To sell, to donate, or to barter? Value creation and capture through business model types in decentralized data ecosystems

Jana Ammann () and Thomas Hess ()
Additional contact information
Jana Ammann: Institute for Digital Management and New Media, LMU Munich School of Management
Thomas Hess: Institute for Digital Management and New Media, LMU Munich School of Management

Electronic Markets, 2025, vol. 35, issue 1, No 36, 22 pages

Abstract: Abstract Decentralized data ecosystems, enabled by data spaces, are transforming how organizations create and capture value from interorganizational data sharing. However, the implications of such data ecosystems on the business models of data-sharing participants remain underexplored. Based on 26 qualitative interviews with experts from two cases, we delineate and compare two generic business model types for data sharing: bartering, where participants share data reciprocally without direct monetary compensation, and marketplace, where data providers either sell or donate data. By comparing the two cases and their business model types, we find that while decentralization of technical infrastructure and governance enhances value creation, it simultaneously constrains value capture by increasing complexity and costs. Moreover, we demonstrate that the emergence of business model types is determined by the ecosystem’s contextual factors. By contextualizing business models and investigating the influence of decentralization on value creation and capture, our study advances the discourse on the business dimension of data ecosystems. These insights inform both scholars and practitioners navigating the complexities of data ecosystems.

Keywords: Data spaces; Decentralized data ecosystems; Data sharing; Business models; Value creation and capture (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: M15 O3 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s12525-025-00775-x Abstract (text/html)
Access to the full text of the articles in this series is restricted.

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:spr:elmark:v:35:y:2025:i:1:d:10.1007_s12525-025-00775-x

Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from
http://www.springer. ... ystems/journal/12525

DOI: 10.1007/s12525-025-00775-x

Access Statistics for this article

Electronic Markets is currently edited by Rainer Alt and Hans-Dieter Zimmermann

More articles in Electronic Markets from Springer, IIM University of St. Gallen
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Sonal Shukla () and Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing ().