Title
The role of the Internet on free-riding: An exploratory study of the wallpaper industry
Document Type
Article
Department or Administrative Unit
Management
Publication Date
7-2010
Abstract
This study discusses the role of the Internet on possible free-riding activities for product categories where retail services are a critical part of the completed consumer purchase transaction. The study investigates free-riding in terms of consumer pre-purchase activities during the information search stage (how they process shopping information) and actual purchase decisions with a literature review. The study's empirical findings indicate that full-service retailers’ beliefs about online consumers’ choice of purchase outlet are predominantly influenced by online retailer prices rather than availability of a variety of products (place) on the Internet. This, in turn, indicates the possibility of strong free-riding opportunities in the sample wallpaper market. The study, in this context, proposes strategies and policies to eliminate many of the destructive effects of the opportunities for free-riding provided by the Internet for long-lasting channel and market effectiveness and efficiency.
Recommended Citation
Umit Kucuk, S., & Maddux, R. C. (2010). The role of the Internet on free-riding: An exploratory study of the wallpaper industry. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, 17(4), 313–320. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jretconser.2010.03.003
Journal
Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services
Rights
Published by Elsevier Ltd.
Comments
This article was originally published in Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services. The full-text article from the publisher can be found here.
Due to copyright restrictions, this article is not available for free download from ScholarWorks @ CWU.