Paper Number
ICIS2025-2256
Paper Type
Short
Abstract
Current research on platform ecosystems features various streams at different levels of abstraction, limiting the understanding of value creation. This pertains to research on strategic orchestration at the macro level, on governance mechanisms at the meso level, and on user interactions at the micro level. The conceptual framework elaborated in this short paper brings these streams together and presents three propositions: First, value creation emerges through cross-level interactions invisible to single-level analyses; sec-ond, meso-level governance structures function as critical translation mechanisms; and, third, competitive advantage derives from multilevel alignment rather than single-level excellence. As a valuable instrument to identify cross-level value creation are pathways modeled as multi-layer graph. Initial empirical evidence from the Amazon Alexa platform demonstrates cross-level value creation effects, supporting the development of the theoretical framework. These findings establish multilevel analysis as essential for un-derstanding platform ecosystems and for establishing a multilevel ecosystem theory.
Recommended Citation
Schmidt, Rainer; Alt, Rainer; and ZIMMERMANN, ALFRED, "Towards a Theory of Multilevel Platform Ecosystems" (2025). ICIS 2025 Proceedings. 16.
https://aisel.aisnet.org/icis2025/sharing_econ/sharing_econ/16
Towards a Theory of Multilevel Platform Ecosystems
Current research on platform ecosystems features various streams at different levels of abstraction, limiting the understanding of value creation. This pertains to research on strategic orchestration at the macro level, on governance mechanisms at the meso level, and on user interactions at the micro level. The conceptual framework elaborated in this short paper brings these streams together and presents three propositions: First, value creation emerges through cross-level interactions invisible to single-level analyses; sec-ond, meso-level governance structures function as critical translation mechanisms; and, third, competitive advantage derives from multilevel alignment rather than single-level excellence. As a valuable instrument to identify cross-level value creation are pathways modeled as multi-layer graph. Initial empirical evidence from the Amazon Alexa platform demonstrates cross-level value creation effects, supporting the development of the theoretical framework. These findings establish multilevel analysis as essential for un-derstanding platform ecosystems and for establishing a multilevel ecosystem theory.
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