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Airbnb is the most outstanding example of P2P platform in the accommodation industry. The studies on this phenomenon have focused on its impact on the hotel industry; leaving aside the effect it produces on tourism intermediation, specifically travel agencies. This paper analyzes this impact in a sector that perceives how Airbnb's disruptive innovation displaces it from the traditional vacation apartment rental business and threatens to do so with activities. The discussion is about whether the travel agency industry has the need and even if it would be willing to work in a coopetitive1 system, similar to the one that has occurred recently with the implementation of Civitatis or Booking in the sales processes of travel agencies. It is concluded that the travel agency prioritizes strengthening its repositioning in this product, allying itself with the main market player despite the probable reduction in margins. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The especial characteristics of the Spanish electricity industry hinder the effective competition, in spite of the liberalization process developed. The high concentration in this industry facilitates the possible exercise of market power with the following negative consequences on electricity prices. Likewise, the high energy dependency and the greater participation of renewable energies would have an important impact on prices too. The aim of this paper is to analyze the effects of the liberalization of the Spanish electricity industry on the competition by means of an economic and institutional approach and, by extension, study other factors that have an impact on the household electricity prices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Spanish social economy enterprises (SEE), like capital-based ones, have been facing a general economic crisis since 2008. SEE in the Murcia region are no exception. They are mainly small and mediumsized companies and because of their lack of size and structure they face considerable competitive difficulties in fighting this situation. This paper is based on a survey of 102 social economy enterprises in the Murcia Region, essentially labour companies and cooperatives in the service and industrial sectors, which was conducted in early 2010. To examine the situation in which companies from these sectors - mostly micro-enterprises - find themselves, information was collected on their main ratios in 2009, their expectations and their assessment of the competitive context and the main difficulties they face in the current situation of economic and social crisis. The extensive questionnaire made it possible to classify these enterprises into four types, based on the evolution of their main economic ratios (jobs, sales, investment and profits), and in a second stage, to consider the relation with whether or not the companies had adopted active innovation strategies and strategic planning. This made it possible to define the companies that had been able to improve or at least maintain the levels of their principal ratios even in times of crisis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the relationship between parliamentary journalists and Spanish Members of Parliament. The study, based on surveys, is part of European research in which Germany, Denmark and the United Kingdom have also participated. Among the key conclusions, it highlights the remarkable power of the media in politics and the sensationalism in political texts perceived by politicians. Concerning journalists, the majority felt that their professional work is driven by competition with other media and internal pressures, political and economic, coming from their own organization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Traditionally, both competitor identification and the analysis of inter-firm rivalry have been approached from an industry perspective. After that, researchers or analysts have calculated aggregate indexes (such as CR or Herfindahl) that synthesize its structure. However, the availability of detailed information has allowed researchers to design new proposals that capture the interdependences arising among firms more precisely. In this paper, we use one of such proposals in order to describe the competitive situation in the Spanish banking sector. Specifically, we use one of the dimensions introduced by Chen (1996), market commonality, in order to identify the main rivals of every bank, savings bank or credit unions that operate in our country. Within this context, we pay special attention to the identification of the most important rivals for Banco Santander. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This paper studies the relationship between technological capabilities and firm performance. To achieve this objective, firstly, it is proposed a typology of technological capabilities and, secondly, it is defined a model where different technological strategies and industry structure are both taken into account. The empirical test was developed in the Spanish biotechnology industry. Results show that not all technological capabilities have the same effects on firm performance, as the strategic potential of such capabilities notably depends on competitive conditions. These results justify that certain traditional evaluation criteria for resources and capabilities can be criticized, and the need of contingent views to analyze the role of technological knowledge in firm success. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is no competitiveness problem when there are no competitors. For that reason, differentiation constitutes a key strategy for the company; then it contributes to generate a captive market for the product reducing this way its competition. Supposing that differentiation is not possible, costs and efficiency appear as the only possible way (Esteban y Coll, 2003). Focusing the attention in the last one, this paper analyzes -by employing a non parametric methodology: the data envelopment analysis (DEA)- the technical efficiency of textile industry in Spain. For that, we have studied a group of companies of each and every activity that constitute the textile industry following the classification CNAE93. The evaluation has been done from financial-economic information obtained from the profit and losses account and balance sheet. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The increasing specialization in the automotive sector has fostered purchase strategies and logistics as key processes for the sustainability of competitive advantage. The paper describes the main traits of the so called "lean supply chain management", examines its level of implementation in Spain based on several case studies, and analyzes what its main challenges are considering the central forces that are currently shaping the economic environment. In particular, we suggest that the logistic function of vehicle brand owners will not only have to face a growing distance between their production plants and their suppliers, but also a greater cooperation given the balanced bargaining power that the emergence of mega-suppliers is going to provoke. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The achievement of competitiveness advantages by companies is something vital for their survival and success. With this paper we try to know which factors explain the competitive success of SMEs, using a sample of 1.201 Spanish enterprises that develop their activity in the industrial sector. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]