Per Andersson says: "We tend to focus perhaps on the wider network of relationships than some US researchers. I would argue that you can’t study mobile telephony distribution without also looking at IT channels and retail and at how the mobile phone has changed over time to become a commodity." Andersson says that channels for most industries have been studied in great depth in this way in the Nordic region, where there is a tradition of strong co-operation between industries and academia.
 
Stern’s theories brought the subject to life for academia in the USA. His influence is still huge. The focus stayed on conflict and power throughout the 1970s.

In the 1980s, Erin Anderson (INSEAD) and Stern’s former student John (Minnesota) started testing these concepts in the real world using transactional economics, a model pioneered by Oliver Williamson.  Anderson, for instance, looked into when it is best for suppliers to own their channels, and when they should spin them out to third parties.

Anderson says: "I call transactional economics economics for realists, as it takes into account psychology and sociology.  Essentially, we gather data and look for patterns."  John says: "I want to formulate a hypothesis and then test it against the data." 
 
This means they can look at the impact on human behaviour of different economic relationships.  How, for instance, does the behaviour of a freelance sales rep. on 30 days’ notice differ from that of an employee?  This can lead to the construction of complex mathematical models to explain things that the average businessperson would never ask.

Essentially, we gather data and look for patterns.

Both Anderson and John have worked with a lot of doctoral students who have gone on to become academics themselves.

Richard Staelin (Duke) leads a more abstract school, which reduces channels to mathematical models.

Other US academics include Stern disciple Nirmalya Kumar, who is moving to the London Business School from IMD, and has developed Stern’s theories in the retail sector. Bart Weitz (Florida) also studies retail channels.  Jim Brown (Virginia Polytechnic)  studies conflict – what causes it, how to measure it and how to fix it. Anne Coughlan (Kellogg) looks at grey markets.

Lisa Scheer (Missouri) studies persuasion – the psychological processes by which upstream and downstream players reach agreement.  Sandy Jap (Emory) analyses Internet reverse auctions and how organisations build and enhance relationships. Pat Kaufmann (Boston) looks at franchises, EDI and contracts. Together with Francine LaFontaine (Michigan), he produced a seminal paper on the McDonalds franchising system.

Ivory-tower-syndrome is a particular problem in America.

Gary Frazier (Southern California) analyses power and influence in industrial distribution. Jakki Mohr (Montana) specialises in communication and conflict.  Arne Nygaard specialises in franchising.  Jonathan Hibbard (Boston) is a former Stern student examining relationships and relationship valuation.