I've been playing with an idea of reverse auctions a bit — it appears that there isn't much reverse auction systems around — at least nothing that you can compare with even a fraction of forward auctions' market.<p>Though I am not sure — does that mean nobody's really interested in reverse auctions (neither buyers nor sellers) or is this niche is just undeveloped and will kind of welcome new players?<p>Of course there is no firm answer, but what do you guys think about it?<p>P.S. From Wikipedia: "It is a type of auction in which the role of the buyer and seller are reversed, with the primary objective to drive purchase prices downward. In an ordinary auction (also known as a forward auction), buyers compete to obtain a good or service. In a reverse auction, sellers compete to obtain business."
I think the main issue is that the concept of a reverse auction is not practical for the seller in an online environment. In a reverse auction, the seller must work for a sale whereas in a conventional auction the site and the buyers do the work for them. Why should the seller "work" for a sale if (s)he doesn't need to?<p>On the flip side of the coin, it is generally accepted that if a consumer wants to purchase something (s)he must shop for it. So far attempts to revamp this process have not been widely adopted. Ebay tried a reverse auction segment of the site for a while and I don't think it worked out very well. That's not to say it can't be done of course, just that eBay couldn't do it with its approach - and all of its resources.
Reverse auction already exists in some form. One thing, that comes to my mind is bidding for contracts. Normally outsourced companies bid lower to increase the chance of getting the contract(but yeah not always the lowest bidder gets the contract).