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Scientific Article details

Title Stability in turbulent times? The effect of digitalization on the sustainability of competitive advantage
ID_Doc 65478
Authors Knudsen, ES; Lien, LB; Timmermans, B; Belik, I; Pandey, S
Title Stability in turbulent times? The effect of digitalization on the sustainability of competitive advantage
Year 2021
Published
DOI 10.1016/j.jbusres.2021.02.008
Abstract Does digitalization make competitive advantage more or less sustainable? One line of argument is that digitalization leads to hyper-competition and shorter spells of competitive advantage. An opposing claim is that digitalization leads to advantages of a size and sustainability unprecedented in the "old" economy. We argue that the likelihood of observing either of these outcomes depend on the extent to which the dominant business model (s) in a market combine the accumulation and use of Big Data with the generation and utilization of network effects. The more complementary Big Data and network effects are in a business model, the more likely that we will observe large and sustainable competitive advantages, and vice-versa. Furthermore, we argue that firms enjoying a data-driven network-advantage have strong incentives and ability to envelop to adjacent markets. In the longer run, such envelopment will cause an increasing number of markets to be characterized by more sustainable competitive advantages.
Author Keywords Big Data; Network effects; Digitalization; Competitive advantage
Index Keywords Index Keywords
Document Type Other
Open Access Open Access
Source Social Science Citation Index (SSCI)
EID WOS:000634826700032
WoS Category Business
Research Area Business & Economics
PDF https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2021.02.008
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