The Law: The Boon and Bane of IT-enabled Peer-to-Peer Sharing and Collaborative Consumption Services

Abstract

IT-enabled peer-to-peer (P2P) sharing and collaborative consumption services (SCCS) allow private persons to provide access for others to their cars, accommodation and other physical assets. Together they constitute the so called Share Economy. These services often operate in a legal gray area. The relationship between the law and SCCS is bidirectional. On the one hand, the development of new SCCS offerings has to comply with a broad body of existing regulations. On the other hand, new P2P SCCS businesses often discover legislative loopholes, thereby forcing the law to react. This article conceptualizes the complex relationship between the law and IT-enabled P2P SCCS by means of a framework. The applicability of the framework is demonstrated by analyzing a specific SCCS in the electric vehicle charging infrastructure domain. The framework should constitute an effective tool in the design of new and legal P2P SCCS offerings