SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR ENHANCED CLOCK AUCTIONS AND COMBINATORIAL CLOCK AUCTIONS

摘要

The present invention provides improvements applicable to dynamic auctions such as clock auctions or combinatorial clock auctions. In a first embodiment, the present invention includes an improved activity rule that constrains the bids that may be submitted by a bidder, based on the bidder's own prior bids, In a second embodiment, the present invention includes an improved pricing rule that appropriately discounts the amounts (as compared to linear pricing) of bids that need to be submitted by a bidder. In a third embodiment, the present invention includes an improved iterative first-price auction. Bidders successively make bids, often a bid for a package of items at a specified price. When the auction concludes, some of these bids become “winning” bids; the respective bidders win the items specified in their winning bids and pay the prices specified in their winning bids. In some preferred embodiments, the present invention combines two or all three of these improvements.