The present thesis aims to deduce tasks and characteristics of end users during the open innovation process on the social web. The social web with its communities, forums and blogs affords new prospects as well as unknown challenges for companies, and at the same has increasingly influenced academic research during the last few years. Especially research regarding communication behaviour on the social web as well as social web technologies has currently progressed well. However, in innovation research, social web technologies are currently primarily used to integrate users into the company’s innovation process, for example through company user toolkits or company innovation communities. In those cases users were excluded from their normal social web environment and integrated into a company’s environment, a sort of laboratory environment. Despite this, the present research project will use the natural behaviour, comments and discussions of users within their social web environment to develop and apply a new mixed-method approach with the aim to deduce tasks and characteristics of innovative end users on the social web. To apply the mixed-method approach within a longitudinal case study and to deduce statements and regularities regarding the innovation process on the social web, it was possible to analyse the end user developer online forum of one of the leading open source CRM software technologies. Based on this analysis, the assumptions from an extensive literature analysis could be verified and extended: it could be shown that the expected single innovative user does not exist. In fact, the process from the initial idea to an innovation requires different users with different characteristics and different points of view. They will be deduced, explained and presented within the present thesis.

La thèse présentée ici propose une analyse économique d’un mode alternatif d’innovation semencière : la sélection participative. Définis par l’implication des agriculteurs dans le processus de sélection, les projets de sélection participative consistent généralement en une collaboration entre agriculteurs et scientifiques qui deviennent des co-chercheurs. Ces programmes visent à développer des variétés locales et adaptées à une agriculture durable.Dans le secteur des semences, la règlementation joue un rôle central : pour obtenir une autorisation de mise sur le marché, les variétés doivent être conformes à un standard. De plus, les règles de commercialisation orientent la recherche semencière et limitent les échanges de variétés paysannes. Dans un premier essai, les impacts économiques de cette règlementation sont analysés. Les arguments expliquant la rationalité économique de ces instruments règlementaires ainsi que leurs limites et les alternatives envisageables sont étudiés. Le second essai consiste en une étude de cas des motivations des agriculteurs. Cette question multifactorielle, permet d’éclairer l’essentiel des enjeux économiques, environnementaux et sociétaux associés à la sélection participative. Les motivations des agriculteurs sont en effet directement liées à l’histoire de la recherche semencière, aux limites du système agricole moderne, aux impacts environnementaux de ce modèle, à la structure de l’industrie semencière ainsi qu’au cadre règlementaire. Pour finir, un modèle théorique représente les interactions stratégiques entre des semences commerciales et des semences paysannes. Les impacts en termes de prix, profits, couverture du marché, pollution et bien-être social sont analysés. / This thesis provides an economic analysis of an alternative mode of innovation in the seed sector : Participatory Plant Breeding (PPB). PPB is defined as the involvement of users in the plant breeding process and typically consists in the collaboration of farmers and scientists who become co-researchers. These programs aim at developing local varieties adapted to sustainable agriculture.In the seed sector, regulation plays a key role: a stringent market approval process limits the seeds on the market to pre-defined types of varieties. Marketing rules also influence the orientation of plant breeding and limit the exchanges of farmers’ seeds. In chapter 1, the economic rationale of the seed regulation, its limits and possible alternatives are analyzed. Chapter 2 consists of a case study on the farmers’ motivations for participating in PPB projects. This multifaceted question enables to study the economic, environmental and societal issues at stake. Farmers’ motives are indeed directly related to the history of seed research, the limits of the intensive agricultural model and its environmental impacts, the seed industry’s structure and the regulatory framework. Finally, a theoretical model represents the strategic interactions between commercial and farmers’ seeds. The impacts in terms of price, profit, market coverage, pollutions and social welfare are explored.

ABSTRACT Keywords: Users, Innovation, User driven innovation, Design, Mobile, Products/services, benefits. User driven innovation helps companies to compete in a global market by developing what the customers or end users want. So users are considered as a resource for companies developing mobile products/services because user driven innovation process is mainly carried out by the end users or user firms/partner companies. The companies perceive the needs and wishes of the users through their involvement in idea creation, design, development and feedback. Mobile companies involve users in their innovation process in different phases but they have no standard guidelines regarding which type of users to be involved in which phases of the innovation process. This thesis work is aimed at filling this research gap. Qualitative research methodology was used to carry on this research work. The literature review provided the current status of research in the problem domain. Then industrial and academic interviews were conducted on the basis of the findings of the literature review. Finally, a short survey was conducted in mobile companies to validate our findings from literature review and interviews. There are major four phases of the innovation process: Exploration, Idea creation, Idea selection and Commercialization. We identified four types of users to be involved in the innovation process i.e. Ordinary end users, corporate users/partner companies, and professional/expert users and lead users. Mobile companies should involve users in different innovation phases of the innovation process by using different methods like diary search, explorative interviews, workshops, market test and field tests. So it is beneficial to involve different types of users in phases of the innovation process by using different methods.

Title - Designing Future Sustainable Cities through a Living Labs Approach – A Case study of “Väsby Labs” Purpose - The purpose of this study is to analyze the contributions of the Living Labs research and innovation methodology to the planning process of designing future sustainable cities as well as its main shortcomings. Additionally, this study intends to provide possible solutions to improve the model in the future. The Living Labs model focuses on creating platforms for communication, innovation and long term development by inviting different stakeholders to an open planning process before public places are defined, houses built and schools developed. Interaction between developers, inhabitants, social services, and political and financial systems is the key element of this model. Research questions - What are the main contributions of the Living Labs Model to the process of designing future sustainable cities and which are its main limitations? How can these limitations be addressed to improve the process in the future? Methodology - Qualitative research consisting of a literature review and an empirical case study based on semi-structured interviews with key individuals as well as secondary data gathered from the web and from participating in workshops and exhibitions in the project’s site. Research limitations/implications – Due to time limitations this study is a mere analysis of a project being developed on a Swedish municipality and does not contemplate its final results, only the ones reached on the date of the current study. The language is also a limitation, due to some of the literature related to the case study, and the conferences and workshops being in Swedish. Originality/Value - This study is the first attempt to analyze the contribution of a methodology such as the Living Labs to the planning process of designing future sustainable cities.

La innovació, que ha estat durant molt de temps el resultat, a vegades heroic, de la tasca d'un emprenedor solitari, està esdevenint progressivament una tasca col·lectiva que troba una descripció més acurada quan es presenta com el resultat d'un procés complex amb múltiples actors. Aquesta tesi vol explorar aquest aspecte col·lectiu de la innovació, tot aprofundint en dues línies de recerca. Una, que utilitza el modelatge basat en agents per a la creació de model teòrics. L'altre, que es basa en l'ús de l'anàlisi qualitatiu per a esbrinar algunes de les claus d'unes organitzacions ‐els Living Labs ‐ que cerquen involucrar els usuaris en el procés d'innovació. Ara bé, malgrat presentem la innovació com un procés obert, aquesta entesa com un procés tancat sembla també tenir èxit. De fet, tant els telèfons mòbils molt simples o molt complexos, semblen seguir aquest enfocament. En quines condicions el procés d'innovació es beneficia de ser un procés obert i quan és possible obtenir millors resultats retenint el control de la totalitat del procés, és la nostra primera pregunta de recerca. D'altra banda, aquest procés de col·laboració, característic d'un enfocament obert, és considerat normalment a un nivell micro com el resultat de la interacció diàdica entre agents. Existeix però, un altre nivell, un nivell macro que ve caracteritzat per la funció d'institucions com les Escoles de Negocis, que juguen un paper important en destil·lar les millors pràctiques i crear hipòtesis a partir d'elles que si es revelen exitoses seran adoptades per la totalitat dels agents. La comprensió del funcionament d'aquest procés, del nombre de casos que cal considerar i de quan extensius han de ser, entendre fins a quin punt les empreses poden confiar en l'assessorament de les Escoles de Negoci i quan es necessari aventurar‐se en l'exploració de noves possibilitats, és també quelcom necessari per a caracteritzar la innovació com un procés col·lectiu. Malauradament, la nostra comprensió dels mecanismes col·laboratius és encara escassa. Sabem però, que la innovació ja no és quelcom exclusiu dels laboratoris d'I+D o d'organitzacions capdavanteres, sinó que els usuaris juguen no solament un paper rellevant sinó que són percebuts com a actors amb un gran potencial. Els Living Labs és una de les tentatives per proporcionar estructura i governança a la involucració dels usuaris en el procés d'innovació. En aquest aspecte, examinarem quina és la contribució d'aquests usuaris i com els Living Labs busquen capturar‐ne el seu coneixement i aplicar‐lo i quant tenen èxit en aquest procés. / La innovación, que se ha presentado muchas veces como el resultado de un proceso, muchas veces heroico, de emprendedores excepcionales, se está convirtiendo de una forma progresiva en un proceso colectivo que se describe con más acierto cuando se presenta como el resultado de un proceso complejo con multitud de actores. Esta tesis, pretende explorar este aspecto colectivo del proceso de innovación, profundizando en dos líneas de investigación. Una que utiliza el modelado basado en agentes para la construcción de modelos teóricos. Otra que se basa en el análisis cualitativo para profundizar en las claves de unas organizaciones ¬los Living Labs ‐ que buscan involucrar a los usuarios en los procesos de innovación. Ahora bien, a pesar de que la innovación se presente como un proceso abierto, ésta entendida como un proceso cerrado, parece también tener éxito. De hecho, los teléfonos móviles muy simples o muy complejos, parecen seguir este enfoque. En qué condiciones el proceso de innovación se beneficia de ser un proceso abierto y cuando es posible obtener mejores resultados reteniendo el control de la totalidad del proceso, es nuestra primera pregunta de investigación. Por otro lado, este proceso de colaboración, característico de un enfoque abierto, es considerado normalmente a un nivel micro, como el resultado de la interacción diádica entre agentes. Existe pero, otro nivel, un nivel macro, caracterizado por la función de instituciones como las Escuelas de Negocios, que juegan un papel importante destilando las mejores prácticas y creando hipótesis a partir de ellas que si se revelan exitosas serán masivamente adoptadas. La comprensión del funcionamiento de este proceso, del número de casos a considerar y de su extensión, comprender hasta qué punto las empresas pueden confiar en el asesoramiento de las Escuelas de Negocios y cuando es necesario aventurarse en un proceso de exploración de nuevas posibilidades, es también algo imprescindible para caracterizar la innovación como un proceso colectivo. Desgraciadamente nuestra comprensión de los mecanismos colaborativos en la innovación es aún escasa. Sin embargo sabemos que la innovación ya no es algo exclusivo de los laboratorios de I+D o de grandes empresas, los usuarios juegan no sólo un papel relevante sino que son percibidos como actores con un alto potencial. Los Living Labs es una de las tentativas que buscan proporcionar estructura y gobierno a la involucración de los usuarios en el proceso de innovación. En este aspecto, examinaremos cuál es la contribución de los usuarios, cómo los Living Labs buscan capturar su conocimiento y aplicarlo y cuando tienen éxito en su intento. / Innovation, which used to be the result of a single, sometimes heroic, entrepreneur, is progressively turning into a collaborative endeavor, better described as the result of a complex process with multiple actors. This thesis aims to explore this collaborative aspect of innovation by digging into two strands of research. One uses Agent‐Based Modeling to create theoretical models, where the other one uses qualitative analysis to devise some insights from organizations ‐Living Labs ‐that aim to involve users in innovation. In addition to understanding innovation as an open process, a closed one seems sometimes to be equally successful. In fact, very simple and very complex mobile phones seem to follow this later approach. Under what conditions innovation benefits from being open and when better results can be obtained from retaining control of the whole process is our first research question. This process of collaboration, characteristic of the open approach, is normally considered at a micro level, as a result of a dyadic interaction between agents. Nevertheless, there is a macro level characterized by institutions, such as Business Schools, that play an important role in uncovering Best Practices and building hypothesis that, if successful, will be adopted by the agents. Understanding how this process works; how many cases should be collected and how comprehensive they should be; how much companies can rely on the insights of Business Schools; and when it is necessary to engage in exploration, is also necessary when characterizing innovation as a collective process. The mechanisms of collaboration are, however, not all well‐understood. Innovation is no longer in the solely hands of R&D laboratories or even organizations, users play an increasingly significant role and are being perceived as holding vast potential. Living Labs is one attempt to provide structure and governance to user involvement in innovation. Here, we will examine what is the contribution of users, how Living Labs aim to capture relevant knowledge and apply it, and when and how this proves successful.

This thesis investigates user entrepreneurship in companies’ communities in the music streaming industry. Speci!cally, the rules of open platform usage are de!ned by conducting a qualitative multi-case study of four different companies. The purpose of the research is to show how music streaming companies’ open platforms support entrepreneurship among user-developers. A signi!cant amount of different applications have been created, but user-developers’ possibilities to commercialize are very limited. A new notion, “community user entrepreneur”, is suggested as a contribution to the theoretical framework.

Ein Blick in die Innovationsabteilungen international agierender Konzerne wie z.B. Intel, Google, Nokia, IBM oder die Deutsche Telekom verrät: große Unternehmen setzen auf ethnografische Forschung bei der Innovationsentwicklung. Unter Fachbezeichnungen wie Business Anthropology, Corporate Ethnography, Commercial Ethnography und anderen ist dabei ein Wissenschaftszweig der Ethnologie und Kulturanthropologie entstanden, der sich mit dem Einsatz von Ethnografie im privatwirtschaftlichen Bereich auseinandersetzt. In diesem Diskurs über Ethnografie im Dienste der Privatwirtschaft ist diese Dissertation zu verorten. Dabei geht es um Ethnografie, die eingesetzt wird, um latente Bedürfnisse und Wünsche sowie Alltagsprobleme von Nutzern zu identifizieren und daraus Ideen für innovative Produkte und Services entwickeln zu können, die in die Lebenswirklichkeiten der Nutzer passen. Anhand der Fallstudienbeschreibung einer ethnografischen Nutzerforschung für das Projekt FLEX 2.0 beim Team User Driven Innovation (UDI) in den Telekom Innovation Laboratories (T-Labs) soll exemplarisch illustriert werden, wie Ethnografie in der Privatwirtschaft verstanden wird und wie sie durchgeführt werden kann. Einer der zentralen Aspekte dieser Dissertation ist es zu erörtern, ob der Einsatzkontext Auswirkungen auf die Ethnografie hat und welche das gegebenenfalls sind. Entstanden ist dabei eine Dissertation, die dreierlei Punkte erfüllen soll: 1. Der Text möchte eine bei UDI durchgeführte ethnografische Nutzerforschung möglichst transparent und nachvollziehbar machen und durch eine szenische Darstellung Schritt für Schritt zeigen, wie ethnografische Forschung in der Privatwirtschaft aussehen kann. 2. Diese Arbeit ist auch als eine Anleitung für das Durchführen einer eigenen ethnografischen Nutzerforschung zu lesen. Praxistipps, Kontextinformationen und einige Dokumentenvorlagen sollen helfen, die Organisation einer ethnografischen Nutzerforschung zu vereinfachen. 3. Auf methodologischer Ebene erörtert der Text, was der Einsatz von Ethnografie in der Privatwirtschaft für die Methodologie bedeutet und welche Implikationen dies hat. / A look at the innovation divisions of internationally active corporations such as Intel, Google, Nokia, IBM or Deutsche Telekom reveals that large companies rely on ethnographic research for their innovation development. Under names such as Business Anthropology, Corporate Ethnography, Commercial Ethnography, and others, a branch of ethnology and cultural anthropology has emerged, dealing with the use of ethnography in the private sector. This dissertation is situated in the discourse on ethnography in the service of the private economy. It is about ethnography that is used to identify latent needs and desires as well as everyday problems of users and to develop ideas for innovative products and services that fit into the life experiences of the users. With the help of the case study of an ethnographic user research for the project FLEX 2.0 at the team User Driven Innovation (UDI) in the Telekom Innovation Laboratories (T-Labs), an example is presented of how ethnography is understood in the private sector and how it can be carried out. One of the central aspects of this dissertation is to discuss whether the use in this context has an impact on ethnography. The dissertation covers three major points: 1. The text aims to make the ethnographic user research carried out at UDI as transparent and comprehensible as possible and to show step by step how ethnographic research can look in the private economy. 2. The text can also be read as a how to guide for carrying out ethnographic user research. Practical advices, contextual information, and some document templates will help to simplify the conduction of ethnographic user research. 3. At the methodological level, the text discusses what the use of ethnography in the private economy means for the methodology and what implications this has.