Reinventing the Platform Core Through Acquisition: A Case Study

Digital platform leaders need to continuously innovate the platform core to drive the technological trajectory of the overall architecture and business system, of which the platform is a core element. This papers analyses the potential of and challenges to completing this task through the acquisition and integration of companies presenting innovative technologies of relevance to the platform core. Using a revelatory case study of Cisco Systems, we develop the explanatory notion of ‘coring acquisition’. In this type of acquisition value is created through the acquisition of companies that provide products external to the acquirer that can be assimilated into the platform core. This creates value through the transformational process that we term ‘coring’. We also analyze how the benefits of coring acquisitions are contingent on challenges concerning the integration of acquisitions offering and operations.