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Cited by 3Digital Platforms and EconomicsBusiness Strategy and InnovationInnovation and Knowledge Management

Smart Timing for Smart Products? Complementor Multihoming in Nascent Platform Markets

Open access
Aydin Ozden, Senem, Suarez, Fernando F., Libaers, Dirk, Bart, Yakov·2026·Journal of Product Innovation Management
DOI 10.1111/jpim.70005
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Abstract

In multi‐platform markets, complementors often choose to offer their products or services across several platforms—a strategy known as complementor multihoming. This approach has gained significant attention from both industry practitioners and management scholars. Building on existing research regarding the factors that influence complementors' decision to multihome and the associated performance implications, this study examines the timing strategies involved in complementors' multihoming decisions. Specifically, we investigate the drivers of the timing of complementors' sequential multihoming, focusing on the factors that affect the timing of their first and subsequent multihoming. The empirical context of our research is the ecosystem of platforms and complementors in the nascent smart home market. Our results show that early entrants transition more quickly from single‐homing to multihoming (i.e., joining a second platform) than late entrants, suggesting that they adopt a hedging strategy in response to the high uncertainty present in the early stages of the ecosystem. We also find that the drivers of the timing of multihoming may differ for the first and subsequent multihoming. For the first multihoming, the market traction of non‐adopted platforms is associated with how quickly complementors multihome. However, this relationship dissipates in subsequent multihoming decisions. Nevertheless, certain factors influence the timing of all multihoming: when joining a second or third platform, complementors are faster to adopt platforms that are technologically similar to those they have already joined. We discuss the managerial implications of these findings for platforms and complementors navigating multi‐platform ecosystems.

AI snapshot

Written from the paper’s full text.

TL;DR

This study examines when complementors multihome in nascent platform markets, using the smart home ecosystem to model the timing of first and subsequent multihoming. It finds that early entrants multihome faster, platform traction speeds first multihoming in Cox models, and shorter technological distance speeds both first and subsequent multihoming.

Key findings

  • Early entrants multihome faster to a second platform: each month of delay in market entry decreases the hazard of first multihoming by 0.21% (Cox model), supporting Hypothesis 1; the Weibull robustness check also supports this.
  • Greater traction of non-adopted platforms increases the hazard of first multihoming by 1% per month in the Cox model, supporting Hypothesis 2, but the Weibull model finds this association insignificant and rejects Hypothesis 2.
  • Shorter technological distance speeds multihoming: it decreases the hazard of first multihoming by 43.1% per month and the hazard of subsequent multihoming to a third platform by 63.3% per month, supporting Hypotheses 3a and 3b; a Z-test found no significant difference between the two coefficients.
  • Descriptively, 49.7% of smart device manufacturers adopted at least one platform; 27.2% multihomed to at least a second platform (54.7% of all complementors), 12.6% multihomed to a third, and 3.3% multihomed to all four. Average time was 45.8 months to first platform, 9.4 months to first multihoming, and 4.1 months to subsequent multihoming.

Methods

  • Empirical setting: the nascent global smart home market, focusing on four platforms (Google Nest, Samsung SmartThings, Amazon Alexa, Wink) and five product categories (lights, appliances, smoke detectors, security systems, thermostats).
  • Data: firm-product category-month panel of 4,983 observations (151 firm-product category observations over 33 months) from September 2014 to May 2017, covering 136 unique firms; sources include IoT Analytics, manual platform compatibility data, Google Trends, GitHub-based Jaccard technological distance, USPTO patents, Crunchbase, and app store review scores.
  • Analysis: semi-parametric Cox survival analysis with time-dependent covariates to relax proportional hazards, plus robustness checks using parametric Weibull regression and random-effects linear probability models.

Limitations

  • Stated: findings may not extend to non-platform industries, industries in which only one platform emerges, or mature platform markets where the winning platform(s) are well understood; the study only considers multihoming timing from the complementors’ perspective, and future work could examine simultaneous complementor and user multihoming.
  • Stated: analysis of adoption of a fourth platform could not be conducted because too few complementors multihomed to a fourth platform during the study period.
  • Evident: platform traction is supported in the Cox model but not in the Weibull robustness check, so the evidence for Hypothesis 2 is mixed; the correlation matrix also shows technological distance correlated with time to first platform (−0.796) and time to multihome to a second platform (−0.756), above the paper’s stated 0.7 threshold, suggesting possible multicollinearity concerns.

Model-written summary. Check it against the paper before relying on it.

Integrity signals

Registry

Crossref · 10.1111/jpim.70005

Cites

97 of 97 references verified0 citation errors · 0 not checkable

Statistics

Nothing to recompute.

Claims the paper makes

21 of 68 cited sources checked · 2 supported · 1 flagged · accuracy not yet measured

  • Premisecitation

    Research on complementor multihoming has largely been conducted in mature platform contexts where platform dynamics have been reduced to interactions between two dominant platforms, leading to a one-off multihoming decision with only one multihoming option.

    “research on complementor multihoming has largely been conducted in mature platform contexts where platform dynamics have been reduced to the interactions between two dominant platforms; consequently, complementors face a one-off multihoming decision with only one multihoming option”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim2 of 3 sources checked
    • cites Cennamo et al. 2018 source

      The Introduction (page unavailable) says existing multihoming research largely neglects technological dynamics, and §3 describes a common assumption that complementors decide whether to multihome without further platform-specific investment. The copy does not say that research was largely conducted in mature markets with two dominant platforms, or that complementors consequently faced a one-off decision with only one multihoming option. (LLM, conf=0.84)

      Experimental — accuracy not yet measured
    • cites Corts and Lederman 2009 source

      Split into 2 atoms — 0 confirmed, 0 partially supported, 2 disputed, 0 misattributed, 0 unverifiable. Expand the claim to see per-atom verdicts.

      Checked by a reasoning model — may be wrong.

      Experimental — accuracy not yet measured
    • cites Landsman and Stremersch 2011 source
  • Premisecitation

    Network effects are present in most platform markets.

    “Since network effects are present in most platform markets, the nonlinear properties of network effects create a dynamic situation in multi-platform spaces.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim1 of 3 sources checked
    • cites Rochet and Tirole 2003 source

      The Introduction describes network effects in videogame and payment-card platforms. But its broader statement runs in the other direction: many, if not most, markets with network externalities have two sides that interact through a platform. It does not establish that most platform markets have network effects. No page number is available in our copy. (LLM, conf=0.82)

      Experimental — accuracy not yet measured
    • cites Gawer and Cusumano 2014 source
    • cites Parker et al. 2016 source
  • Premisecitation

    Homing costs usually arise from the adaptation, coordination, and communication requirements associated with joining a new platform.

    “Nevertheless, research suggests that homing costs usually arise from the adaptation, coordination, and communication requirements (Kogut and Zander 1992) associated with joining a new platform (Cennamo et al. 2018;Kapoor and Lee 2013).”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim2 of 3 sources checked
    • cites Kogut and Zander 1992 source
    • cites Cennamo et al. 2018 source
    • cites Kapoor and Lee 2013 source

      In “Organization of Firms and Complementors” (page unavailable), the paper says commercializing a new technology requires coordinated adaptation among firms and complementors, and discusses communication channels that facilitate it. It does not characterize these requirements as homing costs or say that they arise from joining a new platform. (LLM, conf=0.82)

      Experimental — accuracy not yet measured
  • Premisecitation

    Multihoming carries important costs for complementors which tend to increase with the technological distance between platforms and different versions of platform architecture.

    “multihoming carries important costs for the complementors (Armstrong and Wright 2007) which tend to increase with the technological distance between platforms and different versions of platform architecture”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim1 of 3 sources checked
    • cites Armstrong and Wright 2007 source
    • cites Cennamo et al. 2018 source

      Section 2, “Multihoming: The Benefits and Implications” (page not available), says differences in platform architecture can increase multihoming costs. Section 3.2, “Complex vs. Simple Platform Technology,” links differences in platform complexity to greater resource-allocation and integration tradeoffs for complementors. These passages support the claim about technological differences between platforms, but do not establish that costs increase across different versions of a platform architecture. (LLM, conf=0.78)

      Experimental — accuracy not yet measured
    • cites Chen et al. 2022 source
  • Premisecitation

    Existing platform literature has primarily focused on the determinants and the consequences of complementors' decision to multihome.

    “Existing platform literature has primarily focused on the determinants and the consequences of complementors' decision to multihome”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim1 of 3 sources checked
    • cites Agarwal and Kapoor 2023 source
    • cites Gastaldi et al. 2024 source

      Section 2.3 discusses conditions that make multi-homing easier and its effects on platforms and complementors. The Introduction also describes complementors’ reasons for multi-homing and its drawbacks. These passages support the topic of the claim, but do not establish that determinants and consequences of the decision to multi-home have been the primary focus of existing platform literature; section 2.3 says the literature remains unclear about its impact. (LLM, conf=0.79)

      Experimental — accuracy not yet measured
    • cites Tian et al. 2022 source
  • May combine two claims. 26
  • Classified as probably not a substantial claim. 34
  • The quote only partly states this claim. 1

  • May combine two claims.

    Premisecitation

    Multihoming can enable complementors to access additional user bases, quickly drive up their revenues, and shorten the time to profitability.

    “First, multihoming can enable complementors to access additional user bases, quickly drive up their revenues, and shorten the time to profitability (Bresnahan et al. 2014;Corts and Lederman 2009;Rietveld and Eggers 2018).”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim1 of 3 sources checked
    • cites Bresnahan et al. 2014

      Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.

    • cites Corts and Lederman 2009 source

      Section II (Industry Background; page not available) says multi-platform releases let publishers sell to users of another console, earn additional revenue, and make some games profitable that would not be profitable as exclusive releases. Section VI (Conclusion; page not available) says they can spread development costs across platforms. Neither section establishes that revenues rise quickly or that the time to profitability is shortened. (LLM, conf=0.88)

      Experimental — accuracy not yet measured
    • cites Rietveld and Eggers 2018 source

  • May combine two claims.

    Premisecitation

    The smart home market is at an early stage of development with several competing platforms and much uncertainty regarding which platform will dominate.

    “This market is at an early stage of development (Hilbolling et al. 2021) with several competing platforms and much uncertainty regarding which platform will dominate.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim1 of 1 sources checked
    • cites Hilbolling et al. 2021 source

      The citation is attached to the claim that the smart-home market is at an early stage. The Research Setting section says a platform ecosystem emerged around Philips Hue and quotes its developer-program manager saying it would be difficult to turn smart homes and smart lighting into a success. That supports an emerging ecosystem, but does not establish the developmental stage of the smart-home market as a whole. The later statement about competing platforms is not directly attached to this citation. (LLM, conf=0.72)

      Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

  • May combine two claims.

    Premisecitation

    Fast multihoming to another platform can help complementors expand their market and spread the fixed costs of production and marketing.

    “While achieving scale is often challenging in nascent markets, fast multihoming to another platform can help complementors expand their market (Kretschmer and Claussen 2016) and spread the fixed costs of production and marketing (Corts and Lederman 2009).”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim2 of 2 sources checked
    • cites Kretschmer and Claussen 2016 source

      The citation to Kretschmer and Claussen attaches to the claim that fast multihoming helps complementors expand their market; the fixed-cost claim cites a different paper. The Introduction and §3 discuss backward compatibility across platform generations, not complementors rapidly joining another platform to expand their market. Searches for multihoming and games offered across multiple platforms found no passage addressing that claim. (LLM, conf=0.74)

      Experimental — accuracy not yet measured
    • cites Corts and Lederman 2009 source

      The Conclusion says multi-platform releases let publishers spread fixed game-development costs across users of competing platforms; Industry Background likewise explains how a second platform can help recoup those costs. The cited paper does not establish that publishers spread fixed marketing costs, which the citing sentence also attributes to it. (LLM, conf=0.88)

      Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

  • May combine two claims.

    Premisecitation

    A significant fraction of multihoming investments tends to be co-specialized, such that they cannot be easily redeployed or re-used on other platforms, increasing the risk of holdup and the costs of multihoming to a distant platform.

    “A significant fraction of these multihoming investments tends to be co-specialized, such that they cannot be easily redeployed or re-used on other platforms (Jacobides et al. 2018), increasing the risk of holdup and the costs of multihoming to a distant platform.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim1 of 1 sources checked
    • cites Jacobides et al. 2018 source

      Section 3.4 (page not provided) says that joining an ecosystem involves some nonfungible investment that cannot easily be redeployed elsewhere without cost; it also links co-specialization to the cost of retooling for another ecosystem. It does not establish that a significant fraction of multihoming investments tends to be co-specialized. Nor does it specifically establish increased holdup risk or the cost of multihoming to a distant platform. (LLM, conf=0.84)

      Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).

    Premisecitation

    Boundary resources have become a standard in platform markets, usually taking the form of technical conferences or seminars, the release of software development kits (SDKs), and application programming interfaces (APIs), and technical support to the developer community.

    “They have become a standard in platform markets, usually taking the form of technical conferences or seminars, the release of software development kits (SDKs), and application programming interfaces (APIs), and technical support to the developer community (Von Hippel and Katz 2002).”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim1 of 1 sources checked
    • cites Von Hippel and Katz 2002 source

      Split into 2 atoms — 0 confirmed, 2 partially supported, 0 disputed, 0 misattributed, 0 unverifiable. Expand the claim to see per-atom verdicts.

      Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

  • Classified as probably not a substantial claim.

    Premisecitation

    Smart home platforms are typically considered as innovation platforms that provide the necessary technological architecture upon which participants create value by offering novel complementary products and services.

    “Platforms that have emerged in the smart home market are typically considered as innovation platforms that provide the necessary technological architecture upon which the participants create value by offering novel complementary products and services”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim2 of 3 sources checked
    • cites Cusumano et al. 2019

      Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.

    • cites Gawer 2021 source

      The section “Two types of platforms: transaction platforms and innovation platforms” describes innovation platforms as technological foundations on which participants develop complementary products and services. It gives examples from computer and smartphone ecosystems, but does not establish that smart home platforms are typically considered innovation platforms. (LLM, conf=0.86)

      Experimental — accuracy not yet measured
    • cites Trabucchi and Buganza 2022 source

      “The evolution of the field” (p. 3) describes innovation platforms as foundations on which outside firms develop complementary products, technologies, or services. It gives operating systems as an example, but does not discuss smart home platforms or establish that they are typically classified this way. (LLM, conf=0.86)

      Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

  • May combine two claims.

    Premisecitation

    Most studies in the platform literature have centered around complementors' market entry strategies and have mainly examined single-platform settings.

    “Most studies in this field have centered around complementors' market entry strategies (Ceccagnoli et al. 2012;Cennamo et al. 2018;Corts and Lederman 2009;Huang et al. 2013;Kapoor and Agarwal 2017), and they have mainly examined single-platform settings (Ceccagnoli et al. 2012;Kapoor and Agarwal 2017).”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim2 of 3 sources checked
    • cites Ceccagnoli et al. 2012 source
    • cites Cennamo et al. 2018 source

      The Introduction says the literature generally treats complementors’ multihoming choice as a trade-off between market size and costs, which supports a focus on platform participation decisions. But this paper’s stated question concerns the quality of complements developed for multiple platforms, rather than market entry strategies. The citing sentence attributes the separate single-platform claim to other sources, not to Cennamo et al. (LLM, conf=0.78)

      Experimental — accuracy not yet measured
    • cites Corts and Lederman 2009 source

      The Industry Background discusses publishers’ choices to release games on one or multiple platforms, which relates to complementors’ platform-entry strategies. But it explicitly says explaining changes in exclusivity is not the research focus; the focus is how exclusivity affects indirect network effects. The single-platform-settings clause cites other works, not Corts and Lederman. (LLM, conf=0.83)

      Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing). May combine two claims.

    Premisecitation

    Current digital platforms, with their modular approach and exposed interfaces, have created the appropriate technological infrastructure, allowing extended connectivity and opening the gate to a wide array of highly innovative IoT products.

    “it is the current digital platforms, with their modular approach and exposed interfaces, that have created the appropriate technological infrastructure, allowing extended connectivity and opening the gate to a wide array of highly innovative IoT products”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim2 of 3 sources checked
    • cites Hoffman and Novak 2025 source
    • cites Raff et al. 2020 source

      The Conceptualization and Capabilities and performance sections describe connected products joining IoT networks through connectors and communication software. Value Creation through Smart Products discusses modular smart-product components and software-based innovation. The paper does not establish the claim that current digital platforms, specifically through modularity and exposed interfaces, created the technological infrastructure enabling a wide array of innovative IoT products. (LLM, conf=0.84)

      Experimental — accuracy not yet measured
    • cites Schulz et al. 2023 source

      Section 2.3 describes modular product architectures with interchangeable digital interfaces, and section 2.2 describes connections among smart products, firms, and third parties. The paper does not establish that current digital platforms have exposed interfaces or that those platforms have enabled a wide array of highly innovative IoT products. The cited passages give narrower support for modularity and connectivity. (LLM, conf=0.85)

      Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

  • Classified as probably not a substantial claim.

    Premisecitation

    The early stages of innovation platforms are particularly challenging as they require their participants to engage in complementary innovation.

    “the early stages of innovation platforms are shown to be particularly challenging as they require their participants to engage in complementary innovation”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim1 of 2 sources checked
    • cites Gawer 2021 source
    • cites Gawer and Cusumano 2014 source

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S4 (based).

    Findingnone given

    The smart home market has seen the emergence of several competing platforms, providing complementors with the option of joining more than one platform.

    “First, the smart home market has seen the emergence of several competing platforms, providing complementors with the option of joining more than one platform.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).

    Findingown data

    Complementors that multihomed to a third platform were 12.6%.

    “Complementors that multihomed to a third platform were 12.6%.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).

    Findingcitation

    The smart home market had a worldwide household penetration rate of 2.4% by 2017.

    “Although the smart home market was at a ferment stage during our study period, by 2017, it had already reached a worldwide household penetration rate of 2.4% and was expected to grow rapidly.5”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim0 of 1 sources checked
    • cites [5] source

  • May combine two claims.

    Findingown data

    None of the explanatory or control variables show high correlation with the dependent variables (correlations below 0.7), except Technological Distance, which has -0.796 correlation with Time to First Platform and -0.756 correlation with Time to Multihome (second platform).

    “As shown in the table, none of the explanatory or control variables show high correlation with the dependent variables, that is, the correlations are below the 0.7 threshold, except Technological Distance, which has -0.796 correlation with Time to First Platform and -0.756 correlation with the Time to Multihome (second platform).”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).

    Findingown data

    The adopted and non-adopted platforms present an average of 0.856 technological distance on the Jaccard scale of 0 to 1.

    “While the average traction gained by the non-adopted platform categories is 0.13, the adopted and non-adopted platforms present an average of 0.856 technological distance on the Jaccard scale of 0 to 1.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • May combine two claims.

    Findingown data

    On average, it took 45.8 months for complementors to join their first platform, 9.4 months to their first multihoming, and 4.1 months to their subsequent multihoming.

    “On average, it took 45.8 months (from the inception of the smart home market) for complementors to join their first platform, 9.4 months to their first multihoming (joining a second platform), and 4.1 months to their subsequent multihoming (joining a third platform).”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • May combine two claims.

    Findingown data

    Amazon Alexa was the most popular platform among complementors; it was selected by 34 firms as their first platform.

    “Amazon Alexa was the most popular platform among complementors; it was selected by 34 firms as their first platform.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).

    Findingown data

    The average traction gained by the non-adopted platform categories is 0.13.

    “While the average traction gained by the non-adopted platform categories is 0.13, the adopted and non-adopted platforms present an average of 0.856 technological distance on the Jaccard scale of 0 to 1.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • May combine two claims.

    Findingown data

    In the Weibull model, platform traction has a positive coefficient but an insignificant association with the timing of first multihome, rejecting Hypothesis 2.

    “While platform traction presents the expected directionality with a positive coefficient, the p-value indicates an insignificant association with the timing of first multihome and rejects Hypothesis 2.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).

    Findingown data

    Wink was the first entry point to the smart home market for 14 firms.

    “Lastly, Wink was the first entry point to the smart home market for 14 firms.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • The quote only partly states this claim.

    Findingown data

    Time to market entry has a negative and significant (p < 0.05) effect on the hazard to multihome to a second platform.

    “In both estimations, time to market entry shows a negative and significant (p < 0.01 and p < 0.05) relationship with the probability of multihome for the first time.”
    • Also stated in: § 5.1 | Empirical Results · plain
      “the model shows that time to market entry has a negative and significant (p < 0.05) relationship with the timing of the complementors' first multihome.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim

  • May combine two claims.

    Findingown data

    50.3% of smart device manufacturers preferred to remain as a provider of stand-alone smart products, while 49.7% decided to adopt at least one platform.

    “Our preliminary analyses showed that 50.3% of smart device manufacturers preferred to remain as a provider of stand-alone smart products, while 49.7% decided to adopt at least one platform.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).

    Findingown data

    Only 3.3% of the complementors were multihomed to all four platforms.

    “Only 3.3% of the complementors were multihomed to all four platforms.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • May combine two claims.

    Findingown data

    The SmartThings platform was the second most popular platform adopted by 23 firms, while Nest was able to attract 16 firms to the smart home market.

    “The SmartThings platform was the second most popular platform adopted by 23 firms, while Nest was able to attract 16 firms to the smart home market.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).

    Findingown data

    In the linear probability model, time to market entry is not significantly associated with the probability of multihoming on the third platform (coefficient -0.001, not significant).

    “Third platform | (6) | Multihome | -0.001 | (0.002) | 0.001* | (0.001) | -0.674*** | (0.083)”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • May combine two claims.

    Findingnone given

    Technological distance is negatively associated with the time to first (b = -0.01, p < 0.01) and second (b = -0.07, p < 0.01) multihoming.

    “Technological distance is negatively associated with the time to first (b = -0.01,p < 0.01) and second (b = -0.07,p < 0.01) multihoming.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).

    Findingown data

    In the Weibull survival model, platform traction is not significantly associated with time to multihome on the second platform (coefficient 0.011, not significant).

    “Platform traction (Hypothesis 2) | -0.005 | 0.011 | -0.085”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).

    Findingown data

    In the linear probability model, platform traction is positively associated with the probability of multihoming on the third platform (coefficient 0.001, p<0.05).

    “Third platform | (6) | Multihome | -0.001 | (0.002) | 0.001* | (0.001) | -0.674*** | (0.083)”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • Classified as probably not a substantial claim.

    Premisecitation

    Multihoming can improve complementors' chances of survival by mitigating the risk of opportunistic behavior by a focal platform.

    “complementors, multihoming can improve their chances of survival by mitigating the risk of opportunistic behavior by a focal platform (Hagiu 2005)”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim0 of 1 sources checked
    • cites Hagiu 2005

      Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.

  • May combine two claims.

    Premisecitation

    Rapidly expanding their presence on a competing platform enables complementors to reduce dependency on a single platform and mitigate the risk of holdup.

    “Third, rapidly expanding their presence on a competing platform enables complementors to reduce dependency on a single platform and mitigate the risk of holdup (Hagiu 2005).”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim0 of 1 sources checked
    • cites Hagiu 2005

      Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.

  • Classified as probably not a substantial claim.

    Premisecitation

    Firms tend to hedge by investing in competing technologies during the early stages of an industry lifecycle.

    “For instance, Hatfield et al. (2001) showed how firms tend to hedge by investing in competing technologies during the early stages of an industry lifecycle.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim0 of 1 sources checked
    • cites Hatfield et al. (2001) source

  • May combine two claims.

    Premisecitation

    Multihoming is a costly endeavor for complementors; it requires compliance with technical specifications and esthetic standards unique to each platform.

    “However, multihoming is a costly endeavor for complementors; it requires compliance with the technical specifications and esthetic standards unique to each platform (Armstrong and Wright 2007).”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim0 of 1 sources checked
    • cites Armstrong and Wright 2007 source

  • Classified as probably not a substantial claim.

    Premisecitation

    Firms hedge the risks associated with uncertainty in new geographic markets they do not know well by entering several markets.

    “Kogut and Kulatilaka (1994) used the real options framework to investigate how firms hedge the risks associated with uncertainty in new geographic markets they do not know well by entering several markets.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim0 of 1 sources checked
    • cites Kogut and Kulatilaka (1994) source

  • May combine two claims.

    Interpretationreasoning

    The timing of multihoming is an important dimension of complementors' competitive strategies in platform ecosystems and can have a substantial impact on their performance.

    “The timing of multihoming is an important dimension of complementors' competitive strategies in platform ecosystems, and it can have a substantial impact on their performance.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S4 (based).

    Premisenone given

    Management research has largely overlooked when to multihome as a key aspect of complementors' multihoming strategies.

    “it has largely overlooked a key aspect of complementors' multihoming strategies-when to multihome.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • Classified as probably not a substantial claim.

    Premisecitation

    Hedging by investing in competing alternatives is an important strategy for firms that compete in nascent markets characterized by high uncertainty.

    “Hedging by investing in competing alternatives has long been identified as an important strategy for firms that compete in nascent markets characterized by high uncertainty.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim

  • Classified as probably not a substantial claim.

    Premisecitation

    Multihoming between technologically closer platforms can be less costly.

    “It has been argued that multihoming between technologically closer platforms can be less costly (Chen et al. 2022;Srinivasan and Venkatraman 2018).”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim0 of 2 sources checked
    • cites Chen et al. 2022 source
    • cites Srinivasan and Venkatraman 2018

      Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.

  • May combine two claims.

    Premisecitation

    Multihoming requires the development of a wider pool of technological capabilities at the complementor firm, resulting in a higher cost structure.

    “Multihoming also requires the development of a wider pool of technological capabilities at the complementor firm (Anderson et al. 2014), resulting in a higher cost structure.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim0 of 1 sources checked
    • cites Anderson et al. 2014 source

  • May combine two claims.

    Interpretationreasoning

    Unlike market uncertainty, which diminishes over time as complementors learn more about the market dynamics in the nascent platform ecosystem and develop maneuvering strategies to enhance their chances of survival and growth, the technological differences and the associated costs of joining a new platform remain relevant across sequential multihoming.

    “Unlike market uncertainty, which diminishes over time as complementors learn more about the market dynamics in the nascent platform ecosystem and develop maneuvering strategies to enhance their chances of survival and growth, the technological differences and the associated costs of joining a new platform remain relevant across sequential multihoming.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim

  • May combine two claims.

    Interpretationreasoning

    Multihoming to a platform that shows high market traction allows complementors to hedge market risks effectively and increase their chances of survival.

    “Multihoming to a platform that shows high market traction allows complementors to hedge the market risks effectively and increase their chances of survival.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim

  • May combine two claims.

    Interpretationcitation

    The momentum enjoyed by a given platform is likely to trickle down to its complementors, allowing them to grow user bases, secure external visibility, and achieve customer lock-in, giving them an advantage over rival complementors that chose platforms with slower traction.

    “The momentum enjoyed by a given platform is likely to trickle down to its complementors, allowing them to also grow their user bases, secure external visibility, and achieve customer lock-in (Farrell and Klemperer 2007), giving them an important advantage over the rival complementors that may have chosen platforms with slower traction.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim0 of 1 sources checked
    • cites Farrell and Klemperer 2007 source

  • Classified as probably not a substantial claim.

    Interpretationreasoning

    A complementor will multihome faster to target platforms (either as a second and third platform) that are technologically closer to the platform(s) it has already joined, as this represents a lower-cost and less-complex option to expand their presence in the market and reach a larger user base.

    “Consequently, we expect a complementor to multihome faster to target platforms (either as a second and third platform) that are technologically closer to the platform(s) it has already joined, as this will represent a lower-cost and less-complex option to expand their presence in the market and reach a larger user base.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim

  • May combine two claims.

    Interpretationreasoning

    A complementor could potentially abandon the initial platform and switch to the one with stronger traction, but this is unlikely to be the optimal strategy in the nascent stage of a multi-platform market, due to substantial uncertainty over whether network effects will lead to a winner-take-all outcome or allow coexistence of several strong platforms.

    “Although a complementor could potentially abandon the initial platform and switch to the one with stronger traction, this is unlikely to be the optimal strategy in the nascent stage of a multi-platform market, due to the substantial uncertainty over whether network effects will lead to a winner-take-all outcome (e.g., Google in web search) or allow for the coexistence of several strong platforms (”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim

  • Classified as probably not a substantial claim.

    Interpretationreasoning

    Complementors that have already joined a platform consider the traction other platforms have achieved when deciding on the timing of their multihoming to a second platform.

    “When complementors that have already joined a platform decide on the timing of their multihoming to a second platform, they are expected to consider the traction other platforms have achieved in the market.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim

  • May combine two claims.

    Interpretationcitation

    Multihoming to a platform with a substantially different technological architecture from the platforms a complementor has already joined can strain the complementor's limited development resources and increase coordination costs.

    “Multihoming to a platform with a substantially different technological architecture from the platforms a complementor has already joined can strain the complementor's limited development resources and increase coordination costs.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim

  • May combine two claims.

    Premisecitation

    Multihoming carries substantial costs for complementors, which must be weighed against the marginal benefits of joining yet another platform.

    “Multihoming carries substantial costs for the complementors (Armstrong and Wright 2007) which must be weighed against the marginal benefits of joining yet another platform.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim0 of 1 sources checked
    • cites Armstrong and Wright 2007 source

  • May combine two claims.

    Interpretationreasoning

    Complementors are expected to make their multihoming timing decisions with the aim of reducing uncertainty and increasing their chances of survival.

    “Hence, in the nascent stage of a multi-platform market, complementors are expected to make their multihoming timing decisions with the aim of reducing the uncertainty and increasing their chances of survival.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).

    Study design and conductown data

    The survival analyses were retested with Weibull models.

    “To check the robustness of our survival analyses, we retested our theoretical predictions with Weibull models.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • May combine two claims.

    Interpretationown data

    Technological distance between platforms decelerates not only the complementors' time to enter the smart home market but also their speed to multihome to a second and third platform.

    “Moreover, technological distance between platforms decelerates not only the complementors' time to enter the smart home market but also their speed to multihome to a second and third platform.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).

    Study design and conductnone given

    The authors lagged the Complementor Product Quality variable by 1 month.

    “We lagged this variable by 1 month.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • Classified as probably not a substantial claim.

    Interpretationreasoning

    The smart home market was transformed from several independent markets of stand-alone products into a platform-mediated market, where producers in different product categories serve as complementors to various platforms.

    “These changes have transformed the traditional home products categories from several independent markets of stand-alone products into a platform-mediated market, where the producers in different product categories now serve as complementors to various platforms.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim

  • Classified as probably not a substantial claim.

    Study design and conductreasoning

    The authors relaxed the proportional hazards assumption by using time-dependent covariates that include interactions between the covariates and time in an extended Cox model.

    “Therefore, we relaxed the proportional hazards assumption by using time-dependent covariates that include interactions between the covariates and time in our extended Cox model using the tvc function in Stata (Piao and Zajac 2016).”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).

    Study design and conductnone given

    Probabilities were re-estimated by clustering the error terms at the firm-category level in the random effects LPM regression.

    “Models 4, 5, and 6 re-estimate the probabilities by clustering the error terms at the firm-category level in the random effects LPM regression.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).

    Study design and conductreasoning

    The authors lagged the Complementor Resources variable by 1 month to minimize the potential for reverse causality.

    “We lagged this variable by 1 month to minimize the potential for reverse causality.12”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).

    Study design and conductreasoning

    The authors ran random effects LPM estimations with robust standard errors clustered at the firm-category level.

    “Due to the time-invariant characteristic of some of our variables, we ran the random effects LPM estimations with robust standard errors clustered at the firm-category level.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).

    Study design and conductcitation

    The authors employed a parametric Weibull regression model to test the robustness of their analyses.

    “To test the robustness of our analyses, we employed a parametric Weibull regression model, as done in prior studies (e.g., Kapoor and Lee 2013).”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).

    Premisecitation

    Complementors that join the multi-platform ecosystem are the main side of the platform that brings innovative products and services to a platform, expanding its functionality and value to the users.

    “Complementors that join the multi-platform ecosystem are the main side of the platform (Parker et al. 2016) that brings innovative products and services to a platform, expanding its functionality and value to the users.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim0 of 1 sources checked
    • cites Parker et al. 2016 source

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).

    Study design and conductown data

    In robustness checks, winsorizing the complementor resources variable at the 90% level achieved qualitatively similar results.

    “In our robustness checks, we have winsorized the complementor resources variable at the 90% level and achieved qualitatively similar results.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing), S4 (based). May combine two claims.

    Interpretationnone given

    Our findings may not necessarily extend to non-platform industries, industries in which only one platform emerges, or mature platform markets where the winning platform(s) is (are) well understood.

    “Our findings may not necessarily extend to non-platform industries, industries in which only one platform emerges, or mature platform markets where the winning platform(s) is (are) well understood.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).

    Premisecitation

    The addition of Google Trends product queries to sales forecast models has been shown to improve prediction power in a wide variety of contexts.

    “The addition of Google Trends product queries to sales forecast models has been shown to improve prediction power in a wide variety of contexts”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim0 of 2 sources checked
    • cites Boone et al. 2018 source
    • cites Du and Hsieh 2023

      Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.

59 of 59

  • The paper relies on this without support.

    Market traction at an early stage of platform development is a noisy signal when predicting how platform competition will evolve.

    “However, the decision is not simple, as market traction at an early stage of platform development is a noisy signal when predicting how platform competition will evolve.”

  • The paper relies on this without support.

    There is high volatility in platform dynamics.

    “There is high volatility in platform dynamics.”

  • The paper relies on this without support.

    For a complementor, the ideal scenario is selecting the platform with the highest growth potential as their initial choice.

    “For a complementor, the ideal scenario is selecting the platform with the highest growth potential as their initial choice.”

  • The paper relies on this without support.

    Denovo entrants typically lack the reputation that incumbents enjoy in the market.

    “Denovo entrants typically lack the reputation that incumbents enjoy in the market.”

  • The paper relies on this without support.

    Complementors adopt their first platform not knowing whether the platform they choose to join will grow faster than its rivals or eventually fall behind.

    “Because complementors adopt their first platform not knowing whether the platform they choose to join will grow faster than its rivals or eventually fall behind”
5 of 5

Self-check

Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.

Each contradiction between two passages listed here was confirmed by an independent check.

  • Mutually exclusive first-platform indicators have a positive correlation

    Minor

    Table 3 reports a positive correlation of 0.080 between the SmartThings and Alexa first-adopted-platform indicators. Under the stated definition, a complementor cannot have both platforms as its first adopted platform, so these indicators cannot be positively correlated.

  • Product-quality minimum falls outside its labeled range

    Minor

    Table 2 labels product quality as ranging from 1 to 5 but reports an observed minimum of 0.1.

2 of 2

Cites

Flagged first, then by citations

Research works printed but not linked: 1

  1. Van Berlo A., 1999, Design Guidelines on Smart Homes: A COST 219bis Guidebook

Cited by

Sorted by citations

Authors
Aydin Ozden, S., Suarez, F. F., Libaers, D., & Bart, Y.
Affiliations
  • City St George's, University of London Bayes Business School London UK
  • Northeastern University D'Amore McKim School of Business Boston Massachusetts USA
  • University of South Florida (US)
  • Northeastern University (US)
ORCID
Venue
Journal of Product Innovation Management
Publisher
Wiley
Published
2025-09-18
Volume
43
Issue
4
Pages
690-714
ISSN
  • 0737-6782 (ISSN-L)
  • 1540-5885
DOI
10.1111/jpim.70005
OpenAlex
W4414366776
Semantic Scholar
8a4ca552bdf4254f5ad47a1eb05a3c4c7324bee5
Cited by
3
References
89
Citations by year
2026: 3
FWCI
2.90
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
Locations
  • Journal of Product Innovation Management (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • City Research Online (City University London) (submittedVersion)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Business, Management and Accounting › Strategy and Management › Digital Platforms and Economics
  • Social Sciences › Business, Management and Accounting › Strategy and Management › Business Strategy and Innovation
  • Social Sciences › Business, Management and Accounting › Strategy and Management › Innovation and Knowledge Management
Keywords
platform ecosystems, early entrants, hedging strategies, market uncertainty, smart home market, platform adoption, technological similarity

About these checks

Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.

Claims read by deepseek-v4.1-flash under definition version 3 (extract-v3) on 2026-10-08.

Classified by jev-1.13-20260917 (gold-guideline-v0.2) on 2026-10-08.

Cited sources are checked by gpt-6-sol.

Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.

Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.

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