摘要 : This paper uses a search model to study the competition between a store brand and a third-party brand in a platform. Consumers sample products in a sequential ordering. Sampling cost is crucial for determining product orderings. W... 展开 This paper uses a search model to study the competition between a store brand and a third-party brand in a platform. Consumers sample products in a sequential ordering. Sampling cost is crucial for determining product orderings. We find that, the platform prefers making the third-party brand prominent when the outside market is closed, and generally prefers making the store brand prominent when there are infinitely many firms in the outside market. The difference in product ordering can be attributed to the strength of competition-intensifying effect and market-expansion effect. Generally speaking, the platform's choice lowers down consumer surplus and social welfare. 收起