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To compete or to take over? An economic analysis of new sellers on e-commerce marketplaces

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  • Hong Xu

    (The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology)

Abstract

The rise of e-commerce has inspired entrepreneurs to start their businesses online. E-commerce platforms, such as eBay, Amazon Marketplace, and Taobao, feature low barriers of entry to their sellers, as there is very low cost involved in entering an online marketplace and becoming a seller. In the meantime, we observe that many sellers choose to incur a much higher cost and enter the marketplace by taking over an existing seller’s account. We identify an interesting problem faced by entrants to online marketplaces: should they enter as new or should they take over another seller? Entrants’ decisions are complicated by several factors, including the reputation of the existing seller, the entrant’s capability, and the information asymmetry between the entrant and the incumbent. We develop an economic model to study the interactions between an entrant and an incumbent in an e-commerce marketplace. We discover that reputation plays an important role in the entrant’s competition-takeover decision. Our findings carry useful insights for e-commerce platforms in understanding the impact of entrants on the existing community of sellers.

Suggested Citation

  • Hong Xu, 2018. "To compete or to take over? An economic analysis of new sellers on e-commerce marketplaces," Information Systems and e-Business Management, Springer, vol. 16(4), pages 817-829, November.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:infsem:v:16:y:2018:i:4:d:10.1007_s10257-017-0349-8
    DOI: 10.1007/s10257-017-0349-8
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Sanjeev Dewan & Vernon Hsu, 2004. "Adverse Selection In Electronic Markets: Evidence From Online Stamp Auctions," Journal of Industrial Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 52(4), pages 497-516, December.
    2. Chen, Yongmin, 2001. "On Vertical Mergers and Their Competitive Effects," RAND Journal of Economics, The RAND Corporation, vol. 32(4), pages 667-685, Winter.
    3. Malmendier, Ulrike & Tate, Geoffrey, 2008. "Who makes acquisitions? CEO overconfidence and the market's reaction," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 89(1), pages 20-43, July.
    4. Garth Saloner, 1987. "Predation, Mergers, and Incomplete Information," RAND Journal of Economics, The RAND Corporation, vol. 18(2), pages 165-186, Summer.
    5. Steven Tadelis, 2002. "The Market for Reputations as an Incentive Mechanism," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 110(4), pages 854-882, August.
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    Cited by:

    1. Junbin Wang & Xuan Gao & Zhiguo Wang, 2021. "Sustainable Supply Chain Decisions under E-Commerce Platform Marketplace with Competition," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(8), pages 1-23, April.

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