Scaling the user base of digital ventures through generative pattern replication: The case of ridesharing

Abstract

Digital ventures seek to scale their user base quickly and effectively across markets in order to lock out competitors and drive adoption through positive feedback loops. We view such rapid global scaling as an organising logic by which ventures replicate a generic solution to recurring challenges, that are found in expanding a user base across markets; which is usually characterized by slight variables in their conditions. We distinguish and describe this as a process of “generative pattern replication”, where an existing scaling pattern is specialised to the specific circumstances of the new market, and applied there. For our study we looked at BlaBlaCar, a ridesharing venture that has rapidly scaled its business into 22 markets, to gain a better understanding about this generative process. Our research contributes to the digital innovation literature by proposing a novel perspective on the scaling of digital ventures.