# LIN, Song
**Source**: https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/faculty/lin-song
**Parent**: https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/bizbites
LIN, Song
Associate Professor
Department of Marketing
[View Profile](https://mark.hkust.edu.hk/faculty-and-staff/directory/79)
### Recent Activities
[LIN, Song](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/faculty/lin-song)
[Do More "Likes" Lead to More Clicks?](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/2025/12/do-more-likes-lead-more-clicks)
When you see a social media ad with dozens of “likes,” do you assume it is worth your time? A new study suggests the answer is more complicated than it looks. HKUST’s Professor Song Lin and his colleague conducted a large-scale field experiment on WeChat, analyzing more than 5.5 million ad impressions across 82 ads. Their goal was to find out whether showing
...
[Read More](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/2025/12/do-more-likes-lead-more-clicks)
[ [BizBites](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/bizbites "BizBites") ]
[Watch Video](https://video.ust.hk/watch?video=937C51CC3B5DBE74&embed=Y)
[Read Full Paper](https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/00222429241307608)
[LIN, Song](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/faculty/lin-song)
[Skip Ads](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/2024/05/skip-ads)
In the past few years, a number of digital and media platforms, e.g., YouTube and Spotify, have begun introducing premium services which let paid subscribers see fewer or no adverts. Such a practice seems to be a classic case of second-degree price discrimination through ‘versioning’, which allows consumers to self-select different models of the same product
...
[Read More](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/2024/05/skip-ads)
[ [BizBites](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/bizbites "BizBites") ]
[Watch Video](https://video.ust.hk/watch?video=10243F1D0CA6D678&embed=Y)
[Read Full Paper](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/2022/04/skip-ads)
[LIN, Song](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/faculty/lin-song)
[Paying Not to See Ads?](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/2023/12/paying-not-see-ads)
[Price Efficiency](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/tag/price-efficiency)
[Two-sided Market](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/tag/two-sided-market)
[Media](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/tag/media)
[Advertising](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/tag/advertising)
Recently, a growing number of media platforms have allowed users to pay for a premium version of their service that removes ads. A classic example is YouTube, which launched YouTube Red that is a paid service with no ads. This is puzzling because these platforms historically rely on advertising revenues to grow. In this research we develop a game theory
...
[Read More](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/2023/12/paying-not-see-ads)
[ [BizTalks](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/biztalks "BizTalks") ]
[Watch Video](https://video.ust.hk/watch?video=03FB947832D538F3&embed=Y)
[Read Full Paper](https://mark.hkust.edu.hk/files/staff/song_lin/LIN_Song-MS-2020.pdf)
[LIN, Song](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/faculty/lin-song)
[Skip Ads](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/2022/04/skip-ads)
[Advertising](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/tag/advertising)
[Media Platforms](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/tag/media-platforms)
[Mechanism Design](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/tag/mechanism-design)
[Two-sided Market](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/tag/two-sided-market)
[Pricing](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/tag/pricing)
In the past few years, a number of digital and media platforms, e.g., YouTube and Spotify, have begun introducing premium services which let paid subscribers see fewer or no adverts. Such a practice seems to be a classic case of second-degree price discrimination through ‘versioning’, which allows consumers to self-select different models of the same product
...
[Read More](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/2022/04/skip-ads)
[ [BizStudies](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/bizstudies "BizStudies") ]
[Read Full Paper](https://mark.hkust.edu.hk/files/staff/song_lin/LIN_Song-MS-2020.pdf)
[LIN, Song](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/faculty/lin-song)
[Harbingers of Failure](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/2021/08/harbingers-failure)
[Cutting-edge Research in Business](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/tag/cutting-edge-research-business)
[Marketing Analytics](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/tag/marketing-analytics)
[Product Failure](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/tag/product-failure)
[Early Adopters](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/tag/early-adopters)
[Preference Heterogeneity](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/tag/preference-heterogeneity)
Managing new products is important for many firms. One challenging problem is how to predict the success of a new product, especially in their early life cycle. Using large-scale retailer data, we find the novel prediction that the early success of a new product among certain customers may have negative—rather than positive—implications for the long-term
...
[Read More](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/2021/08/harbingers-failure)
[ [BizTalks](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/biztalks "BizTalks") ]
[Watch Video](https://video.ust.hk/Watch.aspx?Video=46B07B1FCEC85C9F&embed=Y)
[Read Full Paper](https://mark.hkust.edu.hk/files/staff/song_lin/song_lin-jmr-2015.pdf)
[LIN, Song](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/faculty/lin-song)
[Harbingers of Product Failure (and Success)](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/2021/04/harbingers-product-failure-and-success)
[Layperson Talk](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/tag/layperson-talk)
[Marketing Strategy](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/tag/marketing-strategy)
[New Products](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/tag/new-products)
[Lead Users](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/tag/lead-users)
[Marketing Analytics](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/tag/marketing-analytics)
Managing new products is important for many firms. One challenging problem is how to predict the success of a new product, especially in their early life cycle. Using large-scale retailer data, we find the novel prediction that the early success of a new product among certain customers may have negative—rather than positive—implications for the long-term
...
[Read More](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/2021/04/harbingers-product-failure-and-success)
[ [BizTalks](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/biztalks "BizTalks") ]
[Watch Video](https://video.ust.hk/Watch.aspx?Video=D85837C67D70A232&embed=Y)
[Read Full Paper](https://mark.hkust.edu.hk/files/staff/song_lin/song_lin-jmr-2015.pdf)
KE, T. Tony
[LIN, Song](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/faculty/lin-song)
[Consumer Choice in the Information Age](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/2021/04/consumer-choice-information-age)
[Consumer Behavior](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/tag/consumer-behavior)
[Online Information](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/tag/online-information)
[Marketing Strategy](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/tag/marketing-strategy)
In today’s digital era, online research plays a key part in the decision to buy a particular product or brand. The enormous amount of product information instantly available to customers on the Internet has changed the way they choose between similar offerings. Shedding light on this complex process, Assistant Professor Song Lin of HKUST’s Department of
...
[Read More](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/2021/04/consumer-choice-information-age)
[ [BizStudies](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/bizstudies "BizStudies") ]
ANDERSON, Eric T
[LIN, Song](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/faculty/lin-song)
SIMESTER, Duncan
TUCKER, Catherine
[Harbingers of Failure](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/2021/04/harbingers-failure)
[Marketing Analytics](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/tag/marketing-analytics)
[Product Failure](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/tag/product-failure)
[Early Adopters](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/tag/early-adopters)
[Preference Heterogeneity](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/tag/preference-heterogeneity)
Managing new products is important for many firms. One challenging problem is how to predict the success of a new product, especially in their early life cycle. Using large-scale retailer data, we find the novel prediction that the early success of a new product among certain customers may have negative—rather than positive—implications for the long-term
...
[Read More](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/2021/04/harbingers-failure)
[ [BizBites](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/bizbites "BizBites") ]
[Watch Video](https://video.ust.hk/Watch.aspx?Video=7E617A934AD0139B&embed=Y)
[Read Full Paper](https://mark.hkust.edu.hk/files/staff/song_lin/song_lin-jmr-2015.pdf)
[LIN, Song](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/faculty/lin-song)
[Why Do Budget Hotels Offer Free Internet and Luxury Hotels Do Not?](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/2018/11/why-do-budget-hotels-offer-free-internet-and-luxury-hotels-do-not)
Hotels, like any businesses, are motivated by profit. But a strange pattern has emerged when it comes to low-cost amenities such as Internet services. One survey found only 54 per cent of luxury hotels offered free Internet compared to 91 per cent of budget hotels. As Song Lin points out, this phenomenon seems counterintuitive and has not been explained
...
[Read More](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/2018/11/why-do-budget-hotels-offer-free-internet-and-luxury-hotels-do-not)
[ [BizStudies](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/bizstudies "BizStudies") ]
[Read Full Paper](https://poseidon01.ssrn.com/delivery.php?ID=0821120020940220961170170900980191170990720670120790430780120911230921071020660070110210230220280550401131230281180990660141201070250640100651030170680921031180101040210920601211150870251150750870701251191221230)
ANDERSON, Eric T
[LIN, Song](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/faculty/lin-song)
SIMESTER, Duncan
TUCKER, Catherine
[Harbingers of Failure](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/2017/08/harbingers-failure)
Diet Crystal Pepsi was launched in 1992 after getting a strong response in test markets, but a year later the product was pulled from the shelves after weak sales. Similarly, Frito Lay Lemonade and countless other products that passed the pilot phase went on to be failures. How could there be such a mismatch of early promise and subsequent performance?
...
[Read More](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/2017/08/harbingers-failure)
[ [BizStudies](https://bm.hkust.edu.hk/bizinsight/bizstudies "BizStudies") ]
[Read Full Paper](https://mark.hkust.edu.hk/files/staff/song_lin/song_lin-jmr-2015.pdf)
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