Platform Strategy

In the last century, we have witnessed the rise of a new kind of company, one that leverages on a new business model — the platform.

Though platform companies are very common, they can take extremely diverse forms in today's business landscape. People use the term 'platform' to mean many different things. Managers are often confused about which is platform business and which is not. When it comes to platform strategy, things become even more complicated.

Using real world examples, this book acts as a primer for platform strategy, discussing the underlying mechanism of various types of platform models to help people understand what platform business is and what they can do with it. Theories and frameworks appropriate for understanding platform business are introduced and related cases follow to support readers' understanding. The diverse and international case studies analysed range from IBM's horizontal production platform, to the digital platform of China's breakout smartphone star, Xiaomi.

This book will not only enable readers to understand platform business, but also teach them how to harness these frameworks to build effective strategies for their own platform business pursuits.
Contents: Foreword I: Platform Strategy: Not a Choice, but a Necessity (Kwon, Oh-Hyun, Chairman, Samsung Electronics)Foreword II: The New World: Integration of Platforms and Business Ecosystems (Kwak, Sukeun, Professor Emeritus, Seoul National University, Business School)Foreword III: Platforms Create Mega Synergy (Yoon, Eun-Ki, President, Korea Collaboration Association)Why Platform Now?:A New Business ModelPlatform Operation and the Open EcosystemTwo Pillars of Value Creation by the PlatformSuccessful Companies with Platform BusinessesPlatform as a Successful Business Strategy:Characteristics of Successful Platform StrategyPlatform Strategy for SuccessPlatform Evolution and the Future of Platforms
Readership: Business professionals, especially managers, looking to harness the potential of their businesses and figure out how platform strategies may work for them; academics, undergraduates and postgraduates interested in the platform business model.Platform;Network Effect;Business Models;Economies of Scale;Platformer;Strategy;Transaction Cost;Digital;Platform Strategy;Ecosystems;Synergy;Case Studies0Key Features:Simple and powerful frameworks about platform: This book offers simple but powerful frameworks that explains what platform business is. These frameworks can also be used to draw effective strategies for various platform businesses including offline platforms as well as online platformsDiverse examples and cases: This book provides diverse examples of platform business. Diverse examples and cases will help readers see platform business from many different anglesDirections as well as descriptions: This book not only explains what platform business is but also what managers should do about platform business. Readers will get action guidelines for their own business