Business model innovation (BMI) has recently become a topic of interest
for research as well as corporate practice. However, we lack specific
insights into actors, drivers, and different forms of BMI as the concept
is by now mainly addressed in a very general way. In this paper, we
analyze how BMI takes place in strategic alliances with the focus of
enhancing the recent knowledge about BMI by developing a concept that
links firm-level BMI with alliance-driven innovation of business models.
Against the background of an in-depth explorative qualitative study, we
shed light on the basic nature business model innovation alliances
(BMIA) and their effects on both, alliance level and firm level. We
develop a process model of BMIA that is the first model providing a
holistic picture of this particular type of BMI. Our findings allow for
deep insights into BMI processes in incumbent companies and uncover in
detail the importance of boundary spanning activities in this realm. By
providing these insights, we pave the ground for a new stream of BMI
research that focuses on the in-depth understanding of the role of
collaboration and network effects in recent BMI processes. In addition,
we show practical benefits for partners in BMI alliances. These insights
may help to overcome the traditional fear of negative effects that is
still very often prevalent in companies when it comes to issues of
partnering with firm external players in strategic issues.