Business-to-Business Electronic Marketplaces and the Structure of Channel Relationships

Business-to-business (B2B) marketplaces have significant potential impacts on the structure of channel relationships and IT management arrangements. IS theory traditionally investigated electronic marketplaces from a transaction cost theory point of view. We identify three major limitations of transaction cost theory as it applies to B2B electronic marketplaces. A number of other literatures with a bearing on electronic marketplaces have critiqued and extended transaction cost models. Among them are strategic networks theory, marketing channel theory, and political economy. This paper reviews and attempts to synthesize these perspectives on electronic marketplaces and exchanges. We propose an integrative model combining transaction cost theory, strategic networks theory, relational exchange theory, and the theory of political economy. The synthesis promotes better operationalizations of EMP channel structure, identifies the antecedents and consequences of EMP channel structures, and suggests an agenda for future research

E.M.P. As Enabler Of New Organisational Architectures: An Italian Case Study

The opportunity for organisations to manage their own processes using electronic means has lead to the development of new inter- and intra-organisational relationships and consequently to the network firm phenomenon (Fulk, De Sanctis, 1995; Powell, 1990 ; Malone, Yates, Benjamin, 1987; Prager, 1996). Business to Business (B2B) and electronic marketplaces (EMP) are assuming an ever-increasing role in the context of inter-organizational relationships, especially in the area of information systems. In this paper, the authors aim to show how B2B marketplaces have a significant potential impact on the structure of channel relationships and IT management arrangements. For this purpose an Italian example of an EMP called Tilesquare was analysed where the development of the digital market and all the connected technologies has brought about the creation of a new type of organisation. This paper studies this new organizational scheme in the light of Transaction Cost Theory (TCT). In the context of marketplaces, Tilesquare is a particularly important case from the points of view of both the organisational integration of the various integrated participants in the digital value chain (all the possible actors of the value chain of the building and furnishing material industry are present in the market) and of the commercial coverage represented by the various participants located in different countries all over the world and integrated in the platform. IS theory traditionally investigates these phenomena from a Transaction Cost Theory (Williamson, 1975) point of view. On the contrary, the authors of this paper have taken into consideration the limitations of this approach by showing how the Strategic Network theory could provide a useful framework in order to understand the new phenomena that are distinguishing some industries. To do this, the research work of Christiaanse and Markus (2002), who have worked on new organizational assets and the development of B2B in an EMP context, has been use

Think Local-Act Local: Is It Time to Slow Down the Accelerated Move to Global Marketing?

In view of the accelerated move of great corporations towards global marketing, the strategic changes of such companies raise interesting questions. Is marketing globalization reaching its limits after years of implementation? Is it time for companies to rethink their strategies and move back, like Coca-Cola, to a multi-domestic marketing approach?Global Marketing, Multi-Domestic Marketing Approach, Brand Equity, Drawbacks of Marketing Globalization, Coca-Cola

Innovation in Marketing Channels

In more recent years, the context of globalization in which market channel structures and strategies are developing is bringing to a more complex concept of marketing channels, with disintermediation or reintermediation, multichanneling and new roles/specializations that are emerging as new issues.In this context, innovation in marketing channels becomes a complex, multiorganizational, multidisciplinary activity that requires collaboration and interactions across various entities within the supply chain network. In recent years, the innovation processes in marketing channels have occurred with high intensity and speed, especially following the changes spurred by technology that allowed the adoption of more efficient organizational solutions.Retail; Channel Structure; Innovation in Marketing Channels; Retail Technological Innovation; Global Markets

Internet sales as a new mode of internationalization

The way that organizations explore the Internet has been the focus of a substantial body of scientific studies and non-academic reflection. The main goal of this study is to analyze the potential of the internet as a mode of internationalization and the factors that influence the results of the adoption of this mean to access foreign markets. For this purpose, we examine the determinants of the level of international sales made via internet estimating an ordered probit model. The results show that the importance of previous experience in using the internet and developing international activity, together with the level of internet marketing budget , the level of investment on internet sophistication, the firm dimension, the business age and the type pf activity are variables that determine the results obtain in the international sales trough the internet.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

After the Bubble: The Survival and Ownership of Internet Marketplaces for Farmers and Agribusiness

This paper presents a theory of how industry structure and beliefs about Internet marketplace use have driven choice and ownership of marketplaces. The theory's predictions suggest that surviving Internet marketplaces will be those with strong historical linkages in an industry and those owned by or affiliated with major commodity buyers. Comparisons of these predictions with actual outcomes provide validation of the theory. Where predictions differ from results, observations are made as to the nature of the deviations.agricultural markets, electronic commerce, Internet markets, network externalities, technology adoption, Agribusiness,

Service-oriented modeling for e-business applications components

The emerging trends for e-business engineering revolve around specialisation and cooperation. Successful companies focus on their core competences, and rely on a network of business partners for the support services required to compose a comprehensive offer for their customers. Modulariy is crucial for a flexible e-business infrastructure, but related requirements seldom reflect on the design and operational models of business information systems. Software components are widely used for the implementation of e-business applications, with proved benefits in terms of system development and maintenance. We propose a service-oriented componentisation of ebusiness systems as a way to close the gap with the business models they support. Blurring the distinction between external services and internal capabilities, we propose a homogeneous model for the definition of ebusiness applications components. After a brief discussion on the foundational aspects of the approach, we present the process-based technique we adopted for component modelling. We then present an infrastructure compliant with the model proposed that we built on top of an EJB (Enterprise Java Beans) platform

Adam Smith goes mobile : managing services beyond 3G with the digital marketplace

The next generation of mobile communications systems is expected to offer new business opportunities to existing and new market players. A market-based middleware framework has been recently proposed whereby service providers, independent of network operators, are able to tender online service contracts to network operators in a dynamic and competitive manner. This facilitates a seamless service provision over disparate networks in a consumer-centric manner. Service providers select network bearers according to the network operators' ability to meet the QoS target, which in turn is influenced, among other things, by user's price and quality requirements. The benefits of this proposal are the complementarity of numerous network resources, the decoupling of services and networks in a self-organising distributed environment, and increased competition to consumers’ advantag

Competing in the Digital Economy?: The Dynamics and Impacts of B2B E-commerce on the South African Manufacturing Sector

ICTs, B2B e-commerce, manufacturing sector, South Africa

Increasing online shop revenues with web scraping: a case study for the wine sector

Purpose – Wine has been produced for thousands of years and nowadays we have seen a spread in the wine culture. E-commerce sales of wine have increased considerably and online customer’s satisfaction is influenced by quality and price. This paper presents a case study of the company “QuieroVinos, S.L.”, an online wine shop founded in 2015 that sells Spanish wines in two main marketplaces. Design/methodology/approach – With the final target of increasing the company profits it has been designed and developed an application to track the prices of competitors for a set of products. This information will be used to set the product prices in order to offer the products both competitively and profitably in each Marketplace. This application must check, by tacking into account information such as the product cost or the minimum product margin, if it is possible to decrease the price in order to reach the top cheapest position and as a consequence, increase the sales. Findings – The application improved in a notorious way the company’s results in terms of sales and shipping costs. It must be said that without the use of the presented application, performing the price comparison process within each one of the marketplaces would have taken a long time. Moreover, as prices change very frequently, the obtained information has a very limited time value, and the competitors prices should be analyzed daily in order to take accurate decisions regarding the company’s price policy. Originality/value – Although the application has been designed for the wine sector and the two named marketplace, it could be exported to other sectors. For that, it should be implemented new modules to collect information regarding the competitor’s price of the products selling on each corresponding marketplaceThis work was supported by the Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad under contract TIN2017- 84553-C2-2-R. Also, the authors are members of the research group 2017-SGR363, funded by the Generalitat de Catalunya