Abstract
Online retailing has created an empirical opportunity to examine consumer search behavior using click stream data. In this article we examine the implications of greater variety online for consumer search intensity, and equilibrium prices. We test our hypothesis using consumer data on online search and purchase behavior from the comScore Web Behavior Panel. We find that search intensity systematically decreases in categories with broader product ranges, and equilibrium prices rise. Our findings suggests that broader product ranges in online retail markets can produce anti-competitive effects that are mediated through equilibrium responses in consumer search behavior.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 225-242 |
Number of pages | 18 |
Journal | American Journal of Agricultural Economics |
Volume | 99 |
Issue number | 1 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Jan 2017 |
Keywords
- Attribute search
- Consumer search
- Market power
- Retail prices
- Variety
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Agricultural and Biological Sciences (miscellaneous)
- Economics and Econometrics