University in The Netherlands Creates Chair In Honor of UTD Professor Dr. Frank M. Bass

RICHARDSON, Texas (Sept. 9, 2005) – The University of Groningen in The Netherlands has created a special chair in honor of University of Texas at Dallas (UTD) Professor Frank M. Bass, who is considered one of the founders of the field of marketing science. Dr. Bass is Eugene McDermott University of Texas System Professor of Management in UTD’s School of Management.

The University of Groningen announced this week that prominent Dutch economist Dr. Peter Leeflang has been named the first recipient of the Frank M. Bass Chair.

Dr. Frank Bass, UTD professor and founder in the field of marketing science, is being honored in The Netherlands.

“I consider it a great honor that they would create a chair in my name,” said Bass, who has been at UTD since 1982. “This is the second oldest university in The Netherlands, and it is a very prestigious academic institution. European universities make a practice of naming their chairs after distinguished scholars, so I am very, very honored to be included.”

Leeflang is professor of Organizational Economics at the Faculty of Economics in Groningen. He has published numerous articles in many leading journals and is credited as one of the first to recognize the possibilities of applying econometric methodologies to marketing.

Bass said he knew Leeflang and was equally impressed that the university had selected such a fine scholar for the honor. In announcing the creation of the chair recently, the University of Groningen hailed Bass as the founder of marketing science as an academic discipline in The Netherlands.

A leading operations research theoretician and practitioner, Bass earned international recognition with his development of the Bass Model in 1969. That mathematical model was used to predict the sales and life cycles of various consumer products, from color television sets and disposable diapers to digital satellite radio. Two years ago, the research journal Management Science hailed Bass’ paper on the subject as one of the most-cited research paper in the journal’s 50-year history.

Dr. Hasan Pirkul, dean of the School of Management at UTD, said Bass’ latest recognition was well-deserved. “Dr. Bass is widely regarded as one of the founding fathers of the field of marketing science, and we are pleased to see him recognized in this way,” Pirkul said.

Within the last several months, Bass’s achievements have gained him additional recognition. On Aug. 23, he was bestowed with the Honorary Degree, Doctor of Business Administration, during commencement exercises at The Ohio State University. And in June the 2005 INFORMS Marketing Science Conference at Emory University held a special conference in honor of Bass.

Bass is a native of Cuero, Texas, and received his Ph.D. degree from the University of Illinois, an M.B.A. degree from The University of Texas at Austin and a B.B.A. degree from Southwestern University. He joined the faculty of Purdue University in 1960 and later became the Loeb Distinguished Professor of Management at Purdue’s Krannert School of Management before joining UTD.

About the UTD School of Management

Based on publications in the top 22 business journals spanning all areas of business, The University of Texas at Dallas School of Management faculty ranks 37th in research productivity among business school faculties nationwide, and U.S. News and World Report ranks the school’s Cohort MBA program among the top 64 full-time MBA programs in the nation and among the top 35 at public colleges and universities. The School of Management is the largest of UTD’s seven schools, with an enrollment that has doubled over the last eight years to about 4,400 students. The school’s new 204,000-square-foot building features classrooms with state-of-the-art audio and visual equipment, wireless connectivity, video-conferencing facilities, a computer lab, faculty offices, meeting rooms and an executive education center.

About UTD

The University of Texas at Dallas, located at the convergence of Richardson, Plano and Dallas in the heart of the complex of major multinational technology corporations known as the Telecom Corridor®, enrolls more than 14,000 students. The school’s freshman class traditionally stands at the forefront of Texas state universities in terms of average SAT scores. The university offers a broad assortment of bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degree programs. For additional information about UTD, please visit the university’s website at www.utdallas.edu.