In 30 Seconds
Imagine finding a neighbourhood shop through one shopping app even though the shop uses a different company to manage its online catalogue. That separation between the customer’s app and the seller’s technology is central to the Open Network for Digital Commerce, or ONDC.
ONDC is an initiative of the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade. The organisation was incorporated as a Section 8 company in December 2021. It develops an open network for commerce rather than operating a single consumer shopping app. Its stated aim is to make participation less dependent on a closed platform. These are the network’s design goals, not proof that every participant has achieved them. ONDC’s institutional background explains its origins.
Who does what in an ONDC purchase?
The buyer-facing application handles the interface a customer sees: search results, product information, checkout and order confirmation. The buyer network participant also has customer-support responsibilities. It is therefore more than a window displaying somebody else’s products.
On the other side, a seller network participant connects merchants to the network, helps digitise their catalogues and supports fulfilment and payment disbursement. Some seller applications represent multiple merchants; others serve a business selling its own inventory. Delivery can involve another service provider.
Consider an illustrative grocery order. A customer searches for rice in a buyer app. A participating shop’s catalogue supplies the listing. The customer checks the seller, quantity, delivery charge and final amount, then places the order. Confirmation and tracking appear in the buyer app. ONDC’s shopping guide describes this customer journey. The example is explanatory, not a test purchase by this publication.
What changes for a small business?
The potentially important change is discoverability across compatible applications. A seller need not think of its catalogue solely as a storefront inside one marketplace. In practice, its reach still depends on participating services, the categories they support and whether the order can be fulfilled at the customer’s location.
The practical business question is therefore not simply “Am I on ONDC?” It is “Can customers find the right products, place an order and receive them reliably?” A catalogue with incomplete descriptions or unavailable stock will disappoint customers regardless of the network beneath it. This is our assessment of the operational challenge, not a claim about any particular merchant’s performance.
Does an open network mean lower prices?
Do not treat the ONDC label as a price promise. Compare the complete checkout amount, including delivery and other disclosed charges, against the same product elsewhere. A temporary coupon can make one purchase attractive without establishing that the underlying service will always be cheaper.
For sellers, a sensible comparison is the amount retained after the agreed service, delivery and fulfilment costs—not merely the headline commission. These are checks a buyer or seller can perform, rather than a conclusion that the network is universally better or worse than an integrated marketplace.
Where should an unhappy customer complain?
Begin with the app through which the order was placed. Keep the order reference, receipt and support-ticket number. ONDC’s complaints page provides buyer-app contacts and an escalation route for unresolved complaints. The existence of several participants should not mean the customer has to guess which company to approach first.
How should readers judge its progress?
Our editorial test would look beyond sign-ups and discounts: repeated purchases, accurate listings, dependable delivery, clear charges and problems resolved without repeated hand-offs. Wider access matters, but customers experience a network through individual orders. ONDC’s long-term case will be stronger when openness and accountability work together.
