C2B

Project topic: Changing market and power structures through the use of blockchain technology.

Duration: March 2018 until December 2023

Project supervision: Florian Knauer / Prof. Dr. Andreas Mann

Cooperation partner: University of Kassel, Institute of Business Law, Prof. Dr. Dr. Walter Blocher and Prof. Dr. Georg von Wangenheim

Funding Institution: Metamorphoses GmbH

Abstract: Blockchains hold the potential to fundamentally change the roles of market actors, in particular to restructure the relationship between consumers and entrepreneurs or to dissolve traditional role boundaries (merging the two roles of producer and consumer into the "prosumer"). Using the example of two such possibilities - the tendering of minor consumption activities by the consumer and the differentiated management of identity-relevant data - this project investigates which legal and technical requirements must be met in order for such restructuring to be desired by both consumers and entrepreneurs.

The research questions include the following:

1. What are the fundamental advantages and disadvantages of blockchains / smart contracts compared to other internet-based coordination mechanisms in transaction processes from a consumer and provider perspective?
2. Which transactions have a high / low potential for the use of blockchains / smart contracts?
3. Which legal frameworks need to be changed or created to make consumer tenders and identity management attractive for consumers and entrepreneurs?
4. What is the level of acceptance on the provider and consumer side for the use of blockchains / smart contracts as part of the C2B approach in transaction processes and on which determinants does acceptance depend? Which technical requirements / designs of interfaces lead to consumer tenders and identity management being attractive for consumers and providers?

• Knauer, F. O., & Mann, A. (2024): "Alles nur gefaked": Credibility of online ratings and review skepticism. Marketing Review St. Gallen, 41 (1), 32-41. pdf
• Knauer, F. O., & Mann, A. (2020). Automation and trust building in the customer journey of service customers through the use of blockchain technology. In Bruhn, M. & Hadwich, K. (ed.) Automation and Personalization of Services, vol. 2 (pp. 317-341). Springer Gabler, Wiesbaden.
• Mann, A., & Knauer, F. O. (2020). The use of blockchain technology in (dialog) marketing - In the field of tension between game changing potentials and acceptance problems. In DDV (ed.), Dialog Marketing Perspectives 2019/2020 (pp. 85-118). Springer Gabler, Wiesbaden.
• Knauer, F., & Mann, A. (2019). What is in it for me? Identifying drivers of blockchain acceptance among German consumers. The Journal of the British Blockchain Association, 10484.