The Chicago candidacy, which was favored by the prediction markets (and gullible bettors like Ben Shannon), is the one that fared the worst.

IOC

Look up prof Michael Giberson&#8217-s comment below my highly intelligent post, &#8220-Why an analyst should assess each newly created prediction market&#8220-.

And compare it with Paul Kedrowski&#8217-s bad analysis, followed by InTrade CEO John Delaney&#8217-s equally bad analysis.

Read the New York Times for more on why Chicago had not the slightest chance to begin with.

Previously: Will Chicago get the Olympics? Dona€™t bet on it. Too risky.

Next: Could we have divined that Chicago was a lemon?

Next: &#8220-I have to agree with Chris. The market participants did not possess a sufficient level of information completeness to arrive at the correct prediction.&#8221-

Why you wont hear Robin Hanson et al. about the Chicago Olympics prediction market disaster

– Because they are not interested in telling you the truth about prediction markets.

– They are interested in propagating a myth, rather.

Don&#8217-t pay $400 for a vendor phone-booth conference on prediction markets, where their merits are hyper inflated to serve commercial purposes. Stay at home and read Midas Oracle.

Previously: The Chicago candidacy to host the Olympics, which was favored by the prediction markets (and gullible bettors like Ben Shannon), is the one that fared the worst.

Previously: Will Chicago get the Olympics? Dona€™t bet on it. Too risky.

Next: Could we have divined that Chicago was a lemon?

Why an analyst should assess each newly created prediction market

IOC

The Chicago candidacy, which was favored by the prediction markets (and gullible bettors like Ben Shannon), is the one that fared the worst.

As we have blogged here many times, not every prediction market is created equal. Some are bound to aggregate bits of known information. Some others (e.g., the Olympic city prediction markets) are not able to do that, because no good information is leaking out. The IOC is a close aristocratic group that does not leak out good information. Those who forgot that and bet the farm on Chicago are now licking their wounds. You need an information analyst to assess whether a particular prediction market is pertinent.

– BetFair&#8217-s event derivative prices:

chicago-olympics-betfair

– InTrade&#8217-s event derivative prices:

chicago-olympics-intrade

– HubDub&#8217-s event derivative prices:

Who will recieve the winning bid to host the 2016 Olympics?

Professor Thomas Rietz (Iowa Electronic Markets) was so wrong on the usefulness of prediction markets about the 2016 Summer Olympics in Chicago.

Chicago Olympic Market Might Have Value, Says Reitz (Chicago Tribune, April 17)
A credible source of information about Chicago&#8217-s chances of hosting the 2016 Olympics would have value, says columnist Bill Barnhart. Local real estate developers, hotel operators, employment agencies, vendors of products and services to major events and others have a direct stake in whether or not an Olympics is staged here. Politicians and civic leaders presumably would want to know whether the city&#8217-s bid has a chance, so that they wouldn&#8217-t throw good money after bad. An auction market centered on whether Chicago will win could provide that information, even if there were no huge payoff for hedgers or speculators, said finance professor THOMAS RIETZ at the University of Iowa, a board member of the popular Iowa Electronic Markets. The Iowa market limits wagers to $500 but has an enviable track record in picking the winners of national elections. &#8220-Our goal is to aggregate information, which is a different goal than being able to hedge the economic risk associated with something like this,&#8221- Rietz said. &#8220-I don&#8217-t think it&#8217-s an outlandish idea.&#8221-

http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/yourmoney/chi-0704160447apr17,0,2547860.column?coll=chi-business-hed

Prof, you were 100% wrong.

Prediction markets on which country will host the Olympics have never worked.

BetFair&#8217-s event derivative prices (on the far right of the chart, you can see that the price went down to zero):

chicago-olympics-betfair

InTrade&#8217-s event derivative prices (on the far right of the chart, you can see that the price went down to zero):

chicago-olympics-intrade

– HubDub&#8217-s event derivative prices:

Who will recieve the winning bid to host the 2016 Olympics?

Chicago wont have the Olympics in 2016.

IOC

The Chicago candidacy, which was favored by the prediction markets (and bettors like Ben Shannon), is the one that fared the worst.

I TOLD YOU SO:

&#8220-Will Chicago get the Olympics? Dona€™t bet on it. Too risky.&#8220-

The prediction markets are not able to forecast which country will get the Olympics. The IOC is a close aristocratic group that does not leak information. Hence, it is not possible to aggregate information.

Once again, Ben Shannon made a very bad bet. He should read Midas Oracle more often &#8212-if he wants to avoid personal bankruptcy.

– Once again, we see that the P.R. agents of InTrade and BetFair (who both bragged about being able to predict Chicago) were overselling.

BetFair&#8217-s event derivative prices (on the far right of the chart, you can see that the price went down to zero):

chicago-olympics-betfair

InTrade&#8217-s event derivative prices (on the far right of the chart, you can see that the price went down to zero):

chicago-olympics-intrade

– HubDub&#8217-s event derivative prices:

Who will recieve the winning bid to host the 2016 Olympics?