Preston McAfee
Encyclopedia
Preston McAfee is a Vice President and Research Fellow at Yahoo! Research
where he leads the Microeconomics and Social Systems group. Prior to Yahoo!, he was the J. Stanley Johnson Professor of Business
, Economics
, and Management
at the California Institute of Technology
, where he was the executive officer for the social sciences. He taught business strategy, managerial economics
, and introductory microeconomics
.
in 1976. He earned the MA in Economics and Mathematics (1978) and the Ph.D. in Economics (1980) from Purdue University
.
Prior to joining Caltech, McAfee was the Murray S. Johnson Chair in Economics at the University of Texas at Austin
, serving as department chair in 1998. Previously, McAfee was a visiting professor at the University of Chicago
's Graduate School of Business, 2000–01, teaching business strategy, and a professor at the University of Western Ontario
.
McAfee is a Vice President and Research Fellow of Yahoo! Research. He leads a group focused on microeconomics research.
, and has been hired as a consultant by the U.S. Department of Justice Antitrust Division, and the USA Federal Trade Commission
(FTC). McAfee has advised on matters concerning mergers, collusion
, price-fixing, electricity
pricing, bidding, procurement, sales of government property. In 1994-5, McAfee extensively advised the USA Federal Communications Commission
(FCC) on the design of auctions for spectrum to be used for personal communications services. McAfee advised the FTC on the mergers of Exxon
and Mobil
, and of British Petroleum and ARCO
. He was an expert witness in FTC v. Rambus
, and on the competitive effects of the proposed Peoplesoft-Oracle merger in USA v. Oracle Corporation
. McAfee also serves as the business adviser to Miwok Airways.
, and is an associate editor of Theoretical Economics http://www.econtheory.org/, a new open access journal. He is a Fellow of the Econometric Society
.
Yahoo! Research
Yahoo! Research is a research organization established on January 2004 within Yahoo!. It is currently headed by Prabhakar Raghavan.Topics within Yahoo! Research include: Internet search, Machine Learning, Microeconomics, Media Experience, and Community Systems.Locations include:* Barcelona, Spain*...
where he leads the Microeconomics and Social Systems group. Prior to Yahoo!, he was the J. Stanley Johnson Professor of Business
Business
A business is an organization engaged in the trade of goods, services, or both to consumers. Businesses are predominant in capitalist economies, where most of them are privately owned and administered to earn profit to increase the wealth of their owners. Businesses may also be not-for-profit...
, Economics
Economics
Economics is the social science that analyzes the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. The term economics comes from the Ancient Greek from + , hence "rules of the house"...
, and Management
Management
Management in all business and organizational activities is the act of getting people together to accomplish desired goals and objectives using available resources efficiently and effectively...
at the California Institute of Technology
California Institute of Technology
The California Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Pasadena, California, United States. Caltech has six academic divisions with strong emphases on science and engineering...
, where he was the executive officer for the social sciences. He taught business strategy, managerial economics
Managerial economics
Managerial economics as defined by Edwin Mansfield is "concerned with application of economic concepts and economic analysis to the problems of formulating rational managerial decision." It is sometimes referred to as business economics and is a branch of economics that applies microeconomic...
, and introductory microeconomics
Microeconomics
Microeconomics is a branch of economics that studies the behavior of how the individual modern household and firms make decisions to allocate limited resources. Typically, it applies to markets where goods or services are being bought and sold...
.
Education and employment
McAfee was awarded the BA in Economics, from the University of FloridaUniversity of Florida
The University of Florida is an American public land-grant, sea-grant, and space-grant research university located on a campus in Gainesville, Florida. The university traces its historical origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its present Gainesville campus since September 1906...
in 1976. He earned the MA in Economics and Mathematics (1978) and the Ph.D. in Economics (1980) from Purdue University
Purdue University
Purdue University, located in West Lafayette, Indiana, U.S., is the flagship university of the six-campus Purdue University system. Purdue was founded on May 6, 1869, as a land-grant university when the Indiana General Assembly, taking advantage of the Morrill Act, accepted a donation of land and...
.
Prior to joining Caltech, McAfee was the Murray S. Johnson Chair in Economics at the University of Texas at Austin
University of Texas at Austin
The University of Texas at Austin is a state research university located in Austin, Texas, USA, and is the flagship institution of the The University of Texas System. Founded in 1883, its campus is located approximately from the Texas State Capitol in Austin...
, serving as department chair in 1998. Previously, McAfee was a visiting professor at the University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
's Graduate School of Business, 2000–01, teaching business strategy, and a professor at the University of Western Ontario
University of Western Ontario
The University of Western Ontario is a public research university located in London, Ontario, Canada. The university's main campus covers of land, with the Thames River cutting through the eastern portion of the main campus. Western administers its programs through 12 different faculties and...
.
McAfee is a Vice President and Research Fellow of Yahoo! Research. He leads a group focused on microeconomics research.
Consulting
McAfee is an authority on industrial organizationIndustrial organization
Industrial organization is the field of economics that builds on the theory of the firm in examining the structure of, and boundaries between, firms and markets....
, and has been hired as a consultant by the U.S. Department of Justice Antitrust Division, and the USA Federal Trade Commission
Federal Trade Commission
The Federal Trade Commission is an independent agency of the United States government, established in 1914 by the Federal Trade Commission Act...
(FTC). McAfee has advised on matters concerning mergers, collusion
Collusion
Collusion is an agreement between two or more persons, sometimes illegal and therefore secretive, to limit open competition by deceiving, misleading, or defrauding others of their legal rights, or to obtain an objective forbidden by law typically by defrauding or gaining an unfair advantage...
, price-fixing, electricity
Electricity
Electricity is a general term encompassing a variety of phenomena resulting from the presence and flow of electric charge. These include many easily recognizable phenomena, such as lightning, static electricity, and the flow of electrical current in an electrical wire...
pricing, bidding, procurement, sales of government property. In 1994-5, McAfee extensively advised the USA Federal Communications Commission
Federal Communications Commission
The Federal Communications Commission is an independent agency of the United States government, created, Congressional statute , and with the majority of its commissioners appointed by the current President. The FCC works towards six goals in the areas of broadband, competition, the spectrum, the...
(FCC) on the design of auctions for spectrum to be used for personal communications services. McAfee advised the FTC on the mergers of Exxon
Exxon
Exxon is a chain of gas stations as well as a brand of motor fuel and related products by ExxonMobil. From 1972 to 1999, Exxon was the corporate name of the company previously known as Standard Oil Company of New Jersey or Jersey Standard....
and Mobil
Mobil
Mobil, previously known as the Socony-Vacuum Oil Company, was a major American oil company which merged with Exxon in 1999 to form ExxonMobil. Today Mobil continues as a major brand name within the combined company, as well as still being a gas station sometimes paired with their own store or On...
, and of British Petroleum and ARCO
ARCO
Atlantic Richfield Company is an oil company with operations in the United States as well as in Indonesia, the North Sea, and the South China Sea. It has more than 1,300 gas stations in the western part of the United States. ARCO was originally formed by the merger of East Coast-based Atlantic...
. He was an expert witness in FTC v. Rambus
Rambus
Rambus Incorporated , founded in 1990, is a technology licensing company. The company became well known for its intellectual property based litigation following the introduction of DDR-SDRAM memory.- History :...
, and on the competitive effects of the proposed Peoplesoft-Oracle merger in USA v. Oracle Corporation
Oracle Corporation
Oracle Corporation is an American multinational computer technology corporation that specializes in developing and marketing hardware systems and enterprise software products – particularly database management systems...
. McAfee also serves as the business adviser to Miwok Airways.
Research
McAfee was editor of the American Economic ReviewAmerican Economic Review
The American Economic Review is a peer-reviewed academic journal of economics publishing seven issues annually by the American Economic Association. First published in 1911, it is considered one of the most prestigious journals in the field. The current editor-in-chief is Penny Goldberg . The...
, and is an associate editor of Theoretical Economics http://www.econtheory.org/, a new open access journal. He is a Fellow of the Econometric Society
Econometric Society
The Econometric Society is an international society for the advancement of economic theory in its relation with statistics and mathematics. It was founded on December 29, 1930 at the Stalton Hotel in Cleveland, Ohio....
.