Abstract
The rise of digital platforms shows that they have the potential to transform existing industries. But do they also have the potential to create new markets where none currently exist? This article proposes that the worldwide secondary market in personal information could be dramatically transformed by the introduction of a Primary Personal Information Market (PPIM), facilitated by a digital platform. Drawing on design science methodology, market engineering theory, service innovation and digital platform theories, we present a critical Service Architecture for digital platforms to ensure scalability and potential commercialization. The platform is designed to collect and monetize personal information on behalf of the original creators of that information without compromising privacy or security. We present the design evolution of a PPIM digital platform culminating in a Service Architecture Framework, based on academic experts’ iterative feedback in stages over three years. A prototype PPIM is described and its viability from the perspective of the digital platform’s four categories of market participants is evaluated. This article addresses a knowledge gap in the literature by presenting a novel illustration of how digital platforms would transform industries and their adoption would affect individual data contributors’ value creation and capture.