Abstract: Content provider is the implementer of NSD in the network platform, and it is a key problem to be solved that how content provider acquires knowledge from other actors by operational mechanism of network platform and enhances new service development (NSD) performance. Based on the conclusions of out prior case study, the core concepts in this issue are analyzed and a theoretical model accompanying with research propositions is proposed. The results indicate that for content provider, capability-providing mechanism has equal positive effects on explicit and tacit knowledge acquisition from capability provider; interactive mechanism has a stronger positive effect on the acquisition of tacit than explicit knowledge from new service user; knowledge integration mechanism has a stronger positive effect on the acquisition of explicit than tacit knowledge from platform enterprise. Explicit and tacit knowledge acquisition are all positively related to two dimensions of NSD performance (i.e. the number of new service and the evaluation of new service), in which explicit knowledge acquisition has a stronger positive effect on the number of new service than the valuation of new service, but the effect of tacit knowledge acquisition is opposite. Content provider technology readiness and task complexity all play positive moderating effects on the relationship between operational mechanism of network platform and knowledge acquisition of content provider. Our study further unlocks the “black box” of NSD model based on open network platform and extends innovation management theory to the network context. There also have practical implications for the actors in the network platform to synergistically promote NSD activities.

Key words: operational mechanism of network platform, knowledge acquisition, new service development performance, content provider, resources integration