3.5 Transaction broker

Transaction brokers offer services that customers used to handle personally – going to physical shops, or making calls and sending emails. Some examples are financial services, travel services and job placement services. A typical example is the popular website www.booking.com [Tip: hold Ctrl and click a link to open it in a new tab. (Hide tip)] . These brokers charge transaction fees for their services, such as the purchase of commodities or stocks or the conversion between different currencies. By using these online services, customers get the advantage of saving time and accessing lower prices granted by the service provider, who is able to aggregate a large demand without increasing its workforce. Job placement websites such as www.monster.com attract jobseekers and employers. Employers pay fees to put their job adverts on the website and are charged a fee when the position is filled.

Attracting large number of users create the externality that makes this type of business model successful.