Decision-Making Elements for the Design of Emerging Multi-Dimensional Auctions

Abstract

Auctions have known considerable and continuous growth during the past decades due to their logic and efficiency in price formation when the value of goods traded is not known or varies. Although earlier research has been based mainly on Microeconomics and Games Theory, recent advances extended relevant research in Operational Research and Information Technology. Today, auctions and their applications form a challenging topic not only for economists but for operational researchers, marketers, logisticians and management engineers. This paper examines contemporary emerging auction formats, including auctions in which bids consist of many other parameters. The study of these emerging auction formats proceeds through the analysis of critical auction parameters that directly affect the decision-making process and the problems that auction participants face. This paper presents, with a presentation in graphical form, the decision framework for the majority of approaches presented in contemporary literature to highlight the association between decision elements and auction design.