Digital platforms for development: Foundations and research agenda
Authors: Bonina, Carla; Koskinen, Kari; Eaton, Ben; Gawer, Annabelle
Journal: Information Systems Journal (2021)
DOI: 10.1111/isj.12326
<jats:title>Abstract</jats:title><jats:p>Digital platforms hold a central position in today's world economy and are said to offer a great potential for the economies and societies in the global South. Yet, to date, the scholarly literature on digital platforms has largely concentrated on business while their developmental implications remain understudied. In part, this is because digital platforms are a challenging research object due to their lack of conceptual definition, their spread across different regions and industries, and their intertwined nature with institutions, actors and digital technologies. The purpose of this article is to contribute to the ongoing debate in information systems and ICT4D research to understand what digital platforms mean<jats:italic>for</jats:italic>development. To do so, we first define what digital platforms are and differentiate between transaction and innovation platforms, and explain their key characteristics in terms of purpose, research foundations, material properties and business models. We add the socio‐technical context digital platforms operate and the linkages to developmental outcomes. We then conduct an extensive review to explore w…