The Impact of Platform Information Sharing on Manufacturer’s Choice of Online Distribution Mode and Green Investment

Abstract

In this study, we consider a dual-channel supply chain structure where a manufacturer invests in green products and distributes them to green-conscious consumers through an offline retailer and an online platform. The manufacturer has the flexibility to choose sales via either a wholesale mode or an agency selling mode on the online platform channel. The platform can obtain private information and decide whether to share it with the manufacturer. This study investigates the strategic interaction between the green manufacturer’s decision to use an online sales mode and the online platform’s strategy for information sharing. Our analysis reveals that under the wholesale price mode, the platform is willing to share demand information only when the manufacturer exhibits high investment efficiency. In contrast, under the agency selling mode, the platform always shares demand information regardless of the level of investment efficiency. Nevertheless, the manufacturer is discouraged from opting for the agency selling mode due to the higher commission rate. Interestingly, we observe that when the value of information is sufficiently high, the manufacturer still tends to prefer the agency selling mode, despite the added cost of the higher commission fee. Additionally, the offline retailer always benefits from the information sharing conducted by the online platform. Finally, our extended model indicates that the timing of information-sharing decisions has a significant impact on the manufacturer’s choice of mode.

Keywords

• consumer green awareness
• information sharing
• sales mode
• dual channel