Research questions prompted by observed changes in competition data. Each question identifies an empirical approach, evidence needs, and what current observations cannot establish.
Question field / domain × method
Where the public research program is concentrated46 source-custodied questions across 5 evidence systems and 7 declared methods.
Research questions
46
signal-derived
Declared methods
7
metric-specific
Source records
12
current custody
Evidence requests
184
work to collect
Observed signalExact metric, anchors, interval, unit, and universe remain attached.
Bounded questionThe monitor question is preserved verbatim and never converted into a verdict.
Evidence requestDeclared collection work is separated from evidence already in custody.
Move from an observed change to a testable research program
Questions stay in published signal order. Methods and evidence requests are declared; no priority score is calculated.
Questions shown
46
of 46 published
Entities
32
exact signal subjects
Methods
7
of 7 declared
Source records
12
unique custody rows
Evidence requests
184
work items, not findings
Published questions46 / 46
Q43 / Defined marketsShare accounting
Which participant-share changes account for the structural movement, and are the denominator and coverage stable across both anchors?
Social referrals / Leading-participant share
202557.5%
+11.49 pp1 year
202668.9%
Observed signal
Social referrals moved from 57.5% in 2025 to 68.9% in 2026 (+11.49 percentage points).Latest observed anchor versus the immediately preceding observed anchor; intervening years are not estimated.
Bounded interpretation
The latest encoded Leader share anchor is higher within this documented market series. The change alone does not identify a cause or establish competitive harm.This is a within-profile comparison governed by the documented statcounter all-platform social-media referral share boundary. It is not annualized and should not be compared as a common national series with differently defined markets.Empirical trackShare accounting
Reconstruct participant-share movement while checking denominator, coverage, entry, exit, and transaction changes.
Evidence base
4 observed anchors / 2023-2026
Status
estimated public / medium confidence
Declared empirical tracks
7 methods, each tied to a published metric family
The method register makes the work program inspectable while leaving research importance and enforcement merit unranked.
01Market mechanism
Test entry, exit, switching, price, quality, capacity, and share pathways inside the declared market boundary.
6 questions / market-hhi
02Share accounting
Reconstruct participant-share movement while checking denominator, coverage, entry, exit, and transaction changes.
9 questions / market-cr4, market-leader-share
03Industry disaggregation
Trace a sector median back to strict six-digit Census rows before proposing a product or geographic market study.
17 questions / industry-median-hhi
04Geographic structure
Reconcile national and nested geographic concentration summaries with area-level distributions, provider or ownership paths, measurement boundaries, and local-market evidence.