Making contact : A case study of a digital platform in the construction industry

Sammanfattning: Digital platforms are increasingly disrupting established status quos in traditionally stable markets. This study focuses on the launch and use of a digital service platform in the construction industry in  Finland. The study encompasses a practical, action research case study of the platform itself and the context in which it exists. In order to clearly describe observed phenomena from the case, we utilise well-established concepts both from the field of economics and information systems to utilise a relevant vocabulary for describing the findings. The purpose is to answer our research question: what are the perceived market frictions for Small and Medium-sized Entreprises within the construction industry affecting networking and contracting? Also, in what ways can digital platforms mitigate these frictions? The study identifies several underlying frictions in the industry relating to network saturation, disintermediation, transaction costs and relate these to the functionality of the platform attempting to alleviate these frictions.