Aggregators succeed by being the best at doing the jobs consumers want done.
South Dakota v. Wayfair, and Amazon; Wayfair’s Unintended Consequences; Ohio v. American Express, and Tech
Two Supreme Court decisions have an impact on tech: first, states can collect sales taxes on e-commerce, and second, the burden of proof for antitrust just got higher.
More Spotify; Spotify, Uber, and Airbnb; Uber, Waymo, and SoftBank
A bit more on Spotify, and then the lessons to be learned by Uber and Spotify. Plus, a potential Uber-Waymo partnership, and why they company will likely sell-out in Southeast Asia.
Airbnb Reportedly Building Apartments, Apple Hires New General Counsel, Uber’s Board Saga Ends
Catching up on a story that intrigues (Airbnb), a story that raises eyebrows (Apple), and another that seems to have finally reached its conclusion (Uber’s board disfunction)
Airbnb Versus Hotels, The FCC and Differences of Opinion, Airbnb Versus Uber
Opposition to Airbnb is often chalked up to regulatory capture, but it’s not clear that is the case, as illustrated by both the FCC and Uber.
Airbnb Christmas Q&A, Airbnb and Flights, Apple-China Follow-up
Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky had a Twitter Q&A on Christmas, which is a terrible idea for product development but an interesting insight into the power Airbnb derives from owning users. Might that be applied to flights? Then, more on Apple and China.
Ctrip Buys Skyscanner, Ctrip’s International Potential, Airbnb Rumored to Buy Xiaozhu
There is a lot of news about the Chinese travel space, particularly Ctrip’s acquisition of Skyscanner, but given the nature of travel it is news that resonates globally.
Airbnb Raising Money, Airbnb and Hotels?, Airbnb Sues San Francisco
Airbnb is raising money, and if you view them as an OTA competitors, the valuation makes sense. Still, the company needs to address its externalities problem, and hotels could help.
Aggregation Theory
The disruption caused by the Internet in industry after industry has a common theoretical basis described by Aggregation Theory.
Netflix and the Conservation of Attractive Profits
Netflix has a lot more in common with Uber and Airbnb than you might think: it all comes back to the Law of Conservation of Attractive Profits, a core principle of disruption