Collaborative consumption

Collaborative consumption is the set of those resource circulation systems in which consumers both "obtain" and "provide", temporarily or permanently, valuable resources or services through direct interaction with other consumers or through a mediator. It is sometimes paired with the concept of the "sharing economy".[1][2] Collaborative consumption is not new; it has always existed (e.g. in the form of flea markets, swap meets, garage sales, car boot sales, and second-hand shops).[3][4]

In 2011, collaborative consumption was named one of Time magazine's 10 ideas that will change the world.[5]

Definition

The first detailed explanation of collaborative consumption in the modern era was in a paper from Marcus Felson and Joe L. Spaeth in 1978.[6] It has regained a new impetus through information technology, especially Web 2.0, mobile technology, and social media.[7]

A June 2018 study,[8] using bibliometrics and network analysis, analyzed the evolution of scholarly research on collaborative consumption, and identified that this expression started in 2010 with Botsman and Rogers' (2010) book What's Mine is Yours: The Rise of Collaborative Consumption. The number of studies published on the subject then increased in 2014. There are four clusters of research: 1) exploration and conceptualization of collaborative consumption; 2) consumer behavior and marketing empiricism; 3) mutualization and sharing systems; 4) sustainability in the collaborative economy. The analysis suggests that this last cluster was under-researched in contrast to the three others, but started to increase in importance after 2017.

Collaborative consumption contrasts with conventional consumption or traditional consumption.

Importance

The sharing economy is built on the sharing of underused assets, both tangible and intangible. If people start sharing underused resources or services, this will decrease not only their material waste but also their waste of resources.

There are broadly two forms of collaborative consumption:

Focusing on redistribution systems only, the Canadian-based "Kijiji Secondhand Economy Index" of 2016,[18] estimated that about 85% of consumers acquired or disposed of pre-owned goods through second-hand marketplaces (second-hand purchase and resale), donation, or barter, through either online or offline exchange channels. According to the "Kijiji Secondhand Economy Index" of 2015, the Canadian second-hand market alone was estimated at 230 billion dollars.[19]

In addition, for-profit mutualization platforms, commonly referred to as "commercial peer-to-peer mutualization systems" (CPMS) or, more colloquially, the sharing economy, represented a global market worth 15 billion dollars in 2014; 29 billion dollars in 2015; and are expected to reach 335 billion dollars by 2025.[20]

Consumer two-sided role

Collaborative consumption challenges business scholars and practitioners alike because it induces a two-sided consumer role which goes beyond the classic notion of a buyer/consumer, who typically has no input in the production or distribution process.[22] Companies have traditionally sold products and services to consumers; they now start pulling on their resources too through co-creation[23] or prosumption.[22] According to Scaraboto, this means that individuals are able to "switch roles, engage in embedded entrepreneurship and collaborate to produce and access resources".[24] Collaborative consumption is characterized by consumers' capacity to be both "providers" and "obtainers" of resources in a given "resource circulation system". A collaborative consumption system means therefore a resource circulation system in which the individual is not only a mere "consumer" but also an obtainer who has the opportunity to endorse, if wanted or needed, a "provider" role (e.g. Kijiji, Craigslist, eBay), as follows:[2]

Collaborative intensity

Collaborative consumption can be conceived of as a "resource circulation system"[12] incurring different levels of collaborative intensity, namely:

A mediating or intermediary organization may be a for-profit or a not-for-profit:[2]

• 1) Pure collaboration (C2C, or Consumer-to-Consumer)
• 2) Sourcing collaboration (C2O, or Consumer-to-Organization)
• 3) Trading collaboration (O2C, or Organization-to-Consumer)

Types

Collaborative consumption is a sort of economic arrangement in which participants mutualize access to products or services, in addition to finding original ways to individual ownership.[26][27] The phenomenon stems from consumers' desire to be in control of their consumption instead of "passive 'victims' of hyperconsumption".[28]

The collaborative consumption model is used in online marketplaces such as eBay as well as emerging sectors such as social lending, peer-to-peer accommodation, peer-to-peer travel experiences,[29] peer-to-peer task assignments or travel advising, and carsharing or commuting-bus sharing.[28]

In 2010, Botsman and Rogers identified three resource circulation systems within collaborative consumption or the sharing economy: product-service systems, redistribution markets, and collaborative lifestyles.

See also

• Sharing – online platforms for collaborative consumption of media