Publications

September 2016 (Revised September 2016)
Case

Spectio: A Digital Lighting Company

By: Rajiv Lal and Sarah McAra

Spectio Tech, founded in 2005, developed and implemented intelligent LED lighting solutions for the industrial market. Sensors and wireless connectivity embedded in its LED fixtures not only significantly reduced lighting-related energy use—by up to 90% in some... View Details

Keywords: Internet Of Things; IoT; LED Lighting; Start-up; Energy Efficiency; Information Technology; Technology Adoption; Technological Innovation; Business Startups; Internet and the Web

August 2017
Supplement

PTC: A Transformation to IoT (B)

By: Rajiv Lal and Sarah McAra

In 2013, manufacturing software company PTC Inc. entered the Internet of Things (IoT) market under the leadership of CEO Jim Heppelmann, but the company’s culture was not fully aligned with the new strategic direction. Historically, PTC's culture was defined by... View Details

Keywords: Internet Of Things; Corporate Culture; Human Resources

2010
Article

Impact of Online Consumer Reviews on Sales: The Moderating Role of Product and Consumer Characteristics

By: Feng Zhu and Michael Zhang

This article examines how product and consumer characteristics moderate the influence of online consumer reviews on product sales using data from the video game industry. The findings indicate that online reviews are more influential for less popular games and games... View Details

Keywords: Internet Marketing; Online Consumer Reviews; Word Of Mouth; Long Tail; Internet and the Web; Marketing Reference Programs; Digital Marketing; Video Game Industry

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August 2015
Case

Whistle Sports: An Online Sports Network for Millennials

By: Robert F. Higgins and Christine Snively

By January 2015, Whistle Sports, a multi-platform sports network for millennials, had attracted over 54 million online subscribers on YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, Google+, and Vine. It established partnerships with several professional sports leagues and... View Details

Keywords: Technology; Internet; Websites; Technology Networks; Sports; Entrepreneurship; Information Infrastructure; Business Startups

October 2016 (Revised January 2020)
Case

All Traffic Solutions

By: Rajiv Lal and Scott F. Johnson

All Traffic Solutions traditionally sold traffic signs that collected vehicle data to cities. In recent years, the firm connected their signs to the internet and began selling software that enabled cities to operate their signs remotely and collect data in a more... View Details

Keywords: IoT; Internet Of Things; Smart Connected Products; All Traffic Solutions; Traffic; Internet and the Web; Information Technology; Digital Platforms; Information Infrastructure; Applications and Software; Transportation; Mobile and Wireless Technology; Manufacturing Industry; Technology Industry; Information Technology Industry; United States

November 2021 (Revised December 2022)
Case

Farfetch: Digital Transformation for Luxury Brands

By: Sunil Gupta, Jill Avery, Elena Corsi and Federica Gabrieli

Farfetch, a global luxury technology platform and digital marketplace had been surfing the wave of digital transformation in the luxury fashion industry since 2008. While the company’s stock price and market valuation had fluctuated since its IPO in 2018, it had... View Details

August 2015 (Revised February 2020)
Teaching Note

Qihoo

By: Feng Zhu

Keywords: Platform Strategy; Business Model Innovation; Chinese Internet Market; Competitive Strategy; Information Technology; Digital Platforms; Internet and the Web; Information Technology Industry; China

February 2014
Case

Interview with Joe Kennedy, Pandora Media

By: Willy C. Shih

Joe Kennedy is the emeritus president of Pandora Media. In this interview, he discusses some of the challenges he faced in leading the company. View Details

Keywords: Pandora; Internet Radio; Pandora Media; Streaming; Music Industry; Music Entertainment; Business Startups; Growth and Development Strategy; Growth Management; Internet and the Web; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; United States; California

April 2018
Teaching Plan

NBCUniversal Telemundo: Transforming Latino Television

By: Henry McGee

Teaching Plan for HBS No. 318-018. View Details

Keywords: Television Industry; Television Advertising; Broadcasting; Telecommunications; Internet; Digital Marketing; Telecommunications Industry; Media and Broadcasting Industry; Miami

1999
Book

Internet University Vol. 1: Your Guide to Online College Courses; Vol. 2: Liberal Arts; Vol. 3: Technology; Vol. 4: Graduate Studies; Vol. 5: Business School Edition

By: D. Quinn Mills

Keywords: Higher Education; Internet and the Web; Information Technology; Business Education

December 2017
Teaching Note

Yemeksepeti: Growing and Expanding the Business Model through Data

By: William R. Kerr and Alexis Brownell

Teaching Note for HBS No. 817-095. View Details

Keywords: Turkey; Internet; Online Ordering; Restaurants; Big Data; Entrepreneurship; Analytics and Data Science; Internet and the Web; Growth and Development Strategy; Food and Beverage Industry; Turkey

September 2017
Case

NBCUniversal Telemundo: Transforming Latino Television

By: Henry W. McGee, Carin-Isabel Knoop and Christine Snively

In August 2017, Cesar Conde, chairman of NBCUniversal International Group and NBCUniversal Telemundo Enterprises, considered how the Miami-based Spanish-language TV network Telemundo could succeed in a rapidly shifting media landscape. Over the past few years,... View Details

Keywords: Television Industry; Television Advertising; Broadcasting; Telecommunications; Internet; Television Entertainment; Internet and the Web; Advertising; Digital Platforms; Digital Marketing; Telecommunications Industry; Media and Broadcasting Industry; Miami

January 2017 (Revised December 2019)
Case

Philips: The Shift to Value

By: Rajiv Lal and Scott Johnson

Keywords: Smart Connected Products; Internet Of Things; Healthcare

May–June 2015
Article

Television Advertising and Online Shopping

By: Jura Liaukonyte, Thales Teixeira and Kenneth Wilbur

Media multitasking competes with television advertising for consumers' attention, but it also may facilitate immediate and measurable response to some advertisements. This paper explores whether and how television advertising influences online shopping. We construct a... View Details

Keywords: Content Analysis; Difference-in-differences; Internet; Media Multitasking; Online Purchases; Advertising; Advertising Industry; United States

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June 2013
Background Note

Mobilizing an Online Business

By: Peter Coles and Benjamin Edelman

Entrepreneurs starting online businesses often need to mobilize multiple sets of users or customers, each of whom hesitates to participate unless others join also. This case presents several challenges with similar structure. View Details

Keywords: Mobilization Strategy; Network Effects; Platforms; Internet; Entrepreneurship; Strategy; Two-Sided Platforms; Technology Adoption; Innovation Strategy; Information Technology Industry; Telecommunications Industry; Computer Industry

Article

Big Other: Surveillance Capitalism and the Prospects of an Information Civilization

By: Shoshana Zuboff

This article describes an emergent logic of accumulation in the networked sphere, 'surveillance capitalism,' and considers its implications for 'information civilization.' The institutionalizing practices and operational assumptions of Google Inc. are the... View Details

Keywords: Surveillance Capitalism; Big Data; Google; Information Society; Privacy; Internet Of Everything; Rights; Economic Systems; Analytics and Data Science; Internet and the Web; Ethics

SSRN

September 2022 (Revised August 2023)
Case

Audrey Tang: Using Technology to Strengthen Democracy in Taiwan

By: Shikhar Ghosh and Shweta Bagai

Since the early days of the internet, Taiwan had a vibrant community of civic hackers and open-source programmers who engaged with social issues. Audrey Tang was one of them. She spearheaded the 2014 Sunflower Student Movement in Taiwan, where protestors peacefully... View Details

Keywords: Democracy; Internet; Web Technology; Digital Transformation; Digital Platform; COVID; Information Technology; Applications and Software; Governance; Entrepreneurship; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Innovation and Invention; Taiwan; China; Asia

January 2017 (Revised March 2017)
Case

IBM Transforming, 2012–2016: Ginni Rometty Steers Watson

By: Rosabeth Moss Kanter and Jonathan Cohen

To transform IBM for the next technology wave, Ginni Rometty, who became CEO in 2012, led divestment of declining businesses, made acquisitions in digital innovation and cloud computing, formed partnerships with former competitors such as Apple and tech startups, and... View Details

Keywords: Digital; Technological Change; Artificial Intelligence; Data; IBM; Watson; Internet Of Things; Innovation and Invention; Management; Sales; Information Technology; Technological Innovation; Transformation; AI and Machine Learning

January 2019 (Revised October 2019)
Case

Glossier: Co-Creating a Cult Brand with a Digital Community

By: Jill Avery

Glossier’s proclaimed strategy was “born from content; fueled by community.” The digital-first, direct-to-consumer beauty brand had experienced rapid growth, with sales up 600% in 2017 and a customer portfolio that grew by threefold. But, its founder, Emily Weiss, was... View Details