Marketplace or Hybrid: Vendor's Information Sharing with e-Retailer

Abstract

This study explores the information sharing (IS) in a supply chain (SC) with a vendor selling goods via an e-retailer to consumers. Four scenarios were considered for the multistage game between the vendor and the e-retailer, and the vendor's policy of IS and the e-retailer's decision on online platform access were discussed under each scenario. The results show that the e-retailer will access the online platform at a low fixed access fee and will not at a high fixed access fee. Whether the vendor shares information with the e-retailer or not, he/she always faces a worse situation with e-retailer's online access. The vendor's decision on IS hinges on the commission rate, contesting intensity, and fixed access fee. When the commission rate is low, the vendor will share the demand if the fixed access fee is low and will not share the information if the access fee is moderate. When the commission rate is high and the contesting is fierce, the vendor is willing to share the demand if the fixed access fee is low or moderate and has no difference in the decision on IS if the fixed access fee is high.