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Abstract: Bargaining and Fixed Price Offers: How Online Intermediaries are Changing New Car Transactions
Abstract
Bargaining and Fixed Price Offers: How Online Intermediaries are Changing New Car Transactions
The Review of Network Economics
Vol. 6, Issue 2 - June 2007, pp 134-160
Authors
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Michael A. Arnold
Department of Economics, University of Delaware
Thierry P�nard
CREM, University of Rennes 1
E-mail: [email protected] |
Abstract
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This paper develops a model of oligopolistic price competition to analyze the impact of online intermediaries such as Autobytel.com on the price setting process in the automobile market. The roles of dealer search costs, the fraction of buyers using the intermediary, the value of the item being sold, and heterogeneity in buyer bargaining abilities are explored. The model provides theoretical insights relevant to the empirical literature addressing the role that intermediaries like Autobytel play in online markets. For example, we present conditions under which the price offered through the intermediary is either higher or lower than offline (bargained) prices.
Keywords: Internet, bargaining, referral intermediary.
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