Nobel Economics Prize Goes To Two Stanford Academics

The Nobel Economics Prize went to two Stanford University economists on Monday for their work on auction theory, Reuters reported.

American academics Paul Milgrom and Robert Wilson were awarded for work that includes theories on how to avoid the “winner’s curse,” a phenomenon in which buyers overpay for purchases once their values become apparent, according to Reuters. Some of their other work has also previously been used in sales by the government.

Wilson embraced the “happy news” and said that he doesn’t have a lot of experience of being in auctions, he told reporters, according to Reuters.

“Myself, I have never actively participated in an auction,” Wilson said, according to Reuters. “My wife points out that we bought skiboots on eBay – I guess that was an auction.”

BREAKING NEWS:
The 2020 Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel has been awarded to Paul R. Milgrom and Robert B. Wilson “for improvements to auction theory and inventions of new auction formats.”#NobelPrize pic.twitter.com/tBAblj1xf8

— The Nobel Prize (@NobelPrize) October 12, 2020

Stanford Business School economist David Kreps said in a statement obtained by Reuters, “The prize to Wilson and to Milgrom gives just recognition to one of the most important and successful applications of economic theory: auctions and auction design.”

“But their influence on what we do and how we think in microeconomics, especially applied to the study of management, goes well beyond auctions,” he added.

The award was the last of six to be given in 2020, Reuters reported. Previous winners include of the award include Paul Krugman and Milton Friedman, Reuters reported.

Milgrom and Wilson did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation for comment.

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