Ambidextrous activities of internet-based entrepreneurships in Apple App Store: two sides of user feedback

Ambidexterity has been widely confirmed as contributing to entrepreneurial performance. Scholars have verified the positive relationship between ambidexterity and short-term performance, but few of them paid attention to the impact on survival, which is critical for entrepreneurships. This study attempts to fill the gap by investigating the impacts of ambidextrous activities (exploratory and exploitative activities) and their boundary condition from a longitudinal perspective. The empirical results that are based on a second-hand data research developed on the Apple App Store show a positive effect of ambidextrous activities implemented by online entrepreneurships on both short-term performance and survival. We also observed that the linear relationship between exploitation and short-term performance is impeded while the positive connection between exploration and survival is promoted by user feedback.