Coopetition Balance and Coopetition Capability in Platform Ecosystems: Complementors' Perspective

In a platform ecosystem, complementors can utilize various resources from a platform owner that receives a variety of products/services via complementors for better customers’ choice and satisfaction. The literature has focused on the cooperative nature of the platform ecosystem. Less attention, however, has been given to coopetition (i.e., simultaneous strategic use of cooperation and competition). Drawing upon paradox theory, this study develops a research model that explains the individual and joint impact of coopetition balance and coopetition capability on relationship performance in a platform ecosystem. Based on survey data from 365 complementors to Amazon, this study illustrates that coopetition balance and coopetition capability have a significant impact on relationship performance. Additionally, coopetition capability moderates the relationship between coopetition balance and relationship performance. In particular, results show that coopetition capability is the most critical variable to enhance relationship performance. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed in this paper.

[1]  Feng Zhu,et al.  Responses to Entry in Multi-Sided Markets: The Impact of Craigslist on Local Newspapers , 2014, Manag. Sci..

[2]  J. Mentzer,et al.  Does relationship learning lead to relationship value? A cross-national supply chain investigation , 2010 .

[3]  Dovev Lavie,et al.  The Interplay of Competition and Cooperation , 2018, Strategic Management Journal.

[4]  Blake D. Mathias,et al.  An Identity Perspective on Coopetition in the Craft Beer Industry , 2016 .

[5]  Marcel Bogers,et al.  Coopetition: a systematic review, synthesis, and future research directions , 2015, Review of Managerial Science.

[6]  D. McIntyre,et al.  Networks, platforms, and strategy: Emerging views and next steps , 2017 .

[7]  Surya D. Pathak,et al.  Toward a structural view of co‐opetition in supply networks , 2014 .

[8]  Kai H. Lim,et al.  Platform-Based Function Repertoire, Reputation, and Sales Performance of E-Marketplace Sellers , 2019, MIS Q..

[9]  Sascha Kraus,et al.  Coopetition in New Product Development Alliances: Advantages and Tensions for Incremental and Radical Innovation , 2018 .

[10]  Pankaj C. Patel,et al.  How Do Young Firms Manage Product Portfolio Complexity? The Role of Absorptive Capacity and Ambidexterity , 2012 .

[11]  Ramon Casadesus-Masanell,et al.  Mixed Source , 2009, Manag. Sci..

[12]  Chenting Su,et al.  Dealing with Institutional Distances in International Marketing Channels: Governance Strategies that Engender Legitimacy and Efficiency , 2012 .

[13]  M. Bengtsson,et al.  The coopetition paradox and tension: The moderating role of coopetition capability , 2016 .

[14]  S. Greenstein,et al.  Competing with complementors: An empirical look at Amazon.com , 2018, Strategic Management Journal.

[15]  Yadong Luo,et al.  Governing buyer–supplier relationships through transactional and relational mechanisms: Evidence from China , 2009 .

[16]  Wendy K. Smith,et al.  Microfoundations of Organizational Paradox: The Problem Is How We Think about the Problem , 2017 .

[17]  Pankaj C. Patel,et al.  Walking the Tightrope: An Assessment of the Relationship between High-Performance Work Systems and Organizational Ambidexterity , 2013 .

[18]  Wendy K. Smith.  Dynamic Decision Making: A Model of Senior Leaders Managing Strategic Paradoxes , 2014 .

[19]  Cheng Zhang,et al.  The Ecosystem of Software Platform: A Study of Asymmetric Cross-Side Network Effects and Platform Governance , 2018, MIS Q..

[20]  Amrit Tiwana,et al.  Evolutionary Competition in Platform Ecosystems , 2015, Inf. Syst. Res..

[21]  Joseph P. Cannon,et al.  Buyer–Seller Relationships in Business Markets , 1999 .

[22]  Jacob Cohen,et al.  Applied multiple regression/correlation analysis for the behavioral sciences , 1979 .

[23]  Ola Henfridsson,et al.  Introduction - Platforms and Infrastructures in the Digital Age , 2018, Inf. Syst. Res..

[24]  Miriam Wilhelm,et al.  Managing Coopetition in Supplier Networks – A Paradox Perspective , 2018 .

[25]  Marianne W. Lewis.  Exploring Paradox: Toward a More Comprehensive Guide , 2000 .

[26]  Mingzhe Li,et al.  Advertising versus Brokerage Model for Online Trading Platforms , 2012, MIS Q..

[27]  Scott B. MacKenzie,et al.  Common method biases in behavioral research: a critical review of the literature and recommended remedies. , 2003, The Journal of applied psychology.

[28]  Devi R. Gnyawali,et al.  Nuances in the Interplay of Competition and Cooperation: Towards a Theory of Coopetition , 2018, Journal of Management.

[29]  Fabrice Lumineau,et al.  Revisiting the Interplay between Contractual and Relational Governance: A Qualitative and Meta-Analytic Investigation , 2014 .

[30]  Wendy K. Smith,et al.  TOWARD A THEORY OF PARADOX : A DYNAMIC EQUILIBRIUM MODEL OF ORGANIZING , 2011 .

[31]  Benjamin L. Hallen,et al.  How Do Social Defenses Work? A Resource-Dependence Lens on Technology Ventures, Venture Capital Investors, and Corporate Relationships , 2014 .

[32]  Liisa-Maija Sainio,et al.  Coopetition for radical innovation: technology, market and business-model perspectives , 2014, Technol. Anal. Strateg. Manag..