Entry Strategies Under Competing Standards: Hybrid Business Models in the Open Source Software Industry

Andrea Bonaccorsi (), Silvia Giannangeli () and Cristina Rossi ()
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Andrea Bonaccorsi: Department of Electrical Systems and Automation, University of Pisa, Via Diotisalvi 2, 56126 Pisa, Italy
Silvia Giannangeli: Sant'Anna School of Advanced Studies, Piazza Martiri della Libertà 33, 56127 Pisa, Italy
Cristina Rossi: Politecnico di Milano, Piazza Leonardo da Vinci 32, 20133 Milano, Italy

Management Science, 2006, vol. 52, issue 7, 1085-1098

Abstract: The paper analyzes the strategies of software firms that have entered the open source (OS) field. The notion of the OS business model is discussed in the light of a substantial body of theoretical literature concerning strategic management and the economics of innovation, as well as specialized literature on OS. Empirical evidence based on a survey of 146 Italian software firms shows that firms have adapted to an environment dominated by incumbent standards by combining the offering of proprietary and OS software under different licensing schemes, thus choosing a hybrid business model. The paper examines the determinants of the degree of openness toward OS and discusses the stability of hybrid models in the evolution of the industry.

Keywords: open source; software industry; hybrid business models; switching costs; network externalities (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2006
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (71)

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