Study On The Vertical Relationship Of Mobile Data Services Platform

With the rapid development of mobile data services, it is discovered that successful or not very successful cases can be found in not only open but also closed business models. What are the vertical relationships between mobile data service platforms and applications providers? The paper starts with traditional organization theory and mobile business model, analyzes the vertical relationships and it's influencing factors of mobile data services platforms. Then with the foundation of two-sided markets theory, the paper makes a game theory analysis about the vertical relationships, integrative or independent, of the mobile data services platforms and application providers.Concretely, the research content and innovations of this paper are as follows:The paper researches particularly on the perspective of micro-environment of the enterprises, instead of macro-scopical research with unitary perspective, with the emphasis of incarnating the whole value-chain competing through the vertical relationships of platforms and applications, what is the main innovation in the business model of data service platforms.Based on the traditional organization theory, the paper analyzes the vertical relationships between platforms and applications from the perspective of mobile commerce business model. With the theory foundation of the vertical relationships of industrial chain in industry organization theory and the analytic frame of SCP model, this paper researches the different vertical relationships of mobile data service platforms and the different markets representations of services.The innovation about the two-sided markets theory is to apply the theory to idiographic industry, and put forward supposes and the specific parameter in allusion to mobile data services platforms. It is extremely new in the application of two-sided markets theory to use it in the non-price control strategy of members and to analyze the vertical relationships of platforms, especially using it in the analysis of the vertical relationships of mobile data service platforms.With the basic of two-sided markets theory model, the paper mainly analyzes the question of whether to choose total vertical integrative strategy (totally closed monopolization) or to choose partly vertical integrative strategy (application markets' competition permitted), with the model expansion such as multi-platform , multi- products, multi-stage game, service differentiation and etc.There are several aspects of research and conclusions as follows:Generally speaking, the business model of mobile data services is a complicated issue. From the organization dimension of business model, many factors such as the quality difference and substitute of the platform products and etc all influence the choice of vertical integrative or vertical independent strategy, which should not only consider the inner balance but also the competition of platforms. In competitive circumstance, when designing the organization dimension of business model, whether to choose integrative or independent strategy should consider the quality difference and substitute of platform products synthetically, and the vertical strategy should keep changing with the development of conditions. Different kind of mobile service has different two-sided markets characters and the same service should adjust its price construct to adapt different seedtimes.The conclusion is that business model, whether closed or open, is not the determinant of success, to choose vertical integrative strategy or not depends on factors such as quality difference and substitute of the platform products themselves and the rival products. With different conditions, vertical independent and vertical integrative strategy can both have advantages. This research will make sense for mobile service operators to choose right service platform strategy and exert the competing advantage of platform.