Competing with the platform: Complementor positioning and cross-platform response to entry

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Kapacinskaite, Aldona; Mostajabi, Ahmadreza
• 署名单位: Bocconi University; University of London; London Business School
• 刊物名称: STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT JOURNAL
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0143-2095
• DOI: 10.1002/smj.3643
• 发表日期: 2024
• 页码: 2577-2607
• 关键词: complementor heterogeneity; Multihoming; platform owner entry; repositioning cost; specialist and generalist firms

摘要

Research SummaryThis study contrasts traditional entry dynamics with platform owner entry into a complementor market and examines cross-platform complementor response to competition with the platform. Generalists experience low repositioning cost and are more likely to shift effort away, while specialists focus their effort on the focal platform. We examine Apple's Files app entry and find support for our hypotheses: generalists shift effort toward the competing platform, while specialists double down on the focal platform. Moreover, empirically comparing Apple's entry with that of other large firms, we find that only the platform owner elicits a strong complementor response. This article contributes to the competitive and corporate strategy literatures, underscoring how complementor heterogeneity affects cross-platform allocation of effort when the platform owner becomes a competitor in complementor spaces.Managerial SummaryGiven the growing managerial and regulatory interest in competitive arenas on digital platforms, we analyze how firms respond to competition with the platform owner. We hypothesize that platform-enabled firms (complementors) with an outside option-those who also operate on a different platform-reposition, while firms only focused on a single platform double down. Examining the case of the Files app on Apple's App Store, we find support for these predictions. We also study other large firm entries on App Store (by Microsoft and SanDisk), but do not observe a meaningful response by complementors. We describe how market entry by the platform owner differs from traditional entry and argue stakeholders may benefit from a deeper understanding of the unique nature of competing with a platform.