AbstractsBusiness Management & Administration

Entering the Sharing Economy via Sercive Innovation and New Business Models

by Teresa Margareta Geipel




Institution: Roskilde University
Department:
Year: 2015
Keywords: Sharing Economy; Service Innovation
Record ID: 1118959
Full text PDF: http://rudar.ruc.dk/handle/1800/22795


Abstract

This paper concerns the phenomenon of the sharing economy and aims to understand, how companies can enter this new economy by innovating in services and developing new business models. The scientific approach to the paper is hermeneutic. Therewith the focus is on understanding the above named phenomenon and contributing with new insights and understandings. The first part describes the method that has been used writing this thesis. The second part provides an overview on the scientific literature on the sharing economy (van den Hoff, Gansky); service innovation (Sundbo) and new business models (Chesbrough) and builds the framework for the later analysis. The third part introduces the cases of car2go and let´s go, two car sharing providers. This provides the basis for the discussion of the cases in the framework of the above mentioned theories in the analysis. The paper concludes that there are different ways of engaging in service innovation and different business models that are appropriate to allow companies to enter the sharing economy, depending on the structure of the company and its goals. Furthermore the thesis comes to the result that the formerly important social aspect of the sharing economy is decreasing whereas traditional capitalistic rules are emerging.