Classroom Companion: Business

in Digital Markets – 245
17.3 
 E-Commerce Markets – 247
17.4 
 Network Access Markets – 251
17.5 
 Information Service
Markets – 254
17.6 
 Conclusions – 256
 References – 258
17

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244
17
 
n Learning Objectives
After completing this chapter, you should be able to:
5
Understand digital and e-commerce markets.
5
Identify the different types of stakeholders in digital markets.
5
Analyze network access markets and information service markets.
17.1 
 Market Types
A market is a mechanism for trading both tangible and intangible goods and ser-
vices. 
.
Figure 
17.1
 classifies markets according to the type of good or service 
(horizontal axis) and type of channel used for trading the good or service (vertical 
axis). Examples of tangible goods include computers and cars. Examples of non- 
digital services are hairdressing and taxi rides. Online trading implies that an ICT 
infrastructure (the Internet) is used to carry out some or all activities associated 
with the trade: viewing products, bargaining prices and delivery terms, ordering, 
product delivery, and transfer of payment. Tangible goods and non-digital services 
can be traded online; however, these products cannot be delivered over the ICT 
infrastructure. Shipment and delivery of digital services is done online. We may 
then define a digital market as follows.
Definition 17.1 Digital Market
A digital market is a mechanism for online trading of both digital goods and digital 
services and tangible goods and non-digital services.
Tangible goods and
non-digital services
Digital goods and services
Re
tail
st
or
es
Online
Digital goods
retailer 
Traditional retailer
Product trading
Network access
Information
services
E-commerce
. Fig. 17.1 Classification of markets. (Authors’ own figure)