Subsequent to the publication of the text, FreeMarkets was taken over by Ariba. Review the Ariba web site for software that supports a FreeMarkets type of business.
FreeMarkets was established to service the B2B marketplace, offering both forward and reverse auction processes for goods, services, and asset-recovery.
eBay originally was established to serve the C2C marketplace and has expanded into the B2C marketplace. Although it occasionally services the B2B marketplace, its auctions are forward auctions.
FreeMarkets has successfully created a niche for itself, sustaining a competitive advantage by presenting itself as a clearing house for asset recovery.
FreeMarkets needs to operate in a niche that avoids making its business directly competitive to eBay.
Request For Quote is popular because it allows sources to bid on the needed item. This allows the sellers to price their items based not only on the cost of the item, but also on their desire to offload it. From the seller’s standpoint, it allows them to encourage multiple bids, with the possibility of very low bids if an organization really want to dispose of that asset.
FreeMarkets has expanded internationally, offering the products and services worldwide. This expansion gives FreeMarkets a huge new audience to help with asset disposal and sales offerings.