Why Controls Are Used in Platform Ecosystems?: An Analytic Hierarchy Process Approach to Rank Roles of Control Mechanisms in Platform Ecosystems

Existing literature on control in software development context considers only the principal-agency relationship between controller and controlee. However, the principal-agency relationship cannot be assumed between ecosystems leader and partners, which are independent organizations. This paper aims to study the critical role played by inter-organizational control mechanisms in a mobile platform ecosystems. Based on an Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) approach with 38 experts with diverse backgrounds, this research aims to identify and prioritise the most important roles of control portfolio in the platform ecosystems. Though traditionally controls are primarily used to coordinate between partners with divergent objectives, ecosystems leaders use control primarily to capture a higher share of value of the service. The findings provide further insights on two other roles of control in platform ecosystems: (i) accessing complementary resources and (ii) managing interdependency between partners. This research extends organizational control theory to the context of emerging platform-based ecosystem.