ABSTRACT
In promoting the cooperative movement worldwide, it is important to connect the cooperative movement with digitalization. E-commerce, in particular, has had some of the following key impacts: i) Increasing the number of consumers and producers who visit marketplaces; ii) Promoting direct contact between producers and consumers by way of bypassing middlemen; iii) Increasing part-time jobs; iv) Empowering ‘capital-poor’ individuals in the market; and v) Matching supply and demand without physical contact. Given this, the chapter argues that these features are conducive to the cooperative movement, particularly if cooperatives introduce digital platforms in their operations. By doing so, cooperatives can both increase the incomes of their members and recruit new members more easily. In order to reap the benefits of e-commerce, however, cooperatives face two challenges. Firstly, they need to raise local residents’ awareness of their websites. Secondly, cooperatives should secure consumers’ trust in their products. In addressing these challenges, sub-central governments may play a facilitating role by running umbrella websites that connect consumers to the websites of local cooperatives, as is the case with South Korea. Alternatively, associations of cooperatives may launch their own umbrella websites , as is the case with Fairmondo—a cooperative alternative to Amazon and eBay.
