Development tendencies of electronic trade platforms and impacts on sector organization. The case of the agrifood

摘要

This paper focuses on electronic trade platforms in the agrifood industry. IT identifies emerging platform models and delineates implications from trade platforms on the sector's organization. Four principal platform models operating in the agrifood sector have been identified: "Neutral verticals". "Downstream re-intermediaries". "Ag output subsectorials", and "Large consortia". For the future development of the sector's trading infrastructure, cooperation among platforms play a crucial role. They allow the development of networks of interconnected platforms lhat could besl serve a sector with its network of dynamic trading relationships. It could be shown that existing collaborations between platforms already relate to a scenario of a platform infrastructure that could cover the complete agrifood chain und combine a baseline transaction support with the flexibility to provide specialized services lo selected target groups.