The advent of WWW (World Wide Web) has created enormous opportunities for both existing firms and entrepreneurs. Innovative business models mushroomed and have gone beyond our imagination. Digital platforms, defined as a digital place where multiple parties jointly create value for customers, have become an integrated part of a firm’s strategy and our lives. In fact, in 2013, 14 of the 30 largest brands in the world are a platform company. Platform-based companies (Google, Facebook, Amazon, eBay, Visa, Mastercard, etc.) have merged as a dominant force in shaping the competition in their respective industries. Platform-based strategies transform the old economy to a new one where netizens handle their daily lives on the Internet. Examples are: Uber changed the taxi industry, eBook changes the publishing industry, Ed-x and Coursera change the nature of higher education, P2P lending will impact the banking industry, Priceline revolutionized the travel industry, and finally, not the last one, itune changed the music industry. It also radically reshapes the landscape where and how businesses compete and the rules of the game. Managers have to rethink the impact of Internet-based platforms on strategy, marketing, operations, and most importantly, the economic fundamentals upon which the business is build. Given this mega trend in the forseeable future, we need a deeper understanding of this direction of change. This course explores the unique features of a multi-sided platform and associated strategic challenges. We will cover topics as to how to design a platform strategy with its particular ecosystem to win in such a dynamic environment. We will rely heavily on cases to show the strategic thinking of formulating a digital platform so that students can familiarize with different business models in which value and wealth is created.
The course is intended to be a heavy one, comparable with MBA course load in top business schools. Readings will be kept as short as possible.