Navigating through the Ocean of Platform Economy

Abstract

Internet-based platforms are part of the digital revolution, disrupting most of the traditional industry sectors. A compilation of software, transactions and networks, the platforms proliferated almost all sides of everyday life, thus forming a fully integrated ecosystem called “Platform economy”. The current paper explores the essential functions of platforms and the main components in the platform economy - participants, transactions and interactions. The main goal is to provide insights about the definitions, current issues and directions for future research.

Keywords: platform economy; networks; platforms, software

JEL Classification: O31, M16