Value perceptions of first-party content on multi-sided platforms: Findings from the Amazon Marketplace

In the context of multi-sided platform (MSP) literature, the strategic use of first-party content is well established. In these contexts, consumers' value perceptions of first- and third-party content is assumed to be equivalent. In the marketing literature, however, it is generally accepted that the perceived value of products from store brands is significantly lower than products from manufacturer brands. This study investigates whether the same difference exists among consumers on a multi-sided platform. The study finds that consumers perceive products sold by the platform as delivering significantly less value than substitutes from third-party brands, and that this difference persists independently of price. The implications of the findings for managers and marketers are that (i) first-party content strategies on MSPs are limited by consumers' value perceptions. This implies that (ii) managers should calibrate their first-party content strategies according to target customers' preferences and that (iii) in their analytics, marketers should distinguish between first- and third-party content.