Overvalued and Underestimated. Veblen’s Contribution to the Analysis of (un-)Sustainable Consumption
Veblen’s concept of conspicuous consumption is often cited to explain why consumption habits in our consumer societies tend to be unsustainable and ever increasing. However, much more than blaming individual consumption habits Veblen sharply analyzed quite some of the societal and economic forces which drive the framework conditions for unsustainable consumption: the vested interests and the absentee ownership. The paper follows the path Veblen’s thoughts have taken trough economic and social literature over the last centuryand highlights how the actual sustainable consumption debate could make better use of Veblen’s insights e.g. in requesting the constitutive institutions for property. Opportunities for Strong Sustainable Consumption obviously presuppose radical changes, social innovations and thinking out of the box.
With the use of data and concrete examples, such as ::: a mini-case study, and a focus on the top 20 global players, this ::: thesis aims at tackling Capex issues in the telecom industry by ::: covering: – Uses, levels, inefficiencies in Capex management, ::: notably via insider perspective, and their impacts on capital ::: allocation; – Financing of Capex via debt and the recent ::: development of asset monetization; – Specific trends (NSA, VNOs) ::: and M&A in the telecom industry and their impacts on Capex, via ::: the case study of the French SFR-Numericable ::: transaction.