Link: http://www.npr.org/sections/money/2017/08/23/545546014/episode-652-the-hydrox-resurrection
Summary: Planet Money tells the tale of a man trying to bring back the forgotten Hydrox brand. Discussion includes close substitutes, trademarks, patents, brands, and what they communicate to consumers.
Original Air Date: September 18, 2015
Length: 19:46
Special thanks to 
@TiemesEsther for recommending this podcast
Link: http://www.marketplace.org/2016/02/17/business/auto-show
Summary: At the 2016 Chicago Auto Show, the Marketplace team looks at the demand of the millennials and the response from the auto industry. Millennials are pragmatic and tech savvy. Toyota cannot sell its Scion brand and changes strategy to accommodate consumers that make up a third of the US auto market.
Original Air Date: February 19, 2016
Length: 4 minutes and 2 seconds
Link: http://www.npr.org/blogs/money/2014/10/03/353300404/episode-573-why-textbook-prices-keep-climbing
Summary: Something strange is going on in the textbook market. The price has steeply increased over the past decade–and they’re only getting higher. There is a disconnect between the chooser (the professors) and the buyers (the students). Technically, the professor is the consumer, and they’re spending their students’ money. The podcast offers the opposite: high school textbooks, where costs are kept low because the books are paid for by the schools.
Original Air Date: October 3, 2014
Length: 14 minutes 56 seconds
Discussion Question/ Prompt: Propose a solution to the rising textbook price problem. (Example: a price ceiling? professor awareness of prices? incentives for lower prices?)
Link: http://www.npr.org/blogs/money/2014/10/17/356944145/episode-576-when-women-stopped-coding
Summary: How did women go from being the pioneers of the coding industry to… the sidelines? The answer directly relates to the number of women studying computer science, and what happened in 1984 to change everything. A factor, as it turns out, is the marketing ploys aimed at women.
Original Air Date: October 17, 2014
Length: 17 minutes 12 seconds
Link: http://www.marketplace.org/topics/business/made-italy-may-not-mean-what-you-think
Summary: The Country of Origin label is a powerful element on upscale brands. Italians consider it a national economic resource, but the stamp can’t always be believed. US laws say the “last substantial transformation” must be in the country of origin, and tracking manufacturing is difficult at best.
Original Air Date: September 24, 2014
Length: 3 minutes 55 seconds
Summary: As the health insurance market prepares for the changes brought about by implementation of Affordable Care Act, this podcast considers how insurance companies might begin to target their new consumers. Considers marketing and branding strategies as well as how insurers might think about using incentive schemes to retain customers.
Length: 4:04 min
Original air date: July 12, 2013
Summary: A consideration of consumers’ tendency to purchase more expensive name brands rather than identical generics. Includes discussion of education as a contributing factor to likelihood to purchase generics. Includes one consumer’s belief that there is rational ignorance in his decision to just buy the brand name.
Length: 4:29 min
Original air date: July 4, 2013
Link: http://www.npr.org/blogs/money/2013/06/11/190746413/episode-465-myanmar-opens-up
Summary: Planet Money explores the challenges of businesses entering a newly open economy. An entrepreneur faces first-mover challenges common to developing countries, including lacking financial and telecommunications infrastructure. An executive from Coca-Cola revisits the company’s history as the company introduces Coke to a new audience and challenges its reputation as a luxury good.
Length: 18:39
Original air date June 11, 2013
audioecon 