Marketspace Explained

The marketspace is a marketing and strategic management concept that emerged in the mid-1990s. It refers to a virtual "information-defined transaction space"^[1] in contrast to traditional physical marketplaces. The term was introduced by Jeffrey Rayport and John Sviokla in their 1994 article "Managing in the Marketspace" that appeared in Harvard Business Review.^[1]

Definition

Rayport and Sviokla did not present a formal definition of marketspace in their original Harvard Business Review paper but describe its characteristics. In synthesis marketspace is an information-defined transaction space where value is created and extracted. It exists in parallel to physical marketplaces and marketplace transactions.

A marketspace transaction is different from marketplace transactions. According to Rayport and Sviokla both differ in terms of content, context, and infrastructure. The content of the transaction is different because the marketspace replaces actual goods and services with information about goods and services. The context differs substituting face-to-face interactions with technology mediated transactions, for example electronic, on-screen interactions. Finally the infrastructure that enables the transaction to occur differs. Connected electronic devices such as computers replace a physical marketplace such as a mall. The marketspace is in essence a virtual selling space.

Rayport and Sviokla make three references to the Internet in their paper. The term internet has replaced the term marketspace, which is rarely used nowadays. For recent exceptions see:

• Kuruzovich, J., Viswanathan, S., Agarwal, R., Gosain, S., & Weitzman, S. (2008). Marketspace or Marketplace? Online Information Search and Channel Outcomes in Auto Retailing. Information Systems Research, 19(2), 182–201.^[2]
• Dholakia, N., Darmody, A., Zwick, D., Dholakia, R. R., & Fırat, A. F. (2021). Consumer Choicemaking and Choicelessness in Hyperdigital Marketspaces. Journal of Macromarketing, 41(1), 65-74.^[3]

Impact

The Harvard Business Review article led to various academic investigations, especially in international business.^{[4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9]} Jim Hamill, a reader in the marketing department at the University of Strathclyde in Scotland at the time, was one of the first to note this link in a 1997 paper.^{[10] [11]}

Bibliography

• Rayport, J.F. and J.J. Sviokla (1995), "Exploiting the Virtual Value Chain," Harvard Business Review, Nov-Dec, 75-85.
• Rayport, J.F. and J.J. Sviokla (1994), "Managing in the Marketspace," Harvard Business Review, Nov-Dec, 141-150.

Notes and References

1. Rayport . Jeffrey . Sviokla . John . 1994 . Managing in the Marketspace . Harvard Business Review . 72 . 6 . 141–150 . 10 February 2024.
2. Kuruzovich . Jason . Viswanathan . Siva . Agarwal . Ritu . Brock . Gosain . Weitzman . Scott . 2008 . Marketspace or Marketplace? Online Information Search and Channel Outcomes in Auto Retailing . Information Systems Research . 19 . 2 . 182–201 . 10.1287/isre.1070.0146. 23015432 . 10 February 2024.
3. Dholakia . Nikhilesh . Darmody . Aron . Zwick . Detlev . Dholakia . Ruby Roy . Fırat . A. Fuat . 2020 . Consumer Choicemaking and Choicelessness in Hyperdigital Marketspaces . Journal of Macromarketing . 41 . 1 . 65–74 . 10.1177/0276146720978257. 230607607 . 10 February 2024.
4. Beckermann, W. (1956), "Distance and the Pattern of Intra-European Trade," Review of Economics and Statistics, 38, 31-40.. The Review of Economics and Statistics. 38. 1. 31–40. The MIT Press. 1925556. Beckerman. W.. 1956. 10.2307/1925556.
5. Ghemawat, P. (2001), "Distance Still Matters - The Hard Reality of Global Expansion," Harvard Business Review, September, 137-147.. Harvard Business Review. September 2001. Harvard Business Publishing. 7 September 2019. Ghemawat . Pankaj .
6. Web site: Sarkar, M.B., M. Butler, and J. Steinfield (1998), "Cybermediaries in Electronic Marketspace: Towards Theory Building," Journal of Business Research, 41 (3), 215-221.. Elsevier. 7 September 2019.
7. Berthon . Pierre . Pitt . Leyland . Berthon . J-P . Crowther . Claire . Bruwer . Lisa . Lyall . Peter . Money . Arthur . 1997 . Mapping the Marketspace: Evaluating Industry Web Sites Using Correspondence Analysis . Journal of Strategic Marketing . 5 . 4 . 233–242 . 10.1080/096525497346749. 10 February 2024.
8. Web site: Hoffman, T., T. Novak, and T. Peralta (1999), "Information Privacy in the Marketspace: Implications for the Commercial Use of Anonymity on the Web," The Information Society, 15 (2), 129-139.. Tayler & Francis. 7 September 2019.
9. Berry . M.M.J. . Brock . Juergen Kai-Uwe . 2004 . Marketspace and the Internationalisation Process of the Small Firm . Journal of International Entrepreneurship . 2 . 3 . 187–216 . 10.1023/B:JIEN.0000032773.32304.a6. 153437534 . 10 February 2024.
10. Hamill . Jim . 1997 . The Internet and international marketing . International Marketing Review . 14 . 5 . 300–323 . 10.1108/02651339710184280 . 10 February 2024.
11. See also the work, shortly thereafter, of a PhD student at the same department, who investigated the link between marketspace and international business explicitly: Brock, Juergen Kai-Uwe (2000), Virtual Globals: Marketspace and the Internationalisation of Small Technology-Based Firms. PhD Thesis; Glasgow, Scotland: University of Strathclyde.. 2000 . University of Strathclyde. 10.48730/sghz-f818 . 7 September 2019. Brock . Juergen Kai-Uwe. .