Microsoft paid a lot for GitHub, because it had to pay directly for access to developers. It doesn’t have the leverage of users the way that Apple does on the App Store.
Sports Gambling Defederalized, Amazon Channels
Sports gambling is defederalized, and the opportunity is likely larger than people think: then, Amazon Channels is another manifestation of the company’s “first customer” strategy.
The Moat Map
The Moat Map describes the correlation between the degree of supplier differentiation and the externalization (or internalization) of a company’s network effect.
Tech’s Two Philosophies
Google and Facebook represent one philosophy, and Microsoft and Apple represent another; tech needs both, but ultimately platforms are more important than aggregators.
Netflix’s Earnings and the Video Value Chain, The Conditions of Aggregation, Comcast and Netflix and the New Bundle
Netflix’s earnings are a reminder of the power that comes from not just aggregation but also integration. It also reveals that Aggregators are more likely to gain economic power when suppliers are already modularized. Plus, Netflix and Comcast start to build the new bundle.
Zillow, Aggregation, and Integration
Zillow fits the description of an aggregator, but it hasn’t transformed its industry due to a lack of integration. Now it is trying to do exactly that.
Spotify Debuts; Trump, Amazon, and the USPS; The Politics of Amazon
Spotify debuts, and I really want to be bullish, but it’s hard. Then, Trump might have a point about Amazon, but it’s moot: the company should be defended.
The Difference Between Google and Facebook, Facebook’s Pedantry, Facebook and the Value of Data
More on the fallout from Facebook and Cambridge Analytica: why Google and Facebook are different, why that explains how they treat data, and why Facebook seems so oblivious.
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.
Could Spotify Be Netflix?, Calculating Spotify’s LTV and CAC
Spotify is in a much weaker position that Netflix was, because it could not build up a user base before negotiating with its suppliers. However, the company does seem to be acquiring customers efficiently.