Mobile-Internet 2.0 Business Models

The increasing convergence between Web and Mobile technologies and the consolidation of the Web 2.0 and Mobile 2.0 phenomena, particularly regarding services that allow or facilitate social interactions – the so-called Social Applications - are undisputed facts. However, the knowledge about the business models of these services is still incipient. News reports and academic sources question the viability of these business models, while at the same time Social Applications like Facebook and Twitter prosper in terms of number of users and financial investments. Some even argue this can be the 2.0 version of the dot-com bubble. This book presents an integrated reference framework for analyzing and supporting decision-making concerning Social Application business models. The framework is based on a detailed survey of 322 services and 31 case studies. It consists of a taxonomy model to describe and classify Social Applications, a framework for describing Social Application value sources, an analytical model for analyzing Social Application revenue models, and a classification scheme for analyzing the role of the technology channel in proposing and delivering value.