Online Price Dispersion: A Game-Theoretic Perspective and Empirical Evidence

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Ba, Sulin; Stallaert, Jan; Zhang, Zhongju
• 署名单位: University of Connecticut
• 刊物名称: INFORMATION SYSTEMS RESEARCH
• ISSN/ISSBN: 1047-7047
• DOI: 10.1287/isre.1110.0353
• 发表日期: 2012
• 页码: 575-592
• 关键词: consumer decision-making; vs. bad characteristics; COMPETITION; internet; service; product; QUALITY; web; differentiation; variance

摘要

The existence and persistence of price dispersion for identical products in online markets have been well-documented in the literature. Possible explanations of this price dispersion, derived mainly using hedonic price models, have seen only modest success. In this paper, we propose a competitive model based on online retailers' differentiation mainly in service provided and recognition enjoyed to explain price dispersion. Our exploratory empirical analyses, using cross-sectional data, demonstrate that the competitive model provides a better explanation of the association between prices and online retailers' service and recognition levels. In addition, our competitive model is able to explain observations that are seemingly inconsistent with the hedonic model such as the negative association between service and price. This paper contributes to the literature on price dispersion by offering a differentiation model that provides a good fit with data and by proposing a theory that explains previous counterintuitive observations of prices. Our model also helps an e-tailer to choose a desirable position in the competitive market.