Value creation within a digital service platform through the lens of service-dominant (S-D) logic : A case study of Eljun’s digital payment platform

Abstract: The number of companies who base their business model on digital platforms has increased in the recent years. Successful examples of digital platforms are e.g., Airbnb, Klarna or Uber. Compared to traditional linear value chains the value creation process in digital platforms is characterized by co-creation between multiple actors who exchange resources through interactions to mutually create value. Because of this fundamental difference in the value creation process it is necessary to research value creation in digital platform. Screening the literature has however shown that there is research gap in understandthe value creation process in digital platforms. Therefore, this thesis aims to understand this context by conducting a case study-based research. For this purpose, the start-up company Eljun is chosen that creates a digital wallet for customers to proceed payments for sustainable transportations. By conducting semi-structured interviews with the central actors of the platform we received insights that allow us to answer the three research questions. The value proposition canvas for the first research question has shown that the technical integration, costs, and lack of uncertainty are negative perceived values by the actors and positive values result from synergy effects in the platform like enhancing reach and customer experience by offering complementary services. For the second question we appliedthe view of service-dominant logic to analyse what facilitates value cocreation in the platform which led to the following themes: Adopting customer centric approach, stimulating purposeful communication, fostering collaborative development, cultivating transparent and fair interaction. For the third questions we derived barriers and motivators for value co-creation that are connected to a shared mission, competition, organizational & industrial readiness, number of actors and end-users, and the design of boundary resources.