Skip to main content
Springer Nature Link
Log in

A Taxonomy for Platform Revenue Models: An Empirical-to-Conceptual Development Approach

  • Conference paper
  • First Online:
Enterprise Design, Operations, and Computing (EDOC 2023)

Part of the book series: Lecture Notes in Computer Science ((LNCS,volume 14367))

  • 557 Accesses

Abstract

In the field of Information Systems and Software Engineering, taxonomies are widely employed to organize and present well-designed knowledge. They play a crucial role in identifying relevant dimensions and characteristics associated with the objects under study. This paper focuses specifically on revenue models for platform business models, which facilitate the connection between providers and consumers in two-sided markets. For example, the Vinted Marketplace charges a transaction-based fee of 5% for each item sold, while nebenan.de offers platform access for a monthly subscription fee. Although these revenue model types differ, they both lead to distinctive and successful revenue models. Understanding and formalizing these revenue mechanisms is fundamental for the systematic design of revenue models for platform business models. This paper follows a proven taxonomy development method with two empirical-to-conceptual iteration cycles involving seven use cases. It introduces a comprehensive taxonomy comprising 15 dimensions and 79 characteristics. The proposed taxonomy contributes to the formalization of revenue models for platform business models and enhances the current understanding of the monetization strategies used by digital platforms to generate revenues. This paper supports researchers and practitioners involved in the design process of platform business models.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution

Subscribe and save

Springer+ Basic
$34.99 /Month
  • Get 10 units per month
  • Download Article/Chapter or eBook
  • 1 Unit = 1 Article or 1 Chapter
  • Cancel anytime
Subscribe now

Buy Now

Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Homepage of empto. https://www.empto.de/. Accessed 30 Apr 2023

  2. Homepage of MyHammer. https://www.my-hammer.de/. Accessed 30 Apr 2023

  3. Homepage of nebenan.de. https://nebenan.de/. Accessed 30 Apr 2023

  4. Homepage of tyre24. https://tyre24.alzura.com/. Accessed 30 Apr 2023

  5. Homepage of Vinted. https://www.vinted.de/. Accessed 30 Apr 2023

  6. Bartels, N., Gordijn, J.: A business model construction kit for platform business models - research preview. In: Gervasi, V., Vogelsang, A. (eds.) REFSQ 2022. LNCS, vol. 13216, pp. 175–182. Springer, Cham (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-98464-9_14

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  7. Bartels, N., Koch, M., Gordijn, J.: Developing a taxonomy for revenue models of platform business models. In: 36th Bled eConference Digital Economy and Society - the Balancing Act for Digital Innovation in Times of Instability: Conference Proceedings. University of Maribor Press (2023). https://doi.org/10.18690/um.fov.4.2023.1

  8. Bartels, N., Koch, M., Gordijn, J.: Reserach data taxonomy for revenue models of platform business models. Zenodo (2023). https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7635726

  9. Bartels, N., Koch, M., Schmitt, A., Gordijn, J.: Reserach data taxonomy for platform revenue models. Zenodo (2023). https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7965631

  10. Bartels, N., Schmitt, A.: Developing network effects for digital platforms in two-sided markets – the NfX construction guide. Digit. Bus. 2(2), 100044 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.digbus.2022.100044

    Article  Google Scholar 

  11. Bergman, R., Abbas, A.E., Jung, S., Werker, C., de Reuver, M.: Business model archetypes for data marketplaces in the automotive industry. Electron. Mark. 32(2), 747–765 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12525-022-00547-x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  12. Freichel, C., Fieger, J., Winkelmann, A.: Developing a taxonomy for digital platforms – a conceptual approach. In: Proceedings of the Annual Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences. Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences (2021). https://doi.org/10.24251/hicss.2021.701

  13. Gordijn, J., Wieringa, R.: E3value user guide - designing your ecosystem in a digital world. The Value Engineers, 1st edn. (2021)

    Google Scholar 

  14. Koch, M., Krohmer, D., Naab, M., Rost, D., Trapp, M.: A matter of definition: criteria for digital ecosystems. Digit. Bus. 2(2), 100027 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.digbus.2022.100027

    Article  Google Scholar 

  15. Koch, M., et al.: Digitale Ökosysteme in Deutschland. Fraunhofer Publica (2023). https://doi.org/10.24406/publica-1011

  16. Kundisch, D., et al.: An update for taxonomy designers. Bus. Inf. Syst. Eng. 64(4), 421–439 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12599-021-00723-x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  17. Moore, J.F.: The Death of Competition: Leadership and Strategy in the Age of Business Ecosystems. Wiley, Hoboken (1996)

    Google Scholar 

  18. Nickerson, R.C., Varshney, U., Muntermann, J.: A method for taxonomy development and its application in information systems. Eur. J. Inf. Syst. 22(3), 336–359 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1057/ejis.2012.26

    Article  Google Scholar 

  19. Parker, G.G., Van Alstyne, M.W., Choudary, S.P.: Platform Revolution: How Networked Markets are Transforming the Economy and How to Make them Work for You. WW Norton & Company, New York (2016)

    Google Scholar 

  20. Springer, V., Petrik, D.: Towards a taxonomy of impact factors for digital platform pricing. In: Gregory, P., Kruchten, P. (eds.) XP 2021. LNBIP, vol. 426, pp. 115–124. Springer, Cham (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-88583-0_11

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  21. Staub, N., Haki, K., Aier, S., Winter, R.: Taxonomy of digital platforms: a business model perspective. In: Proceedings of the Annual Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences. Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences (2021). https://doi.org/10.24251/hicss.2021.744

  22. Täuscher, K., Laudien, S.M.: Understanding platform business models: a mixed methods study of marketplaces. Eur. Manag. J. 36(3), 319–329 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.emj.2017.06.005

    Article  Google Scholar 

  23. Teece, D.J.: Business models, business strategy and innovation. Long Range Plann. 43(2), 172–194 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lrp.2009.07.003

    Article  Google Scholar 

  24. van de Ven, M., Abbas, A.E., Kwee, Z., de Reuver, M.: Creating a taxonomy of business models for data marketplaces. In: 34th Bled eConference Digital Support from Crisis to Progressive Change: Conference Proceedings. University of Maribor Press (2021). https://doi.org/10.18690/978-961-286-485-9.23

  25. Weking, J., Hein, A., Böhm, M., Krcmar, H.: A hierarchical taxonomy of business model patterns. Electron. Mark. 30(3), 447–468 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12525-018-0322-5

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

We thank Sonnhild Namingha for linguistic revision. The research was conducted as part of the Smarte.Land.Regionen project (2818SL001).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Fraunhofer IESE, Kaiserslautern, Germany

    Nedo Bartels, Matthias Koch & Anna Schmitt

  2. The Value Engineers, Soest, The Netherlands

    Jaap Gordijn

  3. Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

    Jaap Gordijn

Authors
  1. Nedo Bartels
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Matthias Koch
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Anna Schmitt
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Jaap Gordijn
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Nedo Bartels .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Vienna University of Technology, Vienna, Austria

    Henderik A. Proper

  2. Technical University of Berlin, Berlin, Germany

    Luise Pufahl

  3. University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands

    Dimka Karastoyanova

  4. University of Twente, Enschede, The Netherlands

    Marten van Sinderen

  5. University of Twente, Enschede, The Netherlands

    João Moreira

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2024 The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG

About this paper

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this paper

Bartels, N., Koch, M., Schmitt, A., Gordijn, J. (2024). A Taxonomy for Platform Revenue Models: An Empirical-to-Conceptual Development Approach. In: Proper, H.A., Pufahl, L., Karastoyanova, D., van Sinderen, M., Moreira, J. (eds) Enterprise Design, Operations, and Computing. EDOC 2023. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol 14367. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-46587-1_11

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-46587-1_11

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-031-46586-4

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-031-46587-1

  • eBook Packages: Computer ScienceComputer Science (R0)

Publish with us

Policies and ethics