The paper studies equilibrium pricing in a product market for an indivisible good where buyers search for sellers. Buyers search sequentially for sellers but do not meet every seller with the same probability. Specifically, a fraction of the buyers’ meetings lead to one particular large seller, while the remaining meetings lead to one of a continuum of small sellers. In this environment, the sm...

Suppose an intermediary provides a benefit to buyers when they purchase from sellers using the intermediary’s technology. We develop a model to show that the intermediary will want to restrict sellers from charging buyers more for transactions it intermediates. We show that this restriction can reduce consumer surplus and welfare, sometimes to such an extent that the existence of the intermedia...

We present the problem of automatic co-niching in which potential suppliers of some product or service need to determine which offers to make to the marketplace at the same time as potential buyers need to determine which offers (if any) to purchase. Because both groups typically face incomplete or uncertain information needed for these decisions, participants in repeated market interactions en...

Online recommendation services (widely known as recommender systems) can support potential buyers by providing product recommendations that match their preferences. When integrated into e-markets, recommendation services may offer important added value. They can help online buyers to save time and make informed purchase decisions, as well as e-market operators to respond to buyer product querie...

Marketing carbon offset credits generated by urban forest projects could help cities and local governments achieve their financial self-sufficiency and environmental sustainability goals. Understanding the value of carbon credits sourced from urban forests, and the factors that determine buyers’ willingness to pay a premium for such credits could benefit cities in strategically marketing carbon...

Gamification is considered as a 'magic bullet' to induce dull experiences with fun and enjoyment. However, understanding the gamification attributes for s-commerce users falls short due limited empirical research. The purpose of this study explore differences between males females employed unemployed buyers who purchase products services via when game elements are considered. A questionnaire co...

A growth model for the timing of initial purchase of new products is developed and tested empirically against data for eleven consumer durables. The basic assumption of the model is that the timing of a consumer's initial purchase is related to the number of previous buyers. A behavioral rationale for the model is offered in terms of innovative and imitative behavior. The model yields good pred...

In commercial transactions, trust in sellers (TIS) is the degree of trust that buyers bestow upon sellers. The existence and level of TIS is obviously a factor determining whether buyers will buy. TIS is particularly important in consumer-to-consumer e-commerce transactions, such as online auctions, which are characterized by anonymity and asymmetric product quality information. Given the impor...