Technology platforms as an ICT4D model for business development

Platform technologies provide cost-effective models of exchange, use a huge amount of data to suggest different products for customers and create a scalable space for the unprivileged and underserved entities to do business online. Yet the unlimited opportunities created by platform technologies can collapse into different forms of institutional voids and socio-economic inequalities. This editorial discusses the unique benefits of platform technology and ICTs for business development and explore emergent knowledge of consumers as an opportunity to shape the design, implementation, use and evaluation of platform-based business models that can address institutional voids and be trusted for development. Taking inspiration from emergent knowledge and articles published on the potential of platform technology and ICT infrastructures for development in this Special Section, we advance Ciborra’s original conceptualization of platform as a unique organizing technology to innovate organizations by arguing that platform-based business models can be positively leveraged to mitigate institutional voids in marginalized communities. This offers an insightful contribution for researchers, practitioners and policymakers to empower consumer participation in the design of platform-based business models to maximize the full and equitable potential of technology platforms and ICTs for business and socio-economic development.