The Relationship Between Monopoly and Innovation in Information Product Markets——A Growth Network Perspective

Monopoly in information product markets is established upon intangible data and algorithms. To examine the relationship between monopoly and innovation in these markets, this paper adopts a dynamic growing network analytical framework, embedding firms' innovation decisions and competitive strategies within the growth process of product networks. In the early stages of market development, a single-modal product monopoly provides the resource foundation for multi-modal product innovation. As modal dimensions expand, the market exhibits a pattern where legacy product monopolies and new product innovations co-exist. The potential for firms to migrate users from legacy products to new ones, coupled with the pressure on new products to disrupt established markets, incentivizes leading firms to maintain their market positions through continuous innovation. Objectively, the continuous growth of the product network creates competitive opportunities for new market entrants based on network synergies or niche markets, ultimately forging an ecosystem jointly participated in by dominant incumbents, active complementors, and new entrants. Confronted with information product markets, the government needs to dynamically evaluate monopolistic behaviors from three dimensions:industrial life cycles, market heterogeneity, and self-repairing capabilities.