Gastvortrag Prof. Dr. Leona Chandra Kruse: "Involuntary Openness in Digital Platform Ecosystem under Regulatory Intervention"

ABSTRACT
Traditional industries such as the banking sector are shifting toward partnerships under the
enactment of the Payment Services Directive 2 (PSD2), which compels incumbent banks to give
Fintech firms data access. While prior work is rich in insights on the internal governance of
platform ecosystems, it does not directly explain this phenomenon. This paper draws on
interviews with senior executives from major actors in Sweden’s open banking ecosystem to
examine how regulatory intervention for access and participation influences platform
relationships. We introduce the concept of involuntary openness—a partnership characteristic in
which platform owners are compelled by regulatory intervention to grant complementors access
and participation, rather than doing so out of strategic intent. We show how regulatory intervention
for access and participation operates as an external governance mechanism, reshaping platform
ecosystems that prior research has mainly understood through internal governance by platform
owners. Involuntary openness challenges prevailing assumptions that openness is a voluntary
strategic choice and shows how regulatory intervention can reconfigure power distribution and
coopetition between platform owners and complementors. We also identify strategies that help
platform owners, complementors, and partners navigate the opportunities and constraints created
by regulatory interventions. In doing so, we contribute to the literature on digital platform,
governance, openness, and coopetition, and we highlight the often-overlooked role of
complementors in these dynamics.

SHORT BIO
Leona Chandra Kruse is a professor of Information Systems at the University of Agder in Norway.
Her research focuses on how people use information systems for work and leisure and how the
technologies should be designed to provide people with support, pleasure, and security. She
examines legacy and emerging technologies, such as decision support systems, simulated AI
persona, digital companions, non-fungible tokens, and immersive technologies. Her research has
been recognized with several awards, including the Young Researcher Award 2024 from Agder
Academy of Sciences and Letters and the AIS Senior Scholar’s best Information Systems
publication in 2018. Leona is a Senior Editor for the Journal of Strategic Information Systems and
the European Journal of Information Systems (EJIS). She will begin her term as Associate Editor
for Management Information Systems Quarterly (MISQ) in 2026. She is currently curating special
issues for Decision Support Systems, EJIS, and the Journal of Information Technology
 

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