Modeling Conflict and Coordination in Multi-Channel Distribution Systems: A Review

Abstract

For any company with a product to sell, how to make that product available to the intended customers can be as crucial a strategic issue as developing the product itself1. While distribution channel choice is a very traditional concern, for many companies it has recently come under intense scrutiny due to a number of major developments. The expanding role of the Internet in consumer and business procurement activity has created new opportunities for access to customers. Information and materials handling technologies have broadened the feasible set of sales and distribution activities that a producer might reasonably perform. The economics of materials delivery has been transformed by the pervasive logistical networks deployed by third-party shipping powerhouses such as Federal Express and United Parcel Services. As a result, many manufacturers are reconsidering their approaches to distribution, with particular attention to the role of intermediaries2.