Grüne Technologien in Märkten mit Netzwerkeffekten

Green technologies in the automobile sector are discussed as a means to fight climate change. In order to stimulate the sale of electric vehicles, many governments already authorized bonuses for buyers or took comparable measures. The German government is still reluctant. Against this background, this volume investigates if Germany should take similar political measures and considers the construction of a new service infrastructure of charging stations that would be required by electric vehicles.
As a result, the economic analysis shows that network effects hinder the market entry of new drivetrain technologies and thus provide an argument for political actions. Meanwhile, green technologies need to prove an actual positive climate effect. Otherwise, possible high investments in new infrastructures are not justified from an economical point of view.