Your Call: eBay and Demand for the iPhone 4☆

Michael Waterson and Chris Doyle

International Journal of the Economics of Business, 2012, vol. 19, issue 1, 141-152

Abstract: The iPhone 4 was introduced into the UK market on 24-super-th June 2010 to significant consumer interest. Demand revealed itself exceeding supply through conventional channels, since there was very extensive activity in terms of bidding on eBay auctions for the product. We monitored all UK eBay transactions on the iPhone 4 for six weeks from introduction, with total transactions amounting to around £1.5m. We analyse determinants of winning bids in terms of characteristics of the phone, the seller, and the buyer. Our most notable and novel finding relative to previous studies is a very significant premium over list price being paid in almost all cases, with positive uplift factors including whether the phone was unlocked and whether it could be sold overseas. Demand fell over time, as evidenced by lower achieved prices, but the fall in price was relatively modest. A significant premium of 32GB over 16GB versions is revealed.

Date: 2012
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DOI: 10.1080/13571516.2012.642644

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