The Fourth Industrial Revolution and Digital Platforms as a Strategic Vector of Global Agribusiness Development

Based on a complex approach to an analysis of the socio-economic system, the article explores the impact of digital platforms on the development of new strategies in the agribusiness sector. The article sets out to reveal new general tendencies for developing new digital platforms in the era of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, as well as for the way the agribusiness sector is adapting to the requirements of the digital economy. The authors point out that global agribusiness is responsive to the opportunities and challenges that appear at every step of scientific and technological growth, and thus is constantly adjusting to new tendencies. Consequently, one competitive tool an agricultural company can use in the digital era is setting up its own digital platforms. Building up platform-based models results in the organizational structure of the company that is designing brand-new strategies being transformed, through its forming of global value chains by means of end-to-end digital technologies. Globally, using such platforms spurs monopolization of the agricultural market, which then requires new methods of regulation. The process of adapting to a platform-based economy depends on a number of aspects: geographical location and profile, organizational structure, propensity to innovation, the market environment, and government regulation factors. The article draws attention to the ambiguous influence digital platforms have on agricultural business; for example, when a high-technology companies’ performance improves, this is accompanied by a digital divide.