arrow
Return

Platform failures: How conflicting data conceptions undermine digital collaboration

delete2025-08-11
delete0
PRE
AI
T
Tom Chabosseau
A
Alexander Dobeson
DOI:10.1177/10245294251366588delete
deleteOriginal
deleteOriginal request for help
deleteShare
deleteSave
Abstract

Abstract

En 中文
A growing body of literature is dedicated to understanding how new types of collaborative platforms emerge and sustain themselves. This article sheds light on the hitherto neglected role of data in this institutionalization process. We contend that the institutionalization of collaborative platforms is shaped by controversies that stage diverging data conceptions —namely, cognitive and strategic understandings of what data is and how it creates value. We illustrate our theoretical contribution with the case of TradeLens, a now-defunct digital B2B platform in maritime logistics developed jointly by IBM and A.P. Møller-Mærsk, the giant Danish shipping company. Our analysis reveals that conflicting conceptions of data—as an asset to be accumulated and a resource to be shared—created irreconcilable tensions among potential platform contributors. Our findings indicate that supply chain actors’ narrow conception of data as a key competitive asset hindered the platform’s potential to grow. This mindset fostered distrust and reluctance to share sensitive data, ultimately leading to the platform’s demise. The article concludes by discussing the ongoing challenges in developing digital platforms that encourage collaboration beyond the one-sided dogma of competition and accumulation.
Keywords:
collaborative platforms
data conceptions
institutionalization
TradeLens
data sharing

Journal

Competition and Change cover
Competition and Change
IF:
3.4
Papers:
345
Citations:
1.2K

Organization

No organization information available
Cited Papers

Cited Papers

Boosting the Effectiveness of Containerised Supply Chains: A Case Study of TradeLens
err2021-05-18
err0
PREAI
errJonas Louw-Reimer; Jacob Liocouras Müller Nielsen; Niels Bjørn-Andersen; Norbert Kouwenhoven
errShare
errSave
How TradeLens Delivers Business Value With Blockchain Technology
err2019-12-01
err0
errOAAI
errThomas Jensen; Jonas Hedman; Stefan Henningsson
errShare
errSave
The mutability of economic things
err2021-05-05
err0
errOAAI
errVeit Braun; Saskia Brill; Alexander Dobeson
errShare
errSave
Algorithmic governance: Developing a research agenda through the power of collective intelligence
err2017-09-19
err137
errOAAI
errDanaher, John; Hogan, Michael J.; Noone, Chris; Kennedy, Ronan; Behan, Anthony; De Paor, Aisling; Felzmann, Heike; Haklay, Muki; Khoo, Su-Ming; Morison, John; Murphy, Maria Helen; O'Brolchain, Niall; Schafer, Burkhard; Shankar, Kalpana
errShare
errSave
errShare
errSave
researcher View more