از دگر غم شادی به mitfreude؟ برآورد از دست دادن تماشاگر و روابط رقیب در بازار های بی طرف دیگر  From schadenfreude to mitfreude? Estimating viewership loss and rivalrous relationships in otherwise neutral  markets

1. Introduction A game between two professional sports teams – and the aggregation of these games across the league – comprise the essence of the league product that clearly requires both cooperation and competition on the part of league members (Borland & Macdonald, 2003; Neale, 1964; Rottenberg, 1956). In past work, the complementary nature of a league’s competing firms (teams) has been shown to enhance overall interest in games, ultimately affecting overall franchise and league demand (Xu, Sung, Tainsky, & Mondello, 2015). This could eventually impact league organization, policy, and scheduling that leverages complementarities among otherwise competing franchises. Rivalry then may play a crucial role to elucidate the complimentary relationship between competing teams in professional sports leagues. In particular, sport is replete with various rivalries, offering a product that differentiates itself from other competitive outcomes in leagues. With the formation of heated rivalry, the reward of defeating a rival may amplify the utility fans obtain from a victory as compared to other league games against non-rivals (Havard, 2014; Mahoney & Moorman, 1999). In general, the formation of sports leagues has allowed the scheduling of games and championships that have prompted the development of systematic rivalries often specific to divisional alignment or geographical location (Blair, 2011). Ultimately, the organization of a league such that various outcomes have value to consumers – not just for the league championship, but for superiority over other teams and rivals – allows a risk reduction from the perspective of league revenues. Specifically, being high in the standings usually results in higher levels of game interest, particularly if both teams are in a championship race. However, the existence of rivals may mitigate lost revenues when (at least) one team is low in the standings and the match has little to no impact on the outcome of the championship hunt. This possibility raises the question of optimal scheduling such that leagues can maximize overall interest in games where not all teams are serious contenders for the championship.