Thesis (Ph. D. (Sociology))--Rhodes University, 2006.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Ohio State University, 2007. / Title from first page of PDF file. Includes bibliographical references (p. 147-148).

Thesis (M.A.)--Duquesne University, 2009. / Title from document title page. Abstract included in electronic submission form. Includes bibliographical references (p. 71-80) and index.

Online streaming has revolutionized the way that people consume films and television. This study will examine how Netflix and Hulu have disrupted the North American distribution oligopoly and asses whether their low subscription prices are adversely affecting major cable companies who dominate the distribution sphere. A review of existing literature on the topic will explore the influence of the Internet on the entertainment distribution oligopoly as well as consumer trends and behavior favoring Netflix and Hulu. Additionally, data from 2007 to 2014 will be used to analyze variables that indicate a correlation between Netflix’s and Hulu’s growth and Time Warner Cable’s decreasing revenue.

The Affordable Care Act (ACA) was passed by Congress in 2010 as a health policy initiative to improve the effectiveness of the United States healthcare system. Policies and regulations under the ACA include provisions to improve the quality and cost-effectiveness of medical services which has resulted in a transition of payment systems from fee-for-service (FFS) reimbursement models to value-based reimbursement (VBR) models. Policies under the ACA also encouraged the formation of affordable care organizations (ACOs) which endorse new models of healthcare delivery, specifically team-based care models, to increase the efficiency, quality and accessibility of medical care while at the same time controlling costs. Although physician assistants (PAs) have been a proposed method for addressing the growing demand for high quality, cost-effective healthcare, research that explores the economic value and financial impact of physician assistants is limited. Currently, productivity metrics are used to determine the economic value of physicians and PAs. Current methods of measuring productivity include volume-based metrics and claim based data. Although these methods may be sufficient for measuring physician productivity, they fail to account for PA practices. Current productivity metrics also fail to account for a vast majority of PA productivity due to current billing policies that do not capture all services provided by PAs. In this study, we will explore the financial impact associated with the addition of PAs to ten different physician-owned family medicine practices by measuring the percent increase in net annual practice revenue one year after the employment of a PA. Net practice revenue is defined as the total revenue generated per provider per year minus overhead costs associated with provider employment.

Magister Economicae - MEcon / Countries reform their tax systems to improve economic and administrative efficiency, the impact on income distribution and their revenue-raising capacity. Globalisation has also affected the fiscal autonomy of countries and resulted in the reality of tax competition. The South African tax authorities have made significant changes to the tax system in over the past 20 years. The first phase occurred after the publication of the Margo Commission’s report in 1987 and the second phase followed the work done by the Katz Commission since 1996. The objectives of the reforms included the improvement of tax administration and collection, a re-evaluation of the efficiency and equity aspects of the different taxes, the broadening of the tax base, and most important, to bring the South African tax system in line with changing international tax practise.The main objectives of this study are to give a descriptive overview of the reforms, to investigate the economic rationale behind the reforms and to answer the question of whether the objectives of the reforms were actually achieved. The study fills an important void in the South African literature as it is the first comprehensive overview of the tax reforms since the 1990s.The nature of the study is qualitative and investigative. An overview of the theoretical literature is presented together with some evidence from developing countries. To determine whether the objectives were achieved, descriptive statistics are presented using secondary data from South African Revenue Service (SARS); National Treasury, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and the South African Reserve Bank (SARB). The main findings are that the establishment of SARS contributed significantly to the administrative efficiency and revenue-raising capacity of the tax system. The taxing of fringe benefits under the personal income tax, the introduction of capital gains tax (CGT) and the residence-based principle contributed to the broadening of the tax base. The decrease of marginal rates of personal income tax (PIT) to be more in line with the rate on company income decreased the possibility of tax arbitrage. The phasing out of the secondary tax on companies together with the decrease of the rate of company income tax (CIT) increased the attractiveness of South Africa for capital-exporting countries. Significant tax relief to middle and lower-income earners over various years improved the equity impact. However it did not improve the position of the really poor, who are not liable for PIT. The increasing contribution of value-added tax (VAT) compensated to the decreasing contribution of trade taxes; the fact that the VAT rate has stayed constant, since 1993 is an indication of the unpopularity of the tax.

The main task of this diploma thesis is a possibility of using revenue yield management (RYM) techniques in small and medium-sized accommodation establishments (SMAE). This thesis includes an analysis of current situation in tourism and current using RYM techniques in Czech Republic. Next the data from the particular guest house are analyzed and its guest perception is found out. The particular guest house situation is used for demonstrating of application RYM techniques and for proposing a new trade policy. After that recommendations and generalization for all SMAE are given.

The Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) and the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) have proposed standards that could alter the judgments of users of financial statements. This study examines how certain regulations including revenue measurement choices made by management combined with risk disclosure as proposed by the PCAOB could interact with the propensity of the user to rely on financial information to affect how a class of private company financial statement users - seed equity investors - value a private company. Through experimental methods manipulating revenue measurement choice and risk disclosure, I find that seed equity investor value judgments of early stage companies are significantly influenced by accounting disclosures. Specifically, accounting disclosures regarding level of risk and revenue measurement that accompany financial models in the valuation process significantly alter a seed equity investor's value judgment of early stage companies. This segment of financial statement users tends to place the majority of their reliance on non-financial, subjective factors as predictors of future success of early stage companies. Further, their judgments are swayed by wholly different financial disclosures than their "Wall Street" investor counterparts in that conservative and low risk information creates large revisions in value judgment. The implication of this study is to suggest that "Main Street" investors consume financial information and their related disclosures differently than "Wall Street" investors - an inference important for standards setters to understand as they craft regulations that govern private companies.

This thesis investigates the relationship between oil revenue and macroeconomic policies and performance in Oman. The thesis contains five empirical chapters along with introduction, literature review and conclusion. The first empirical chapter looks into the dynamic relationship between oil revenue, government spending and economic activities. The results indicate oil revenue has immediate and significant impact on both the country s GDP and the government expenditure. The government expenditure also has significant impact on the GDP. The second empirical chapter examines the validity of the Wagner s Law and the Keynesian hypothesis in regards to the relationship between the government spending and economic performance. The chapter uses both aggregated and disaggregated government expenditure where the data are divided into recurrent and capital investment. The findings show that there is a long run-relationship between the government spending and the GDP for the period covered. The causality analysis suggests that public investment causes economic growth, but the recurrent expenditure is insignificant. The third empirical chapter investigates the impact of government spending on economic performance where the government spending was decomposed into health, education and militaryexpenditure. The results of these components of the government expenditure and along with an index of openness have long-run relationship with GDP. The short-run coefficient on military spending is insignificant and that of health is negative and significant. However, the long-run coefficients are all positive and significant, except that of military. The fourth empirical chapter analyses the relationship between government expenditure and oil revenue in Oman. The disaggregated government expenditure of health, education and military are used for the analysis in order to see the response of each component to oil revenue changes. The results show that, although all the components responded positively to a positive oils revenue shock, it is the military component that has recorded highest response with more persistence. The fifth chapter investigates the relationship between the current account and the fiscal deficits in Oman. The chapter uses a threshold cointegration technique that is capable of capturing non-linearity and asymmetric adjustment between the series. The estimated results show that there is a long-run relationship between the current account and fiscal deficits in Oman and that adjustment between the series is asymmetric. It is found that upward adjustment is much faster than downward adjustment.

Master of Agribusiness / Department of Agricultural Economics / Allen M. Featherstone / PS International (PSI) is an international trading company that specializes in the trading of bulk agricultural commodities. It has global strength to both export and import a variety of agricultural products using affiliated offices positioned throughout the world. To adapt to competitive pressures, advancements in technology, and economic conditions, privately-held companies are re-structuring their business by acquiring or partnering/merging with other companies. This results in a redefinition of the assets, operations, and relationships with the stockholders. The acquisition of a private company by a publicly held company creates unique issues because the newly acquired private company must meet SEC accounting standards. One example of this is the acquisition of PSI by Seaboard Corporation, a publicly traded company. In 2010, the owners of PSI sold fifty percent share of the company to Seaboard Corporation. Today Seaboard Corporation owns 80% of PSI. This research problem is based on the challenges that the acquisition of a private company by a public company faces. The focus of the analysis was on the accounting changes in the area of accounts receivable, in particular when revenue is recognized. PSI used cash basis accounting and Seaboard is required to use an accrual method that required a modification in PSI’s accounting system. This research investigates the impact of those changes on PSI’s accounts. The main factors used for comparison of revenue recognition under the cash and accrual method were departure date, transit time and payment terms. The comparisons were based on a data from 196 deliveries made in 2012. In the cash method, revenue was recognized for all the transactions during the month of shipment departure. This revenue was included whether or not the transactions were paid in full and whether or not the cargo arrived at its destination in the same month. In the accrual method, only 20.92% of the transactions were recognized in the current month of shipment, because revenue must be earned and realizable to be consistent with the SEC criteria, otherwise revenue must be deferred until the payment is collected. Therefore, as the result of applying either the cash or accrual method in the income statement, transaction will be recorded as accounts receivables and/or deferred transactions. With the application of the accrual method, the working capital calculation and the annualized margin must take more into consideration by managers, the trading staff and logistic staff.