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Public versus Secret Reserve Prices in eBay Auctions: Results from a Pokémon Field Experiment

Author

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  • Katkar Rama

    (Graduate School of Business, Stanford University)

  • Reiley David H

    (University of Arizona)

Abstract

Sellers in eBay auctions have the opportunity to choose both a public minimum bid amount and a secret reserve price. We ask, empirically, whether the seller is made better or worse off by setting a secret reserve above a low minimum bid, versus the option of making the reserve public by using it as the minimum bid level. In a field experiment, we auction 50 matched pairs of Pokémon cards on eBay, half with secret reserves and half with equivalently high public minimum bids. We find that secret reserve prices make us worse off as sellers, by reducing the probability of the auction resulting in a sale, deterring serious bidders from entering the auction and lowering the expected transaction price of the auction. We also present evidence that some sellers choose to use secret reserve prices for reasons other than increasing their expected auction prices.

Suggested Citation

  • Katkar Rama & Reiley David H, 2007. "Public versus Secret Reserve Prices in eBay Auctions: Results from a Pokémon Field Experiment," The B.E. Journal of Economic Analysis & Policy, De Gruyter, vol. 5(2), pages 1-25, January.
  • Handle: RePEc:bpj:bejeap:v:advances.6:y:2007:i:2:n:7
    DOI: 10.2202/1538-0637.1442
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    Cited by:

    1. Steven Anderson & Daniel Friedman & Garrett Milam & Nirvikar Singh, 2004. "Buy it Now: A Hybrid Internet Market Institution," Industrial Organization 0412003, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    2. Paul Resnick & Richard Zeckhauser & John Swanson & Kate Lockwood, 2006. "The value of reputation on eBay: A controlled experiment," Experimental Economics, Springer;Economic Science Association, vol. 9(2), pages 79-101, June.
    3. Pasha Andreyanov & El Hadi Caoui, 2022. "Secret reserve prices by uninformed sellers," Quantitative Economics, Econometric Society, vol. 13(3), pages 1203-1256, July.
    4. Foster, Joshua, 2022. "Semi-nonparametric estimation of secret reserve prices in auctions," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 220(C).
    5. Jennifer Brown & John Morgan, 2009. "How Much Is a Dollar Worth? Tipping versus Equilibrium Coexistence on Competing Online Auction Sites," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 117(4), pages 668-700, August.
    6. Canavari, Maurizio & Drichoutis, Andreas C. & Lusk, Jayson L. & Nayga, Rodolfo, 2018. "How to run an experimental auction: A review of recent advances," MPRA Paper 89715, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    7. Patrick Bajari & Ali Hortaçsu, 2004. "Economic Insights from Internet Auctions," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 42(2), pages 457-486, June.
    8. David Grether & David Porter & Matthew Shum, 2015. "Cyber-Shilling in Automobile Auctions: Evidence from a Field Experiment," American Economic Journal: Microeconomics, American Economic Association, vol. 7(3), pages 85-103, August.
    9. Durham Yvonne & Roelofs Matthew R & Standifird Stephen S, 2004. "eBay's Buy-It-Now Function: Who, When, and How," The B.E. Journal of Economic Analysis & Policy, De Gruyter, vol. 4(1), pages 1-24, October.
    10. Diego Moreno & John Wooders, 2011. "Auctions with heterogeneous entry costs," RAND Journal of Economics, RAND Corporation, vol. 42(2), pages 313-336, June.
    11. Tanjim Hossain & John Morgan, 2005. "A test of the revenue equivalence theorem using field experiments on ebay," Natural Field Experiments 00269, The Field Experiments Website.
    12. Levitt, Steven D. & List, John A., 2009. "Field experiments in economics: The past, the present, and the future," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 53(1), pages 1-18, January.
    13. Ming Zhou & William Y. Jiang & Menglin Cao, 2012. "Pricing In Online Auction Procurement A Review Of Empirical Methods And Current Understandings," International Journal of Innovation and Technology Management (IJITM), World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., vol. 9(03), pages 1-17.
    14. Patrick Bajari & Ali Hortacsu, 2003. "Economic Insights from Internet Auctions: A Survey," NBER Working Papers 10076, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    15. Cramton, Peter & Hellerstein, Daniel & Higgins, Nathaniel & Iovanna, Richard & López-Vargas, Kristian & Wallander, Steven, 2021. "Improving the cost-effectiveness of the Conservation Reserve Program: A laboratory study," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 108(C).
    16. Baron, David P., 2001. "Private Ordering on the Internet: The eBay Community of Traders," Research Papers 1709, Stanford University, Graduate School of Business.
    17. Mikhail I. Melnik & James Alm, 2005. "Seller Reputation, Information Signals, and Prices for Heterogeneous Coins on eBay," Southern Economic Journal, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 72(2), pages 305-328, October.
    18. Patrick Bajari & Ali Hortacsu, 2002. "Cyberspace Auctions and Pricing Issues: A Review of Empirical Findings," Working Papers 02005, Stanford University, Department of Economics.
    19. Quitzau, Jörn, 2004. "Handeln Wirtschaftssubjekte rational? Empirische Evidenz aus Internet-Auktionen," Research Notes 12, Deutsche Bank Research.
    20. Messer, Kent D. & Duke, Joshua M. & Lynch, Lori & Li, Tongzhe, 2017. "When Does Public Information Undermine the Efficiency of Reverse Auctions for the Purchase of Ecosystem Services?," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 134(C), pages 212-226.
    21. Jiao, Feng, 2011. "Bidding behaviors in eBay auctions: secret reservation price and endogenous entry," MPRA Paper 35081, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    22. A T Brint, 2003. "Investigating buyer and seller strategies in online auctions," Journal of the Operational Research Society, Palgrave Macmillan;The OR Society, vol. 54(11), pages 1177-1188, November.
    23. Han, Jidong & Popkowski Leszczyc, Peter T.L. & Zhang, Zelin, 2021. "Empirical Analyses of Nonlinear Effects of Reserve Prices on Ending Prices in Online Auctions," Journal of Interactive Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 54(C), pages 86-102.

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    JEL classification:

    • D44 - Microeconomics - - Market Structure, Pricing, and Design - - - Auctions

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