Defining the Business Ecosystem of Peer-to-Peer Electricity Trading

Research on peer-to-peer electricity trading lacks a comprehensive, multi-stakeholder perspective to incorporate complexities and include externalities. This leads to solutions that are useful for specific stakeholders but in a broader view may fire back other stakeholders. Following a systematic approach, this paper introduces the business ecosystem of peer-to-peer electricity trading. Firstly, different views on business ecosystems are introduced and it is justified why ecosystem perspective makes sense for peer-to-peer electricity trading. Secondly, the value proposition of the peer-to-peer electricity trading ecosystem is identified by utilizing a meta-model that consists of four elements: end customer value, business value (shareholder value), collaborative value (business value to the supply chain), and societal value (value creation in the supply chain and control of negative externalities). Thirdly, based on the structural view of business ecosystems, the study identifies actors, positions, links, and activities in traditional electricity trading. Finally, (structural) changes of the ecosystem for peer-to-peer electricity trading are discussed. This paper elaborates on the business ecosystem of peer-to-peer electricity trading and highlights the structural changes it imposes on the statuesque situation. The ecosystem construct adds insights into actors’ ecosystem strategy regarding their business models for peer-to-peer electricity trading as well as into the governance of peer-to-peer electricity trading. It provides a comprehensive view for policymakers. It enhances the research designs in detailed aspects of the peer-to-peer electricity trading by providing a big picture.