Date of Award
8-2025
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
Department
Management
Committee Chair/Advisor
Dr. William J. Kettinger
Committee Member
Dr. He Li
Committee Member
Dr. Russel L. Purvis
Committee Member
Dr. Jiahui Mo
Abstract
This dissertation investigates the strategic determinants of mobile app success within the evolving mobile platform ecosystem, focusing on app development choices and user acquisition strategies. Drawing on large-scale longitudinal data from the iOS platform, the research comprises two empirical studies contributing to the literature on digital platforms, modular design, and mobile advertising.
The first study examines how the integration of software development kits (SDKs)—a central mechanism of modular innovation—affects app market performance. The analysis identifies SDK popularity as a dual-edged strategic attribute. While popular SDKs can enhance app quality by enabling access to reliable, widely adopted functionalities, their widespread adoption also increases collective exposure to security vulnerabilities, adversely affecting app usage. Notably, the study introduces the concept of SDK data transparency, defined as the extent to which SDK providers disclose data collection, usage, and security practices, as a critical moderating factor. The findings show that high data transparency enables app developers to better assess and mitigate SDK-related risks, thereby buffering the negative effects of SDK popularity. This study advances platform-based modular design research by uncovering how third-party components' interdependent technical and informational characteristics shape downstream innovation outcomes.
The second study investigates the effectiveness of cross-app promotion as a user acquisition strategy, focusing particularly on the role of cross-app dynamics in shaping promotional outcomes. It theorizes and tests how the market performance of the cross-app (i.e., the app hosting an advertisement) and the degree of user overlap between the focal and cross-apps jointly affect advertising success (app downloads). Using data from the top 1,000 iOS game apps, the study finds that advertising in outperforming cross-apps tends to reduce focal app downloads due to lower receptivity among highly engaged users. However, this negative effect is attenuated when user overlap is high, suggesting shared usage patterns foster receptiveness. Conversely, advertising in underperforming cross-apps proves more effective when user overlap is low, indicating that less engaged and demographically distinct users are more open to exploring new apps. This study contributes to the literature on mobile advertising and digital marketing by demonstrating the contingent effects of cross-app dynamics on promotional outcomes.
Together, these studies offer novel theoretical and empirical insights into the strategic tradeoffs app developers face within mobile app platform ecosystems. By integrating perspectives from platform governance, modularity, and digital marketing, the dissertation provides a coherent and evidence-based framework for understanding how SDK characteristics and cross-app dynamics jointly influence app success. The findings have implications for scholars of digital innovation as well as practitioners seeking to optimize product design and user acquisition in highly competitive app platform markets.
Recommended Citation
Abbaraju, Pranith, "Decoding the Mobile App Playbook: How SDKs and Cross-Promotions Drive Market Performance" (2025). All Dissertations. 4059.
https://open.clemson.edu/all_dissertations/4059
Author ORCID Identifier
https://orcid.org/0009-0004-7913-3160