Paul R Milgrom and Robert B Wilson win 2020 Nobel Prize in Economics

They were awarded for improvements to auction theory and inventions of new auction formats

Two Stanford University academics who helped design the US auction that allocates mobile-phone frequencies will share the 2020 Nobel Prize in economics. Paul Milgrom and Robert B Wilson, whose ideas have been applied to sales of anything from aircraft landing slots to fishing quotas, won’t need to travel to Stockholm to receive the award because of Covid-19, according to Nobel officials.

“They have used their insights to design new auction formats for goods and services that are difficult to sell in a traditional way, such as radio frequencies,” the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences said in a statement on Monday.

The 2020