EMPIRICAL ANALYSIS OF PAYMENT CARD USAGE*
利用支付卡行业的独特数据集，研究网络效应和双边市场问题，发现消费者倾向于集中使用单一支付网络，但持有多个网络的卡片，且消费者使用与商户接受之间存在区域正相关。
I exploit a unique data set on the payment card industry to study issues associated with network effects and two‐sided markets. I show that consumers concentrate their spending on a single payment network (single‐homing), although many maintain unused cards that allow the ability to use multiple networks (multi‐homing). Further, I establish a regional correlation between consumer usage and merchant acceptance within the four major networks (Visa, Mastercard, American Express and Discover). This correlation is suggestive of the existence of a positive feedback loop between consumer usage and merchant acceptance.