تجزیه و تحلیل ساختاری در بازارهای دیجیتال بنگاه به بنگاه

Digital markets allow sellers and buyers to conduct transactions electronically and are becoming major driving forces in business-to-business e-commerce. This article explores the theoretical and managerial foundations of digital markets. This study first investigates the structure and components of digital markets. A comprehensive sample of 196 digital markets is then examined to uncover the structural dimensions and success factors of digital markets. The findings of this study provide important managerial insights into various issues that are pertinent to the functioning of digital markets, such as how the nature of founding companies may affect the dominant function chosen for a digital market and what factors may affect the market-making mechanisms used by the digital markets.

Electronic commerce (or e-commerce) represents a new way of conducting business transactions, including buying, selling, or exchanging products, services, and information, usually through communications networks such as the Internet, intranet, and extranet. According to Kalakota and Whinston [1], e-commerce provides the business world with the following functions: electronic delivery of information, products, services, or payments; automation of business transactions and work flow; reduction in service costs while improving the quality of goods and increasing the speed of service delivery; and use of online services. E-commerce is rapidly reshaping the marketing domain and many of its traditional practices, such as business-to-business transactions [2]. E-commerce can be classified by the nature of business transactions, including business-to-business (B2B), business-to-consumer (B2C), consumer-to-consumer (C2C), consumer-to-business (C2B), and intraorganizational e-commerce. Among them, B2C and B2B e-commerce have attracted the most attention so far. B2B e-commerce reflects that both sellers and buyers are business corporations. B2C e-commerce, however, reflects that buyers are individual consumers. Although B2C e-commerce and its glamorous high fliers (such as Amazon.com) often capture the media headlines, B2B e-commerce actually enjoys the biggest slice of e-commerce pie and has been growing rapidly during the past 1 or 2 years [3]. According to the forecast by Forrester Research, B2B e-commerce transactions in the U.S. will total US$2.7 trillion by 2004. The B2B side of e-commerce is seen as more lucrative than B2C e-commerce because it is 10 times larger than the retail market and business consumers are generally less fickle than retail consumers [4]. A conspicuous occurrence in B2B e-commerce is the rapid development of digital markets. A digital market is an online business transaction platform for buyers and sellers. The new business models in digital markets include auctions, aggregators, bid systems, and exchanges [5]. Forrester Research estimates that by 2004, digital markets will capture 53% of all online business trade. B2B e-commerce is restructuring the global business pattern. As indicated by Gartner Group, by 2000, the US will no longer be the dominant B2B e-commerce player in the world. North America accounted for 63% of the B2B digital market in 1999. However, Europe is investing heavily in the B2B digital market and North America's share of the B2B market will drop to 40% by 2004. The growth of B2B e-commerce in Asia and the Pacific will also be significant in the near future. As Gartner Group pointed out, B2B e-commerce will be truly worldwide by then [6]. B2B e-commerce covers a broad range of applications that allows companies to form electronic relationships with their distributors, resellers, suppliers, and other partners. The Internet allows B2B e-commerce players to link their companies to the digital market easily and inexpensively. B2B also facilitates supply chain management. Supply chain management involves the coordination of order generation, order taking, and order fulfillment/distribution of products, services, or information [1]. Electronic payment is a financial exchange that takes place online between buyers and sellers. A successful digital market possesses the capability for electronic payment, thus reducing operational and processing costs, decreasing technology costs, and speeding up completion of transactions. B2B e-commerce also can play an important role in procurement management for purchasing companies. They can reduce purchase prices and cycle time by taking advantage of the digital market's liquidity and transparency [7]. Purchasing companies can eliminate redundant steps from the buying processes through streamlined electronic workflow. A digital market typically offers a wide variety of supplementary services as needed by the trading members, such as authenticating buyers and sellers and streamlining procurement workflow; electronic payment services, risk management, contractual and settlement services; conflict resolution and legal services; and logistics services. Therefore, a capable B2B digital market could lower purchasing costs, reduce inventory and warehouse costs, enhance the efficiency of logistics and procurement, lower marketing cost, and increase sales in the market. This article provides a structural analysis of the B2B digital markets. A structural analysis allows marketing researchers and practitioners to uncover the underlying dimensions, structure, and various characteristics of the subject. The purposes of this research are fourfold: identify the types of existing B2B digital markets, investigate the key characteristics of current digital markets, identify successful factors of running B2B digital markets, and assist start-up companies' investment decision making on participating digital markets. The article first identifies various business models in e-commerce, including B2C- and B2B-based business models. The objectives, design, and findings of structural analysis on 196 digital markets are presented in the later sections. Management implications and conclusions are given in Section 8.

Digital marketplaces are becoming important in B2B e-commerce. While industry insiders are racing to enter the markets, start-up Internet companies seem to have an edge in this competition so far. However, it is too soon to determine the real winners of this heated race. As a number of digital exchanges fight for market share, a shakeout among them is likely to happen in the next few years. To survive in this competitive industry, vertical exchanges should form alliances with functional hubs to offer one-stop shopping conveniences for their customers, and vertical hubs should deepen their industry-specific content in order to serve more specific users' needs. Users and builders of digital marketplaces should also critically evaluate the market condition, consumer needs, and product characteristics so as to decide whether to join or build an “auction” or “marketplace” type of exchange. For commodity type of products with highly price-sensitive demand, an auction model works better. For consumers with complicated needs who have to choose from a diverse set of manufacturers' offerings, a “marketplace” model seems to be more efficient in helping buyers quickly find the right sellers, or vice versa. Further, in this type of mode, participants' expectations about the value-added services from the exchange are high. Through active brokering of deals and the addition of value-added support services, the digital exchange can help sellers and buyers reduce transaction costs and enhance efficiency. In addition to creating value in areas such as marketing, customer service, and operations, developing new products and services is critical.