We conducted the first randomized controlled field experiment of an Internet reputation mechanism. A high-reputation, established
eBay dealer sold matched pairs of lots—batches of vintage postcards—under his regular identity and under new seller identities
(also operated by him). As predicted, the established identity fared better. The difference in buyers’ willingness-to-pay
was 8.1% of the selling price. A subsidiary experiment followed the same format, but compared sales by relatively new sellers
with and without negative feedback. Surprisingly, one or two negative feedbacks for our new sellers did not affect buyers’
willingness-to-pay.
Keywords Field experiment - eBay - Reputation
JEL Classification D82 · L14 · Z13