Platform strategies for seamless mobility

Abstract

Technology-organizations such as Motorola, Intel etc. are investing considerable time and resources in the realization of the concept of "Seamless Mobility" - a vision wherein true ubiquitous computing can be made possible. The drive towards "Seamless Mobility however raises certain questions about the role of platforms, revenue strategies and management control in such an eco-system. Till today, there are no studies available looking at these issues. The objectives of this study are to focus on the issues related to different dimensions of "Seamless Mobility" (specifically, the technological-dimensions and the value-chain dimensions).Based on developer community interviews and literature, the study identifies possible platform-strategies and their related organizational focus. We characterized the firms in the industry into three categories - niche, sub-system and system. Based on this typology, we propose the organizational capabilities with respect to domain-control, technology requirements and value-chain and complementary-assets. Managerial implications and limitations are discussed.