The new role of ecommerce enablers

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In focus

• Marketplace fees force enablers to adapt
• Workers get paid to train robots
• Tracking SEA’s funding slowdown

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Hello reader,

I usually buy PS5 games on ecommerce platforms, but over the past few months, several of the stores I regularly buy from have disappeared.

The reason? Marketplace fees have risen. Many sellers have moved to platforms that promise zero admin fees, such as Toco, or to their own websites.

As a consumer, the impact has been relatively minor for me, as there are still plenty of video game stores to choose from.

For brands, however, the consequences are far more significant. Rising marketplace fees are squeezing already thin margins, especially for those that also rely on ecommerce enablers, which add another layer of service costs.

In today’s first Top Story, I take a closer look at how ecommerce enablers are adapting to this new reality. Some services have become less relevant, while others, such as fulfillment and live commerce, remain essential.

As brands come under pressure to improve profitability, they’re becoming more selective about the partners they work with, and they expect ecommerce enablers to deliver measurable returns.

Elsewhere, people are also finding some new ways to make money. Advances in robotics have created an unexpected side hustle across Southeast Asia: Workers are recording themselves performing everyday tasks and selling the footage to data firms.

Robotics companies use these clips to train machines to perform the same work. My colleagues Glenn and Pranav explore this emerging market.

As with many AI trends, the window of opportunity for these videos may be short. While they are inexpensive to produce and help fill gaps in existing datasets, it’s still unclear how valuable they will ultimately prove for training robots.

Jofie Yordan, journalist

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Top Stories

1️⃣ Rising fees are changing the role of SEA ecommerce enablers

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