Collaborative Consumption as a Source of Market Disruption

Abstract

The concept of collaborative consumption has been developed in consumer studies to define new consumption opportunities which are facilitated by information systems. Accordingly, novel services such as the ridesharing service Uber, for transport, and the hospitality-brokering service Airbnb, for accommodation, successfully employ collaboration in consumption and provide consumers with novel types of access to services. Yet while the identification of this new characteristic of consumption is of great merit, less attention has been paid in consumer studies to how it challenges existing market arrangements. It is against this background that this article examines collaborative consumption as a source of market disruption. The article applies the concept to the empirical case of a pilot scheme in collaborative public transport (Kutsuplus), which essentially consisted of a taxi-like bus service in Helsinki, Finland. It argues that collaborative consumption may tend to contribute premium rather than standard quality in public services, which is apt to disrupt both public and private service markets. The analysis further affirms that the concept of collaborative consumption is well suited to the assessment of novel services and their disruptive characteristics.