Highlights from Purchasing's reader poll on e-auctions

By Staff -- Purchasing, 8/24/2000

• Few buyers have tested e-auction waters. Nineteen percent have tried them vs. 81% who have not.

• Resistance to e-auctions may be breaking down. Among buyers who have yet to dabble in e-auction technology, 47% think they will vs. 53% who say they won't or have not yet investigated.

• Reverse e-auctions beat forward e-auctions by a wide margin among buyers. Of buyers who've participated in e-auctions, 71% chose the reverse model (buyer controls) vs. 29% who have participated in forward auctions (seller controls).

• Buyers vote "NO" on shill bidding-sort of. Asked if they think it's ethical to use electronic auctions to establish benchmark pricing for incumbent alliance suppliers (with no real commitment to moving the business), 41% of buyers vote no versus 11% who think it's okay. The remaining 43% either reserve comment or have no opinion at this time.