Abstract
Purpose: The aim of this article is to delineate a number of different disintermediation mechanisms within the context of business-to-business (B2B) service channels and to identify the specific challenges associated with adopting these mechanisms.
Methodology: The research was conducted in accordance with abductive reasoning, moving continuously between the empirical world of 4 industrial (B2B) firms and the model world.
Findings: This article delineates a choice of 6 disintermediation mechanisms and their attendant challenges within the context of industrial service channels.
Contribution: The article provides an original conceptualization of disintermediation, which is detached from the traditional understanding of the concept. As such, it constitutes a useful starting point for the development of a formal theory of disintermediation.
Implications for Practice: This article should be useful for practitioners, because it presents various disintermediation options available to industrial firms faced by undesired intermediaries in their industrial service channels.
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
We are grateful for the financial support of the Swedish Governmental Agency for Innovation Systems (Vinnova).