ONDC Will Charge Shops A Quarter Of What Amazon And Flipkart Charge

Small shops will pay ONDC, the government-backed open network e-commerce platform, a quarter of what they do to access the technologies and procedures of e-commerce giants like Amazon and Flipkart.

Small merchants can access the ONDC platform for 8–10% of the selling price of goods, as opposed to the 18–40% they pay to Amazon and Flipkart, according to government sources who spoke to TNIE. However, a representative of the trade ministry asserted that the market, not the government, would determine the price or commission levied on the platform.

According to the official, market forces alone would determine how much commission the platform may charge without any restrictions being set. The official explained that in order for any currently operating e-commerce platforms, such as Flipkart or Amazon, to participate in the ONDC, they will need to integrate both their sellers and buyers.

Unlike e-commerce platforms like Amazon and Flipkart, which are both platforms for customers and sellers, the platform would host buyer and seller apps independently. The insider claimed, however, that to date, none of the leading e-commerce platforms have shown any interest in joining ONDC.

On October 7, the Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) in Bengaluru began its beta testing phase with small shops from 16 different pin codes. The ONDC, which is built on open specifications, would increase the e-commerce scale of small businesses and weaken the power of major firms like Amazon and Walmart-backed Flipkart. The Ministry of Commerce and Industry is behind the project.

On the first day of the beta testing, three buyer apps—Paytm, Spicemoney, and Mystore—were available on the platform. On the first day, the system was also integrated with as many as 11 vendor apps, which essentially act as aggregators of small shops and Kirana stores.

News Mania Desk