Platform-Enabled Commerce: Unlocking Economic Opportunity Through Independent Internationalisation of Small Enterprises

Hanne Melin Olbe, Director Global Public Policy, eBay Inc.

Global trade is undergoing a fundamental transformation. It is no longer confined to container shipments of one company’s wares along predetermined trade corridors. Today, global trade also includes commerce by very small Internet-enabled enterprises connecting directly with customers in almost every country of the world. The internet and online commerce platforms have opened up an alternative way for the smallest enterprise to internationalise. When micro and small enterprises are capable of independently internationalising their operations by building direct relationships with customers across the world our current economic and social models are challenged. This article looks at one aspect of this change. It discusses the ability of small online commercial enterprises to adapt to the macro economy in ways large firms do.

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Switzerland International Retail January 2017 Vol.10, No. 38, Winter 2017

Hanne Melin Olbe

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Hanne Melin heads the EMEA arm of eBay’s Public Policy Lab (visit www.ebaymainstreet.com/lab) where she develops strategy and vision for policy and legislation adapted to a technology-enabled and globally connected marketplace. Prior to joining eBay, Hanne was an associate at the law firm Sidley Austin LLP, where she practiced competition law for five years in Brussels. Hanne is a guest lecturer at the law faculty of Lund University (Sweden), was a member of the European Commission’s Strategic Policy Forum on Digital Entrepreneurship and represents eBay at the World Customs Organisation's Private Sector Advisory Group. She has written for many legal journals on the topic of online commerce and she is a frequent speaker on the topic of trade policy in the digital economy. In addition to an LLM from Lund University, Hanne holds a Master in International Business Law from King’s College London.

eBay Inc.

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eBay Inc. (NASDAQ: EBAY) is a global commerce leader including the eBay, StubHub and eBay Classifieds platforms. Collectively, we connect millions of buyers and sellers around the world, empowering people and creating opportunity through Connected Commerce. Founded in 1995 in San Jose, Calif., eBay is one of the world’s largest and most vibrant marketplaces for discovering great value and unique selection. In 2014, eBay enabled $83 billion of gross merchandise volume. For more information about the company and its global portfolio of online brands, visit www.ebayinc.com.

Switzerland International Retail January 2017 Vol.10, No. 38, Winter 2017

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