AN ECOLOGICAL CRITIQUE TO DIGITAL BUSINESS ECOSYSTEMS THROUGH THE CASE OF ESPORTS

An expanding body of research in organisational studies and information systems characterises modern industries as systems comprising interconnected participants, utilising the ecosystem metaphor. This concept has been increasingly applied to examine platforms and innovation processes across both traditional and digital industrial sectors, particularly in scenarios where complementarity, interdependence, and non-hierarchical structures define the interactions among networked organisational entities. Nonetheless, recent critiques have pointed out that many of these applications maintain an ecosystemic viewpoint only at a superficial level, failing to integrate an ecological framework. In this thesis, I adopt a qualitative methodology to explore esports as the empirical entry point for an ecological critique of the ecosystem concept. Through data collected around esports’ “gaming houses,” this work suggests that a greater focus on the ecological dynamics among and within ecosystemic participants is vital. By illustrating how the esports ecosystem substantially benefits from an analysis that clarifies the quality of connections forming its industrial networks, this research elucidates how broadening such an ecological perspective can enhance the debate on digital business ecosystems, thereby enriching the depth and theoretical complexity of ecosystemic representations found in existing literature.