grow because the dominant players they rely on will not allow it. Managers should therefore ask an early, difficult question: Are we willing and able to compete with our partners if success requires it? Strategic planning should include scenarios where co-operation turns into rivalry and confrontation, including defensive moves such as access restrictions. For every Douyin, there are hundreds of complementors that fail because conditions are out of their control. A sudden shift in technology, a change in user behaviour, or a strategic move by a dominant platform can render the best made plans obsolete. That explains why platform ecosystems rarely democratise power, instead consolidating it among a handful of giants. What Douyin has achieved is remarkable and its transformation provides a blueprint for the next wave of platforms in AI, fintech, and the metaverse. This blueprint is not just about scaling; it is about navigating the ecosystem’s politics. Success requires more than innovation and ambition; it demands forward-thinking, diplomacy, and the courage to embrace risk. As digital platforms become the beating heart of the global economy, the complementor’s dilemma will become ever more salient. Those who master it will not just survive. Like Douyin, they will redefine the rules of the game.
different software apps to talk to each other and share data and functions through defined rules. This allowed users to circulate short videos instantly across existing networks, dramatically accelerating adoption. For managers, the lesson is to be pragmatic. When speed matters, it can be rational to build on dominant platforms. The key is to treat these collaborations as a temporary growth lever, not a permanent dependency. 2 . Read the ecosystem. Douyin’s growth was not just about breaking free from powerful platforms. It was about choosing where to lean in and where to push back. As the ecosystem evolved, Douyin continued to rely on one dominant player while increasingly competing with another. At the same time, it began to build on smaller players – creators, advertisers, and niche partners – whose success became tightly coupled to Douyin’s own.
The managerial lesson is that an ecosystem is rarely all or nothing. Leaders should continuously track how power and value creation shift across their partners and rivals. Growth often comes from stacking advantages: leveraging a dominant platform when that dependence remains tolerable, competing where differentiation is strongest, and amplifying smaller players who are willing to grow with you. Digital strategy is all about knowing when and where each move makes sense. 3 . Be prepared to compete with partners. Douyin’s trajectory also illustrates the uncomfortable reality of platform growth: successful complementors may end up competing with the very firms that helped them scale. As Douyin strengthened its own social features and advertising capabilities, it increasingly encroached on WeChat and Weibo’s core domains. Many complementors fail to
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