Abstract
Online platforms have enhanced the efficiency of contract chains by reducing transaction costs and lowering entry barriers. In this way, the platform economy could have positive welfare effects for all contract chain actors. The platform's strength lies in its triple role as (i) gatekeeper to the platform, (ii) legislator of the relationships within
the ecosystem and (iii) contractual actor with rights and responsibilities within the ecosystem. However, there is also evidence of possible negative welfare effects amongst retailers, service providers (especially gig workers) and customers. These problems mainly seem to be caused by the fact that the platforms' strengths result in excess power within the ecosystem. This research aims to come to a power balancing mechanism that allows
for the management of excess powers, without eliminating platform strengths and the platforms' potential welfare benefits. Current solutions ignore the shift from bilateral contracts to multi-stakeholder ecosystem contracts, and from absolute market power to relative ecosystem-power. Literature and recently developed legal instruments especially ignore the ecosystem legislator role of platforms and how it interacts with the other roles. This project
instead integrates the three aspects of platform power in one ecosystem-based legal model and aims to tackle excess power through a holistic approach combining contract law and competition law solutions.
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