Digital service innovations (DSIs) include the integration of digital technologies such as IoT, cloud computing, and predictive analytics to enhance service offerings and internal processes. Digital suppliers play a critical role in the development and delivery of DSIs. However, there is limited understanding of how manufacturers collaborate with digital suppliers to develop DSIs. This research aims to investigate collaboration for DSIs between manufacturers and digital suppliers. The paper presents an exploratory multiple-case study based on three DSI types (business enabler, service enhancement, digital service offering) in five manufacturers and their digital suppliers. The findings illustrate collaboration models for these DSI types, examining coordination and cooperation approaches. The study broadens the investigation of digital servitization beyond manufacturers to include digital suppliers, enhancing the understanding of collaboration approaches. Adopting an inter-organizational collaboration perspective, it reveals three collaboration approaches across DSI types.
