IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/inm/ormksc/v38y2019i1p150-169.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Freemium as an Optimal Strategy for Market Dominant Firms

Author

Listed:
  • Zijun (June) Shi

    (Tepper School of Business, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15213)

  • Kaifu Zhang

    (Tepper School of Business, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15213)

  • Kannan Srinivasan

    (Tepper School of Business, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15213)

Abstract

Despite its immense popularity, the freemium business model remains a complex strategy to master and often a topic of heated debate. Adopting a generalized version of the screening framework, we ask when and why a firm should endogenously offer a zero price on its low-end product when users’ product usages generate network externalities on each other. In the standard screening framework without network effects, freemium never emerges as optimal, and the firm always chooses the efficient price point for its low-end product. We show that even with network effects, freemium is typically not optimal. When network effects are identical across products (“symmetric”), the firm has greater incentive to expand its network size and may find it profitable to sell to the low-end customers. However, this does not lead to freemium as an equilibrium strategy. Instead, the firm should offer a low-end product to attract customers, while keeping its price positive. Freemium can only emerge if the high- and low-end products provide different levels of (“asymmetric”) marginal network effects. In other words, the firm would set a zero price for its low-end product only if the high-end product provided larger utility gain from an expansion of the firm’s user base. In contrast to conventional beliefs, a firm pursuing the freemium strategy might increase the baseline quality on its low-end product above the “efficient” level, which seemingly reduces differentiation.

Suggested Citation

  • Zijun (June) Shi & Kaifu Zhang & Kannan Srinivasan, 2019. "Freemium as an Optimal Strategy for Market Dominant Firms," Marketing Science, INFORMS, vol. 38(1), pages 150-169, January.
  • Handle: RePEc:inm:ormksc:v:38:y:2019:i:1:p:150-169
    DOI: 10.1287/mksc.2018.1109
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1287/mksc.2018.1109
    Download Restriction: no

    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1287/mksc.2018.1109?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Farrell, Joseph & Klemperer, Paul, 2007. "Coordination and Lock-In: Competition with Switching Costs and Network Effects," Handbook of Industrial Organization, in: Mark Armstrong & Robert Porter (ed.), Handbook of Industrial Organization, edition 1, volume 3, chapter 31, pages 1967-2072, Elsevier.
    2. Banerji, A. & Dutta, Bhaskar, 2009. "Local network externalities and market segmentation," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 27(5), pages 605-614, September.
    3. Jean‐Charles Rochet & Jean Tirole, 2006. "Two‐sided markets: a progress report," RAND Journal of Economics, RAND Corporation, vol. 37(3), pages 645-667, September.
    4. Marius F. Niculescu & D. J. Wu, 2014. "Economics of Free Under Perpetual Licensing: Implications for the Software Industry," Information Systems Research, INFORMS, vol. 25(1), pages 173-199, March.
    5. Jackson, Matthew O. & Wolinsky, Asher, 1996. "A Strategic Model of Social and Economic Networks," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 71(1), pages 44-74, October.
    6. Anderson, Simon P. & Celik, Levent, 2015. "Product line design," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 157(C), pages 517-526.
    7. Bing Jing & Z. Zhang, 2011. "Product line competition and price promotions," Quantitative Marketing and Economics (QME), Springer, vol. 9(3), pages 275-299, September.
    8. Preyas Desai & Sunder Kekre & Suresh Radhakrishnan & Kannan Srinivasan, 2001. "Product Differentiation and Commonality in Design: Balancing Revenue and Cost Drivers," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 47(1), pages 37-51, January.
    9. Preyas S. Desai, 2001. "Quality Segmentation in Spatial Markets: When Does Cannibalization Affect Product Line Design?," Marketing Science, INFORMS, vol. 20(3), pages 265-283, August.
    10. Moen, Espen R. & Riis, Christian & Fjeldstad, Øystein, 2010. "Competition with Local Network Externalities," CEPR Discussion Papers 7778, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    11. Katz, Michael L & Shapiro, Carl, 1985. "Network Externalities, Competition, and Compatibility," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 75(3), pages 424-440, June.
    12. Katz, Michael L & Shapiro, Carl, 1986. "Technology Adoption in the Presence of Network Externalities," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 94(4), pages 822-841, August.
    13. Andrei Hagiu, 2006. "Pricing and Commitment by Two-Sided Platforms," RAND Journal of Economics, The RAND Corporation, vol. 37(3), pages 720-737, Autumn.
    14. K. Sridhar Moorthy & I. P. L. Png, 1992. "Market Segmentation, Cannibalization, and the Timing of Product Introductions," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 38(3), pages 345-359, March.
    15. Wagner, T. & Benlian, Alexander & Hess, Thomas, 2014. "Converting freemium customers from free to premium - The role of the perceived premium fit in the case of music as a service," Publications of Darmstadt Technical University, Institute for Business Studies (BWL) 66722, Darmstadt Technical University, Department of Business Administration, Economics and Law, Institute for Business Studies (BWL).
    16. A. Ye(scedilla)im Orhun, 2009. "Optimal Product Line Design When Consumers Exhibit Choice Set-Dependent Preferences," Marketing Science, INFORMS, vol. 28(5), pages 868-886, 09-10.
    17. Rabik Ar Chatterjee & Jehoshua Eliashberg, 1990. "The Innovation Diffusion Process in a Heterogeneous Population: A Micromodeling Approach," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 36(9), pages 1057-1079, September.
    18. Mussa, Michael & Rosen, Sherwin, 1978. "Monopoly and product quality," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 18(2), pages 301-317, August.
    19. Cheng, Hsing Kenneth & Tang, Qian Candy, 2010. "Free trial or no free trial: Optimal software product design with network effects," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 205(2), pages 437-447, September.
    20. Andrei Hagiu, 2006. "Pricing and commitment by two‐sided platforms," RAND Journal of Economics, RAND Corporation, vol. 37(3), pages 720-737, September.
    21. Wagner, C. & Benlian, Alexander & Hess, Thomas, 2014. "Converting freemium customers from free to premium - The role of the perceived premium fit in the case of music as a service," Publications of Darmstadt Technical University, Institute for Business Studies (BWL) 63495, Darmstadt Technical University, Department of Business Administration, Economics and Law, Institute for Business Studies (BWL).
    22. Jing, Bing, 2007. "Network externalities and market segmentation in a monopoly," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 95(1), pages 7-13, April.
    23. Wagner, T. & Benlian, Alexander & Hess, Thomas, 2014. "Converting freemium customers from free to premium - The role of the perceived premium fit in the case of music as a service," Publications of Darmstadt Technical University, Institute for Business Studies (BWL) 69900, Darmstadt Technical University, Department of Business Administration, Economics and Law, Institute for Business Studies (BWL).
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Zhang, Qiao & Zaccour, Georges & Zhang, Jianxiong & Tang, Wansheng, 2020. "Strategic pricing under quality signaling and imitation behaviors in supply chains," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 142(C).
    2. Le Wang & Paul Benjamin Lowry & Xin (Robert) Luo & Han Li, 2023. "Moving Consumers from Free to Fee in Platform-Based Markets: An Empirical Study of Multiplayer Online Battle Arena Games," Information Systems Research, INFORMS, vol. 34(1), pages 275-296, March.
    3. José A. Novo‐Peteiro, 2023. "Product design with attribute dependence," Manchester School, University of Manchester, vol. 91(4), pages 361-385, July.
    4. Chutian Wang & Bo Zhou & Yogesh V. Joshi, 2024. "Endogenous Consumption and Metered Paywalls," Marketing Science, INFORMS, vol. 43(1), pages 158-177, January.
    5. Xiaoyan Chen & Wei Geng, 2022. "Enroll now, pay later: optimal pricing and nudge efforts for massive-online-open-courses providers," Electronic Markets, Springer;IIM University of St. Gallen, vol. 32(2), pages 1003-1018, June.
    6. Rodrigo Belo & Ting Li, 2022. "Social Referral Programs for Freemium Platforms," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 68(12), pages 8933-8962, December.
    7. Kevin J. Boudreau & Lars Bo Jeppesen & Milan Miric, 2022. "Competing on freemium: Digital competition with network effects," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 43(7), pages 1374-1401, July.
    8. Yuichiro Kamada & Aniko Öry, 2020. "Contracting with Word-of-Mouth Management," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 66(11), pages 5094-5107, November.
    9. Haenlein, Michael & Libai, Barak & Muller, Eitan, 2023. "Satiation and cross promotion: Selling and swapping users in mobile games," International Journal of Research in Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 40(2), pages 342-361.
    10. Lei Zhou & Yue Qi & Xinshang You, 2023. "Research on Time to Market and Pricing of Platform Products in a Competitive Environment," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(7), pages 1-19, March.
    11. Enache, Andreea & Friberg, Richard & Wiklander, Magnus, 2023. "Demand for in-app purchases in mobile apps—A difference-in-difference approach," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 88(C).
    12. Hongshuang (Alice) Li, 2022. "Converting free users to paid subscribers in the SaaS context: The impact of marketing touchpoints, message content, and usage," Production and Operations Management, Production and Operations Management Society, vol. 31(5), pages 2185-2203, May.
    13. Yunke Mai & Bin Hu, 2023. "Optimizing Free-to-Play Multiplayer Games with Premium Subscription," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 69(6), pages 3437-3456, June.
    14. Joost Rietveld & Joe N. Ploog, 2022. "On top of the game? The double‐edged sword of incorporating social features into freemium products," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 43(6), pages 1182-1207, June.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Xiaoyan Chen & Wei Geng, 2022. "Enroll now, pay later: optimal pricing and nudge efforts for massive-online-open-courses providers," Electronic Markets, Springer;IIM University of St. Gallen, vol. 32(2), pages 1003-1018, June.
    2. Tang, Hua & Chen, Jing & Ai, Xingzheng & Li, Xiaojing & He, Haojia, 2023. "First-party content decision under competitive hardware/software platforms: Free vs. charge," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 311(3), pages 1068-1083.
    3. José A. Novo‐Peteiro, 2023. "Product design with attribute dependence," Manchester School, University of Manchester, vol. 91(4), pages 361-385, July.
    4. Jullien, Bruno & Pavan, Alessandro & Rysman, Marc, 2021. "Two-sided Markets, Pricing, and Network Effects," TSE Working Papers 21-1238, Toulouse School of Economics (TSE).
    5. Calvano, Emilio & Polo, Michele, 2021. "Market power, competition and innovation in digital markets: A survey," Information Economics and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 54(C).
    6. Belleflamme,Paul & Peitz,Martin, 2015. "Industrial Organization," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9781107687899, September.
    7. Kevin J. Boudreau & Lars Bo Jeppesen & Milan Miric, 2022. "Competing on freemium: Digital competition with network effects," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 43(7), pages 1374-1401, July.
    8. Oz Shy, 2011. "A Short Survey of Network Economics," Review of Industrial Organization, Springer;The Industrial Organization Society, vol. 38(2), pages 119-149, March.
    9. Edward G. Anderson & Geoffrey G. Parker & Burcu Tan, 2014. "Platform Performance Investment in the Presence of Network Externalities," Information Systems Research, INFORMS, vol. 25(1), pages 152-172, March.
    10. Kang Li & Jingwei Zhang & Lunchuan Zhang, 2021. "Optimal Software Feature-Limited Freemium Model Design: A New Consumer Learning Theoretical Framework," Mathematics, MDPI, vol. 9(9), pages 1-24, April.
    11. Ron Adner & Jianqing Chen & Feng Zhu, 2020. "Frenemies in Platform Markets: Heterogeneous Profit Foci as Drivers of Compatibility Decisions," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 66(6), pages 2432-2451, June.
    12. Wang, Jin, 2021. "Do birds of a feather flock together? Platform’s quality screening and end-users’ choices theory and empirical study of online trading platforms," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 75(C).
    13. Min-Seok Pang & Hila Etzion, 2012. "Research Note --- Analyzing Pricing Strategies for Online Services with Network Effects," Information Systems Research, INFORMS, vol. 23(4), pages 1364-1377, December.
    14. Philipp Brüggemann & Nina Lehmann-Zschunke, 2023. "How to reduce termination on freemium platforms—literature review and empirical analysis," Journal of Marketing Analytics, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 11(4), pages 707-721, December.
    15. Jan Frederic Nerbel & Markus Kreutzer, 2023. "Digital platform ecosystems in flux: From proprietary digital platforms to wide-spanning ecosystems," Electronic Markets, Springer;IIM University of St. Gallen, vol. 33(1), pages 1-20, December.
    16. Yan, Xiaoming & Zhao, Wenhan & Yu, Yugang, 2022. "Optimal product line design with reference price effects," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 302(3), pages 1045-1062.
    17. Navarro, Noemí, 2012. "Price and quality decisions under network effects," Journal of Mathematical Economics, Elsevier, vol. 48(5), pages 263-270.
    18. Alexei Parakhonyak & Nick Vikander, 2019. "Optimal Sales Schemes for Network Goods," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 65(2), pages 819-841, February.
    19. Jingtao Yi & Jinqiu He & Lihong Yang, 2019. "Platform heterogeneity, platform governance and complementors’ product performance: an empirical study of the mobile application industry," Frontiers of Business Research in China, Springer, vol. 13(1), pages 1-20, December.
    20. Yue Liu & Rong Luo, 2023. "Network Effects and Multinetwork Sellers’ Dynamic Pricing in the U.S. Smartphone Market," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 69(6), pages 3297-3318, June.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:inm:ormksc:v:38:y:2019:i:1:p:150-169. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Chris Asher (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/inforea.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.