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How do sellers benefit from Buy-It-Now prices in eBay auctions?

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  • Grebe, Tim
  • Ivanova-Stenzel, Radosveta
  • Kröger, Sabine

Abstract

In eBay “Buy-It-Now” auctions, sellers make a take-it-or-leave-it price (BIN-price) offer prior to the auction. A buyer can either buy the good at the BIN-price or start the auction. This article studies how eBay sellers set BIN-prices and whether they benefit from using them. We apply a new experimental approach that combines the advantages of the lab and the field: The experiment is conducted in the lab while using the eBay auction platform and eBay traders. We find that the eBay auction format leads to prices substantially below those expected in second-price auctions. Moreover, the publicly available information on eBay about buyer experience and bidding behavior correlates with the observed price deviation and sellers use this information strategically when deciding on their BIN-price. More experienced sellers ask for higher BIN-prices, whereas seller risk aversion does not affect their BIN-price. Compared to an eBay auction without a BIN-price, an auction with a BIN-price is more efficient and generates significantly higher revenue.

Suggested Citation

  • Grebe, Tim & Ivanova-Stenzel, Radosveta & Kröger, Sabine, 2021. "How do sellers benefit from Buy-It-Now prices in eBay auctions?," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 183(C), pages 189-205.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jeborg:v:183:y:2021:i:c:p:189-205
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jebo.2020.12.015
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    Cited by:

    1. Radosveta Ivanova-Stenzel & Sabine Kröger, 2023. "Risk, Reward and Uncertainty in Buyer-Seller Transactions," CIRANO Working Papers 2023s-13, CIRANO.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Buy-It-Now price; eBay; Experience; Experiment; Online markets; Private-value auction;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • C72 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Game Theory and Bargaining Theory - - - Noncooperative Games
    • C91 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Design of Experiments - - - Laboratory, Individual Behavior
    • D44 - Microeconomics - - Market Structure, Pricing, and Design - - - Auctions
    • D82 - Microeconomics - - Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty - - - Asymmetric and Private Information; Mechanism Design
    • L1 - Industrial Organization - - Market Structure, Firm Strategy, and Market Performance

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