Marketplaces No Longer Friendly to SMEs? Sellers Now Opt to Build Their Own Websites
Researchers from the Center of Digital Economy and SMEs at The Institute for Development of Economics and Finance (Indef) assess that the increasing number of sellers switching to independent websites reflects a transformation in the digital economy. This coincides with the high competition in marketplaces or online markets and the needs of digital businesses.
“Complaints about rising marketplace fees are gaining traction. In recent days, social media timelines have been buzzing with narratives about the high administrative costs of marketplaces, prompting business actors to consider building their own websites,” said Indef researcher from the Center of Digital Economy and SMEs, Fadhila Maulida, in Jakarta on Thursday (7/5/2026).
According to Fadhila, this phenomenon cannot be viewed solely as a result of high platform fees. More than that, the situation reflects a more fundamental change in the structure of Indonesia’s digital economy.
She stated that there are at least several interconnected main factors explaining the current phenomenon, namely society’s purchasing power and SME capacity.
From the demand side, she said, society’s purchasing power shows signs of slowing. Although it still records aggregate growth, the pace is relatively limited compared to the rapid growth in the number of digital business actors.
“In recent years, the number of SMEs entering the digital ecosystem has increased significantly. However, transaction growth or gross merchandise value (GMV) has tended to slow,” Fadhila explained.
She elaborated that this imbalance creates pressure in the market, where the number of sellers is increasing rapidly, while demand is not growing proportionally.
As a result, competition levels become increasingly high, and opportunities for each business actor to achieve optimal sales become narrower.
On the other hand, there are also continuously rising platform costs. According to her, online markets are no longer just places for sellers and buyers to meet, but have transformed into a fully monetised economic structure. Digital ecosystem platforms run complex processes.
“Mass-scale customer acquisition machines, payment systems, integrated logistics networks, to algorithm-based marketing channels,” she clarified.
There are various costs that must be borne, such as platform fees, services, and relatively high promotions. This is compounded by digital advertising costs and still-high logistics costs due to uneven distribution across regions.
“In the end, what happens is a fairly heavy combination of pressures, limited demand growth, increasingly sharp competition, and SME capacity that still needs to be improved,” Fadhila explained.
On the other hand, SME capacity remains a fundamental issue. According to her, government policies in promoting SME digitalisation are indeed commendable because they have successfully lowered barriers to entry into digital platforms.