Digital Capital: Harnessing the Power of Business Webs

Business webs, or 'b-webs'--partner networks of producers, service providers, suppliers, infrastructure companies, and customers, all linked via digital channels--are generating wealth in entirely new ways. In Digital Capital, information-age visionaries Don Tapscott, David Ticoll, and Alex Lowy describe and explain the b-web phenomenon and the forces behind its emergence. Drawing on three years of research into hundreds of b-webs, the authors illuminate the five distinct types of b-webs now in play. The book includes the story behind the story on successes like eBay, Cisco, Linux, Schwab, and Priceline; provides an analysis of emergent e-businesses such as Webvan, OptiMark, AT&T Solutions, and Enron; and gives the reader a step-by-step process for b-web strategy design. Punctuating their analysis with a rich set of case studies, the authors provide the definitive guide to business model innovation in the digital economy. Sustaining advantage in the digital economy demands more than superficial actions like attracting eyeballs, launching a hot IPO, following 'new rules,' building a cool Web site, or even just focusing on customers. Digital Capital moves beyond whiz-bang clichés to today's central issues of competitive strategy.