We study the circumstances under which a dissatisfied third-party seller (firms) on a dominant retail platform, such as Amazon or WeChat will team up with other competing firms on the platform to establish an independent niche retail platform. The dissatisfaction of firms stems from governance...

Consumer ratings play a decisive role in purchases by online shoppers. Although the effect of the average and the number of consumer ratings on future product pricing and demand have been studied with some conclusive results, the effects of the variance of these ratings are less well understood....

Abstract: As online reviews play a decisive role in consumers' purchase decisions, e-commerce platforms are using review systems strategically to obtain a competitive advantage. However, the strategic potential can only be leveraged if the review system is designed appropriately. Research on the...