CROSS-POLLINATION DYNAMICS OF WEB-BASED SOCIAL MEDIA: AN APPLICATION OF INSECT-MEDIATED POLLEN TRANSFER

We propose a model of cross-pollination among online social media (OSM) websites, where the dynamics of user interactions mimic insect-mediated pollen transfer by pollinators (Di Pasquale and Jacobi, 1997). In our model, a pollinator acts as a vehicle enabling users to visit multiple social media sites-akin to visiting di erent plants in the same field-within a single browsing session. This approach frames geitonogamy and pollen export in self-incompatible plant species as analogous to the distribution of web tra ic across the social media landscape. We demonstrate that a theoretical pollinator allowing users to choose among social media sites multiple times per trip can drive an uneven increase in web tra ic across platforms, disproportionately benefiting the largest social networks while still providing tangible competitive advantages for smaller OSMs. This heterogeneous landscape fosters monopolistic competition among niche platforms, incentivizing even smaller sites to promote cross-pollination despite the larger relative gains to their bigger competitors. Our findings underscore the broader value of cross-platform user engagement, highlighting how cross-pollination dynamics can intensify network e ects and bolster the interconnected social media ecosystem. Cross pollination via new pass-through apps facilitates the movement of attention, deepening and distributing engagement across multiple destinations. As pass through apps gain traction, we expect their disproportionate impact on web tra ic to social media platforms to incentivize these platforms eventually embrace of cross-pollination dynamics. ***UNPUBLISHED MANUSCRIPT: Do not quote without permission. ***