Environmental Sustainability Orientation, Reward-Based Crowdfunding, and Venture Capital: The Mediating Role of Crowdfunding Performance for New Technology Ventures

Extant literature has investigated the effects of new ventures’ environmental sustainability orientation (ESO) on the crowdfunding (CF) performance and on the ability to secure venture capital, separately and with mixed results. In this article, we address the study of these relationships simultaneously. Specifically, we examine how the presence of ESO features influences new technology-based ventures’ ability to secure funding in reward-based CF campaigns and how the CF performance mediates the effect of such features on attracting subsequent venture capital. Using a sample of new hardware ventures that have launched a CF campaign on Kickstarter, we document a negative effect of the presen…

Crowdfunding performance, market performance, and the moderating roles of product innovativeness and experts' judgment: Evidence from the movie industry

Reward-based crowdfunding (CF) has emerged as a method to solicit funds for innovative projects. Yet, little is still known about the ability of reward-based CF to act as a signal in the eyes of future consumers, and thus boost the future market performance of new products that innovators intend to commercialize using the campaign funds. In addition, scant research has clarified the boundary conditions that can magnify or weaken the efficacy of this CF signal. Given the relevance of reward-based CF for supporting innovation, understanding when the CF campaign performance works as an effective signal is of great interest, especially in business settings characterized by high product quality …

On the informative role of Reward-based Crowdfunding

Diversification and performance in the mobile app market: The role of the platform ecosystem

Abstract We examine the effect of app developers' product line diversification decision on their performance and shed light on whether the type of platform ecosystem (open versus closed) where they commercialize apps influences this effect. We compare the revenue performance of diversified and specialized developers in Apple's App Store and Google Play. We show that in the Apple's App Store (closed platform) diversified developers always display lower performance than their specialized counterparts. In Google Play (open platform) diversification is beneficial in categories where diversified developers have predominant market share, whereas it is detrimental in categories dominated by specia…

Crowdfunding as a tool to support sustainability‐oriented initiatives: Preliminary insights into the role of product/service attributes

A common goal of current research seems to uncover whether crowdfunding (CF) could be considered an effective way to support sustainability-oriented initiatives in securing funding, due to diverging results emerging from literature. We claim that the objective of proving whether CF may benefit sustainability-oriented initiatives could be misplaced; rather, we deem more fruitful to understand how critical are some attributes of products/services pursued within CF campaigns to benefiting sustainability-oriented initiatives and increasing their odds of success in CF. We focus on food-related projects as in this sector, sustainability issues apply more than to any other human activities and con…

Sharing economy and dynamic pricing: Is the impact of Airbnb on the hotel industry time-dependent?

Abstract Prior literature has reported significant price and revenue reductions in the hotel industry due to the emergence of Airbnb. Other studies have documented that hotels' price reactions to the penetration of Airbnb depend on their service level, e.g., low/medium-end versus high end. Relying on a large sample from the Italian market, we contribute by showing that the effect of Airbnb on hotels' price decisions does not only depend on incumbents’ quality level, but also on the difference between booking and check-in time. That is, the effect of the penetration of Airbnb on hotels' dynamic price decisions varies over time depending on the core segment hotels target.

On the signaling effect of reward-based crowdfunding: (When) do later stage venture capitalists rely more on the crowd than their peers?

Abstract Venture capitalists (VCs) make only a small number of investments and are more likely to invest in ventures where other VCs have invested previously. As such, valuable opportunities may be forgone if they are not funded by VCs in the first place. We demonstrate how crowdfunding (CF) can remedy this concern. Using a sample of new technology-based ventures, we reveal that ventures initially funded through reward-based CF can be even more likely than those initially backed by VCs in attracting follow-up funds from VCs. This happens when ventures originally funded via reward-based CF complement the certification they derive from CF with patents and a founding team with a track record o…