Read/Watch all of the tools and resources provided to you below.

A sharing economy is an economic model in which individuals are able to borrow or rent assets owned by someone else (Think - Uber, AirBnB, etc.) This new world in which we live leverage the Internet to rent each other goods we already own -- our living rooms, cars, power tools -- it is a fascinating and important phenomenon. .

Fifteen years ago, platform companies and the sharing economy did not exist. In this week's video, Marshall Van Alstyne discusses how 5 of the top 10 most valuable companies are part of the sharing economy - Apple, Alphabet,Microsoft, Exxon, Berkshire, Amazon, Johnson & Johnson, Facebook, General Electric and AT&T.

Write a 2-3 page paper describing your experience with one platform company that you frequently use. Why do you use? What value do you derive for using it? How is this company "better" than its traditional counterpart? What are potential disruptors to this company? What other companies/products/services is your company likely to disrupt!?

Harvard Business Review: https://hbr.org/2016/04/3-questions-to-ask-before-adopting-a-platform-business-model

Harvard Business Review: https://hbr.org/2013/01/three-elements-of-a-successful-platform

Wired: https://www.wired.com/insights/2013/10/why-business-models-fail-pipes-vs-platforms/

Economist: https://www.economist.com/business/2016/08/06/wechats-world

Forbes: https://www.forbes.com/sites/brookmanville/2016/02/14/are-platform-businesses-eating-the-world/#1fc550c161a2

Five Industries That Are Prime Targets for Disruption: https://www.inc.com/jason-albanese/5-industries-that-are-prime-targets-for-disruption.html

Harvard Business Review: https://hbr.org/2016/09/the-businesses-that-platforms-are-actually-disrupting

Videos:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e5B9pfuVrMU

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c0P_s6W2ulE