Electronic Markets - The International Journal on Networked Business

12/11/2025

We have published new research: "From sharing to profiting: Exploring the interplay between value creation and strategic appropriation in data ecosystems" by Jonas Nienstedt & Manuel Trenz, -August-Universität Göttingen.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s12525-025-00823-6

Data ecosystems offer the promise of shared value creation. But how can organizations ensure they profit fairly from their contributions?

Our new research paper explores the critical interplay between collaborative value creation and strategic value appropriation within data ecosystems. Through a qualitative analysis of a healthcare data ecosystem, the study identifies the main factors that determine an actor's ability to create value from shared data. The authors outline four central elements of Value Appropriation Strategies (VAS): Selective Partnering, Data Tailoring, Benefit Safeguarding, and Control Enforcement.

The findings reveal the dynamic interaction between data's latent potential, an actor's capacity, and the strategies used to secure a fair share of the mutual benefits created.

Understand the conditions and mechanisms necessary for balancing sharing and profiting in complex data partnerships. Read the full paper now! Link in comments.

This study explores the interdependency between collaborative value creation and value appropriation within data ecosystems, focusing on how organizations can effectively share and utilize data for mutual benefits. It examines the factors that influence the capacity to create value from shared data....

11/11/2025

We have published a new research paper: "Assessing the economic value of reducing perceived risk in ride-hailing: Evidence from US cities" by Soo Jeong Hong & Kwangjin Lee.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s12525-025-00850-3

How can ride-hailing platforms maximize adoption and consumer value? Our latest research paper addresses this important question by quantifying the economic value of reducing risk in ride-hailing services.

Using a discrete choice experiment, this research investigates the types of perceived risks that influence consumers’ willingness to pay for specific service attributes. Our findings show that consumer utility increases significantly when platforms implement features such as driver tracking, commercial driver's licenses, and comprehensive incident compensation. The study also introduces perceived fairness risk as a new theoretical dimension, which enriches our understanding of adoption barriers in the sharing economy. These results offer actionable insights for platforms and policymakers seeking to increase trust in and growth of their services.

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The new forms of service provision in ride-hailing raise multiple issues that influence consumer decisions about adopting such services. Empirical data reveal mixed responses: some individuals embrace these services, whereas others remain hesitant during the growth phase. Using a discrete choice exp...

10/11/2025

We have published new research: "Construction of doctors’ reputation systems in online health services: The combination of online and offline mechanisms" by Jin Jiang, Yuanyuan Dang, Shanshan Guo, Yuxin Sun & Wenhui Zhou.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s12525-025-00840-5

We are pleased to announce the publication of a new article examining how physicians navigate online health service (OHS) platforms.

The study explores the intricate dynamics of reputation systems for doctors in hybrid healthcare environments and analyzes their influence on participation in online consultations. Using data from a major Chinese OHS platform, the study applies Resource Allocation Theory (RAT) to examine the relationship between a doctor's online reputation (e.g., visibility and reviews) and their offline reputation (e.g., professional title and hospital rank).

Key insights include:
The findings reveal an inverted U-shaped relationship between a doctor's online reputation and engagement. Moderate online recognition motivates participation, but excessive visibility can lead to resource overload and subsequent withdrawal.

The paper shows that a high offline reputation significantly impacts online behavior. High-status physicians, often burdened by substantial offline obligations, demonstrate reduced overall online engagement and are less motivated by online recognition.

This work reframes reputation as both a motivator and a constraint on professional activity, thereby extending RAT's application to digital professional platforms.

This research offers valuable insights for OHS platform managers seeking to design balanced incentive systems that effectively sustain physician participation while acknowledging their limited cognitive and temporal resources.

07/11/2025

We have published new research: "Development and evaluation of a taxonomy for platform revenue models" by Nedo Bartels, Matthias Koch, Anne Heß & Jaap Gordijn.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s12525-025-00841-4

A common challenge for platform businesses is designing a viable revenue model, specifically determining how value is captured among different platform stakeholders. Previously, there has been limited conceptual clarity in this area, with key dimensions and characteristics fragmented across various studies. This fragmentation has made it difficult to develop robust theories and provide practical guidance to managers on value-capture mechanisms and pricing strategies.

This research addresses this issue by introducing a comprehensive taxonomy of platform revenue models. Developed using a rigorous design science research methodology, the taxonomy comprises 15 dimensions and 64 characteristics.

The authors didn't stop at conceptualization; they also rigorously evaluated the taxonomy through a controlled experiment. Their findings show that using this new framework significantly improves the completeness and accuracy of designed platform revenue models.

This study is a valuable contribution to platform business model theory, providing a clear, empirically assessed framework. It offers researchers a consistent basis for conceptualizing platform revenue models and provides practitioners with a powerful tool for designing effective monetization strategies.

29/10/2025

We have published the Preface of our Special issue on “Fintech and decentralized finance” by Stefano Ferretti, Gabriele D’Angelo, Te Bao & Luyao Zhang.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s12525-025-00846-z

The global financial system is undergoing a fundamental reshaping due to the rise of fintech (financial technology) and decentralized finance (DeFi). Fintech modernizes services ranging from payments to banking, while DeFi, built on blockchain technology, aims to create an open, permissionless financial system that eliminates the need for traditional intermediaries.

Our special issue, "Fintech and Decentralized Finance," explores this intersection of computer science, economics, and law.

The accepted papers address critical opportunities and challenges in this evolving ecosystem:

Market Mechanics: Research contrasts centralized (CEXs) and decentralized (DEXs) exchanges, investigating how automated market makers (AMMs) affect market quality and analyzing the complex dynamics of perpetual future contracts.

Decentralized Risks: A key study defines and categorizes maximal extractable value (MEV), highlighting exploitable profits in blockchain systems and mitigation strategies.

Digital Assets & Trust: Papers explore valuation drivers for NFT art, finding that aesthetic incongruity boosts prices for high-quality art, and the role of banks in increasing public trust in and adoption of crypto assets.

Governance and Advice: Research analyzes participation in blockchain-based fan tokens for decision-making and consolidates design requirements for effective robo-advisors.

These findings underscore the need to balance innovation and regulation. Future efforts must focus on:
- Developing frameworks to compare the efficiency and security of traditional versus decentralized systems;
- Integrating AI and machine learning for automated risk management in DeFi; and
- Addressing the regulatory implications for consumer protection and market stability.
Responsibly guiding the next wave of technological evolution requires deep, interdisciplinary collaboration in the future of finance.

Home Electronic Markets Article Special issue on “Fintech and decentralized finance” Preface Published: 27 October 2025 Volume 35, article number 87, (2025) Cite this article Download PDF Electronic Markets Aims and scope Submit manuscript Special issue on “Fintech and decentralized finance”...

24/10/2025

We have published the preface for the extension of our previous Special Issue on 'Social Welfare Computing for Electronic Markets': "Social Welfare Computing: Managing the harmful consequences of technological innovation" by Eric Clemons, Maximilian Schreieck and Helmut Krcmar.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s12525-025-00828-1

Social Welfare Computing focuses on the crucial and emerging discipline dedicated to limiting the societal harm caused by new technologies, such as data-intensive online applications and advanced AI.

Building on previous work, this collection of articles addresses the negative consequences of rapid technological progress - from the growing influence of online platforms and the pervasive problem of misinformation and polarization to the intricate implications of generative AI.

Key themes explored include:
Combating Data-Driven Disinformation: One paper uses computer simulation to explore how disinformation is amplified by data-driven algorithms and proposes regulatory solutions that respect free speech while limiting the effectiveness of disinformation campaigns.

Protecting Online Personae: Another article addresses the rise of reputation hacking through technologies like deepfakes. It argues for clarifying fundamental rights and requiring platforms to exercise due diligence to protect individuals' online images and voices.

Regulating Manipulation by Design: The research presented suggests that a combination of data protection law (like GDPR) and marketing law can be effective in limiting "dark patterns" in commercial marketing that veer from legitimate persuasion into data-driven manipulation.

Innovative Self-Moderation: A new model is proposed in which users posting content could simultaneously post a warrant of accuracy, or a bond. This would serve as a reliable quality indicator for readers and provide a less coercive, market-based approach to content self-moderation.

This extension underscores the need for proactive research to ensure that society’s ability to control and moderate the unintended consequences of technological evolution does not fall behind its unprecedented speed.

Home Electronic Markets Article Social Welfare Computing: Managing the harmful consequences of technological innovation Preface Published: 23 October 2025 Volume 35, article number 85, (2025) Cite this article Download PDF Electronic Markets Aims and scope Submit manuscript Social Welfare Computing:...

21/10/2025

We have published a new Call for Papers for the special issue on "Responsible and Trustworthy Artificial Intelligence in Tourism and Hospitality".

The special issue is guest edited by Brian EM King, Babak Taheri, Danae Manika and Kyoung Jun Lee. Submission deadline is: September 15, 2026.

You can find more information on our website: https://link.springer.com/collections/chdbfcddeg

We look forward to receiving many interesting submissions!

20/10/2025

We have published new research: "Business models of incumbent-owned platforms: A taxonomy and archetypal patterns" by Dardan Behrami, Gerrit Remane & Markus Böhm.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s12525-025-00843-2

We have published a new study on incumbent-owned platforms. Although start-ups in the platform economy have received significant attention, the unique journey of established firms transitioning to platform business models is an important yet often overlooked area.

This research addresses the fragmented nature of existing studies by analyzing 88 incumbent-owned platforms across various industries. The authors develop a robust taxonomy of incumbent-owned platform business models featuring 10 dimensions and 26 characteristics.

From this taxonomy, the study empirically derives six archetypal business models: C2C platforms, Community Platforms, Product Ecosystems, Hybrid Service Platforms, Data Ecosystems, and Independent Platforms.

Beyond classification, the research formulates propositions on the transformation pathways that incumbents follow, the strategies they use to overcome the chicken-and-egg problem, and the business model factors that influence platform success, survival, and failure.

The paper offers an empirically grounded framework that contributes to platform business model theory. It also provides managers with a structured tool for navigating strategic options and anticipating the challenges of platform transformation.

Digital platforms are transforming industries, yet research has predominantly focused on start-ups or pure platform firms, overlooking the unique challenges and opportunities faced by incumbents transitioning to platform business models. Existing studies in this domain are fragmented, often limited....

17/10/2025

We have published a new Call for Papers for the special issue on "Geopolitics and Business Models".

The special issue is guest edited by Paul Timmers, John Zysman, Dr.-Ing. Tobias Guggenberger and Baidyanath Biswas. Submission deadline is: March 31, 2026.

You can find more information on our website: https://link.springer.com/collections/dfjaddafjd

We look forward to receiving many interesting submissions!

06/10/2025

We have published a new research paper: "The impacts of purchase verification badge and review typesetting on voting behaviors of public assessors towards suspicious positive online reviews" by Pengkun Wu, Liuyan Chen & Yuanyuan Wu.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s12525-025-00833-4

This new research explores how online platforms can use crowdsourcing more effectively to deal with the widespread issue of suspicious positive reviews.

The study examines the factors that influence the voting behavior of public assessors, who are consumers invited to evaluate reviews. Drawing on cognitive load theory, the authors conduct an experiment to investigate the influence of platform features, particularly purchase verification (PV) badges and review formatting, on assessor decisions.

The findings demonstrate that the depth of a review and its typesetting both influence voting behavior, which is mediated serially through assessors' perceptions of reviewer effort and review helpfulness. PV badges, on the other hand, affect voting behavior by increasing review credibility and perceived helpfulness. Significantly, the research reveals that PV badges and review typesetting both moderate the relationship between review depth and voting behavior.

This paper offers insights for platform managers seeking to optimize their public assessment systems for greater accuracy and effectiveness in identifying suspicious content.

To tackle the issue of numerous suspicious reviews, some platforms have adopted crowdsourcing by inviting consumers to become public assessors. Drawing on cognitive load theory, this study examines the impact of purchase verification (PV) badges and review typesetting on voting behaviors, as well as...

30/09/2025

e have published a new research paper: "The effects of service quality of hybrid electronic commerce platform on consumer’s purchase intention: An assemblage theory approach" by Zhen Gao.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s12525-025-00837-0

This new study explores the complexities of modern hybrid e-commerce platforms.

How do different combinations of store operations and logistics services on a single platform influence consumers' decisions to buy? This study investigates that very question by analyzing four distinct models, ranging from fully platform-operated services to various combinations involving third-party sellers and logistics providers.

Using an assemblage theory perspective, the authors conducted an experimental survey with over 1,200 participants to determine how electronic service quality (ESQ) and logistics service quality (LSQ) impact customer satisfaction and purchase intent.

A key finding is that a platform-operated store with third-party logistics yielded the highest consumer satisfaction and purchase intention. The study also reveals the nuanced relationship between service quality and consumer behavior. For example, logistics quality has a direct impact when a single entity manages both the store and delivery.

This work provides valuable insights for platform managers and third-party sellers on how to optimize their service configurations to enhance the customer experience and drive sales.

This study addresses a gap in hybrid e-commerce research by examining consumer response across four business assemblages, differentiated by store operation modes (platform-operated store vs. third-party sellers) and logistics modes (platform-operated logistics vs. third-party logistics). Grounded in...

24/09/2025

We have published new research: "The impact of IT governance on participation slackness and value co-creation of digital platform complementors" by Qi Zhang, Yu Che, Shibin Sheng, Xuan Bai & Weidong Li .
https://doi.org/10.1007/s12525-025-00830-7

This paper delves into the critical role of IT governance in managing relationships within digital platform ecosystems. Based on a survey of 278 complementors, the study investigates the effects of IT monitoring and reputation badges on complementors' participation slackness and contribution to value co-creation.

Our findings reveal that, while IT monitoring and reputation badges both help reduce complementor slackness, reputation badges are particularly effective in encouraging value co-creation. The research also highlights IT support's significant moderating role, showing that its presence can amplify these governance mechanisms' positive effects.

This paper provides valuable insight into how platforms can leverage IT to govern relationships and influence key behaviors, fostering a more collaborative environment.