1 Introduction 2 2 Theoretical Underpinnings of the Information- Economics Framework of Brand Equity 4 3 Information Theoretic Brand Equity Framework 8 3.1 Proposed model based on signaling theory . . . . . . . . . 10 3.2 Testing the main theoretical implications of the information-economics brand-equity framework . . . . . . 12 3.3 Dynamic structural models and the evolution of brand equity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 4 Implications of the Information Theoretic Brand-equity Framework 22 4.1 Price premia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 4.2 Consideration- and choice-set formation . . . . . . . . . . 24 4.3 The role of brands in Customer Relationship Management (CRM) for relational service firms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 4.4 Brand-management implications: Brand extensions (umbrella branding), co-branding, brand alliances and brand-crisis management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 ii The full text is available at: http://dx.doi.org/10.1561/1700000041 iii 5 Validation of the Information Theoretic Brand-Equity Framework Across Product Categories, Countries, and Time 34 5.1 Generalizability over product categories and choice stages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 5.2 Generalizability over cultures and stages of economic development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 5.3 Generalizability over time: Brand-signaling framework temporal stability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39 5.4 Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44 6 Links between the Information-Economics Perspective of Brand Equity and Other Conceptual Brand-Equity Frameworks 45 6.1 Conceptual links . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45 6.2 Measurement links . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47 7 Summary and Future Research 50 References 55