Motives for participation in Internet innovation intermediary platforms

Internet innovation intermediaries are the key role of an organization that affects on innovation processes and driving a potential contributor to economic development. Therefore, understanding what are the main motivations that drive the participation of users into these innovation intermediaries is increasingly relevant. This is why this paper aims to develop an understanding on this matter with UTAUT framework in order to examine the effects of major factors on behavioral intention and actual use of Internet innovation intermediaries and topic discussions. An empirical study was conducted in 10 Internet innovation intermediary platforms using a survey instrument targeting 735 respondents and mainly from China and Taiwan. The findings show that there is a significant relationship between facilitating conditions and usage behavior proving that intermediaries can influence the usage of Internet innovation intermediary platforms. The theoretical and practical implications of the study are discussed, offering recommendations and future research directions.

► Four determinant factors of UTAUT affect behavioral intention of intermediaries.
► Facilitating conditions can influence the usage behavior.
► Prior experience exhibits significant interaction with social influence.