Generating innovative interconnection business models for the future internet

The future development of the internet is not only heavily dependent on its technological evolution, but also on business sustainability for the interconnection ecosystem the web relies on, where various players characterized by fairly different economic structures and interests are coexisting. Therefore, in this paper the authors aim to propose a methodological framework for developing innovative interconnection business models.

Starting from a comprehensive as‐is analysis including the selection of appropriate service scenarios, market activities are abstracted through an archetypization process. Based on that, a value network for the future marketplace is proposed and makes it possible to design a business model for carriers, before, as last step, both the value network configurations and the to‐be business model are evaluated.

The framework to assess the future internet ecosystem depicts the interconnections value network, shedding light on its key activities; it proposes the establishment of a new dynamic interconnection marketplace based on an emerging interconnection value network where traditional and original roles coexist; and it evaluates the introduction of sending party pays and bid‐and‐ask solutions for governing the marketplace and its business models.

The authors' approach addresses carriers, over‐the‐top providers and technology providers as well as end user groups, specifically aiming at fostering the evolution of the future internet by means of developing innovative value configurations and business model options with a substantial impact for a broad set of stakeholders on a global scale. Thus, the canvas of guidelines presented and discussed in this paper covers all stakeholders in the interconnection ecosystem and provides a solid starting point for upcoming implementations.