The Dynamics of Power in Software Ecosystems: Insights from a Multiple Case Study

The software ecosystem paradigm is a means for companies to obtain benefits by joining a network of partners that supply infrastructure, software and services for a shared market. In this paper, we analyse the relationships among partners participating in software ecosystems by means of established power theories. We report the findings of a multiple case study of two software ecosystems formed by small-to-medium enterprises. Our main contribution is to investigate the role of power in software ecosystems by describing how companies exercise coercive, expert, legitimate, referent and reward power. In addition, we explore how power-balancing operations can lead these partnerships to thrive and sustain the evolution of software ecosystems.