Fair Allocation with Binary Valuations for Mixed Divisible and Indivisible Goods

Abstract

The fair allocation of mixed goods, consisting of both divisible and indivisible goods, has been a prominent topic of study in economics and computer science. We define an allocation as fair if its utility vector minimizes a symmetric strictly convex function. This fairness criterion includes standard ones such as maximum egalitarian social welfare and maximum Nash social welfare. We address the problem of minimizing a given symmetric strictly convex function when agents have binary valuations. If only divisible goods or only indivisible goods exist, the problem is known to be solvable in polynomial time. In this paper, firstly, we demonstrate that the problem is NP-hard even when all indivisible goods are identical. This NP-hardness is established even for maximizing egalitarian social welfare or Nash social welfare. Secondly, we provide a polynomial-time algorithm for the problem when all divisible goods are identical. To accomplish these, we exploit the proximity structure inherent in the problem. This provides theoretically important insights into the hybrid domain of convex optimization that incorporates both discrete and continuous aspects.