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Application Developer Engagement In Open Software Platforms: An Empirical Study Of Apple Ios And Google Android Developers

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  • MARIO SCHAARSCHMIDT

    (University of Koblenz-Landau, Rhabanusstraße 3, 55118 Mainz, Germany)

  • DIRK HOMSCHEID

    (University of Koblenz-Landau, Rhabanusstraße 3, 55118 Mainz, Germany)

  • THOMAS KILIAN

    (Hochschule für Medien, Kommunikation und Wirtschaft (HMKW), Ackerstraße 76, 13355, Berlin, Germany)

Abstract

Platform operators rely on external contributions that complement their own development activities. Although previous research has analysed which conditions are beneficial in attracting developers, only scant research is concerned with the motivation and work behaviour of application developers. The authors survey 395 Apple iOS and Android developers to test a model of perceived platform openness, developer work motivation, and resulting behaviour that builds upon self-determination theory. The findings suggest that future research would benefit from a more thorough consideration of platform openness, as not all paths of the model are equally strong for open vs closed platforms.

Suggested Citation

  • Mario Schaarschmidt & Dirk Homscheid & Thomas Kilian, 2019. "Application Developer Engagement In Open Software Platforms: An Empirical Study Of Apple Ios And Google Android Developers," International Journal of Innovation Management (ijim), World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., vol. 23(04), pages 1-33, May.
    • Handle: RePEc:wsi:ijimxx:v:23:y:2019:i:04:n:s1363919619500336
    DOI: 10.1142/S1363919619500336
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Mosterd, Lars & Sobota, Vladimir C.M. & van de Kaa, Geerten & Ding, Aaron Yi & de Reuver, Mark, 2021. "Context dependent trade-offs around platform-to-platform openness: The case of the Internet of Things," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 108(C).
    2. Xi Zhang, 2022. "Incremental Innovation: Long-Term Impetus for Design Business Creativity," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(22), pages 1-24, November.
    3. Engin Zeydan, 2021. "Android vs. IOS: a comparative analysis over mobile operator infrastructures based on crowdsourced mobile dataset," Telecommunication Systems: Modelling, Analysis, Design and Management, Springer, vol. 78(3), pages 405-419, November.

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