Kalina S. Staykova

The race to dominate the mobile payments platform

Graphical abstractDisplay Omitted Investigates various factors that determine the success of a mobile payments solution.Builds a framework to analyze the entry and expansion strategies of digital payment solutions providers.Reports that the timing of entry of the first-mover speeds up the time of entry of the early followers.Shows that the timing of expansion is of equal importance as the timing of entry.If the expansion is not executed within an appropriate amount of time, the firm-level competitive advantage will be weakened. The payment market has been stable for a number of decades with well-defined roles (acquirers and issuers), profitable business models (the card schemes) and a dominant design in which the merchants absorb the costs associated with payments. However, numerous digital payment solutions, which rely on new disruptive technologies, are emerging on the payment market, transforming the payment area from being established into a state of flux. In this article, we investigate the various factors that determine the success of a given solution. To this end, we build a framework to analyze the entry and expansion strategies of the digital payment solutions. We claim that the timing of entry of the first-mover speeds up the timing of entry of the early follower, thus determining the order of entry. We also argue that the timing of expansion is of equal importance as the timing of entry. If the expansion is not executed within the optimal time, the previously gained competitive advantage can be annulled.

Adoption of mobile payment platforms: managing reach and range

Numerous mobile payment solutions, which rely on new disruptive technologies, have been launched on the payment market in recent years. But despite the growing number of mobile payment apps, very few solutions have turned to be successful as the majority of them fail to gain a critical mass of users. In this paper, we investigate successful platform adoption strategies by using the Reach and Range Framework for Multi-Sided Platforms as a strategic tool to which mobile payment providers can adhere in order to tackle some of the main challenges they face throughout the evolution of their platforms. The analysis indicates that successful mobile payment solutions tend to be launched as one-sided platforms and then gradually be expanded into being two-sided. Our study showcases that the success of mobile payment platforms lies with the ability of the platform to balance the reach (number of participants) and the range (features and functionalities) of the platform.

A TYPOLOGY OF MULTI -SIDED PLATFORMS : THE CORE AND THE PERIPHERY

In this paper we address how the composition of a platform impacts the platforms business model. By platforms business model we mean platform features, platform architecture and platform governance. To this end, we construct the Pla tform Business Model Framework. We apply the framework to three exemplary cases which allow us to illustrate the platform heterogene tforms.

Dual-Track’s Strategy for Incumbent’s Transformation: The Case of Danske Bank Adopting a Platform Business Model

(a) Situation faced: The traditionally stable and conservative financial service industry is undergoing a process of transformation where contenders utilizing new technologies and relying on novel business models challenge the role of incumbent financial organizations. The changing preferences of customers, who demand customized services at convenient for them time, and the shifting regulatory environment, which encourages the entry of fintech start-ups, threaten the dominant position of these traditional actors. (b) Action taken: Instead of observing passively this ongoing trend, Danske Bank, one of the leading banks in Northern Europe, took a proactive approach to digitalization by launching pre-emptively a number of disruptive digital initiatives in order to protect itself from disruption. Danske Bank correctly read the market dynamics in Denmark in connection to consumer readiness, technology maturity and competitors’ actions and decided to venture into the mobile payment area in order to position itself as first mover. By launching its solution MobilePay, which functions as digital payment platform, Danske Bank also adopted a platform business model, which differs from the traditional banking products. (c) Results achieved: Leveraging its first mover advantage, MobilePay gained momentum and has successfully defended its dominant position in the Danish market, which other local and international mobile payment solutions tried to threaten. Four years after its launch, MobilePay is currently being used by more than 90% of the Danes, has established a growing ecosystem of partners, and has expanded to other Nordic markets. MobilePay’s success has helped Danske Bank improve its brand image and reduce customer churn. It has also demonstrated Danske Bank’s ability to be at the forefront of digital innovation by proving the bank’s capability to address the changing preferences of its private customers and to deliver on the digitalization agenda of its corporate customers. (d) Lessons learned: This case demonstrates how an incumbent financial organization can successfully protect its core services by venturing into disruptive digital initiatives, such as the launch of platform business model, which requires the adoption of different business thinking. The success of such initiative depends upon the timely launch of a customer-centric solution with focus on simplicity, ease of use and strong value proposition. Despite the short-term gains, the long-term sustainability and profitability of such a solution operating in constantly changing environment requires its continuous development. Its success also depends on achieving a certain level of organizational autonomy from the traditional business, while at the same time establishing synergy to it in order to gain access to the incumbents’ core resources.