Publications

November 2010
Case

Bling Nation

By: William A. Sahlman and Liz Kind

Bling Nation, a Palo Alto, CA startup, was founded in 2007 as a mobile payment service provider that bypassed industry participants such as Visa and MasterCard. Bling Nation partnered with local community banks and merchants in small towns. The banks provided their... View Details

Keywords: Culture

Find at Harvard

12 Mar 2013
First Look

First Look: March 12

of entrepreneurs supported. Paper: http://www.people.hbs.edu/wkerr/121212-Female1_Spatial.pdf For Mobile Devices, Think Apps, Not Ads Authors:Gupta, Sunil Publication:Harvard Business Review Abstract Many companies envision View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

Paytm: Building a Payments Network

In the fall of 2016, Vijay Shekhar Sharma, founder of Paytm, an Indian mobile payments and commerce platform, received the coveted "Entrepreneur of the Year" award from the Economic Times, a leading Indian business newspaper. Despite the public honor... View Details

June 2024
Case

Arete Research on Unity Software

By: Joseph Pacelli and Tonia Labruyere

Richard Kramer, CEO of Arete Research, an independent research firm, reflects on his team's coverage of the stock of Unity Software, a U.S.-based mobile games software company. View Details

Keywords: Analysis; Initial Public Offering; Analytics and Data Science; Applications and Software; Mobile and Wireless Technology; Valuation; Value Creation; Financial Services Industry; Video Game Industry; United Kingdom; United States

Clubs

Women's Student Association

Keywords: Diversity, Inclusion & Belonging

March 2017 (Revised September 2017)
Case

Facebook Fake News in the Post-Truth World

By: John R. Wells and Carole A. Winkler

In January 2017, Mark Zuckerberg, founder and CEO of Facebook, was surrounded by controversy. The election of Donald Trump as the next president of the United States in November 2016 had triggered a national storm of protests, and many attributed Trump’s victory to... View Details

Keywords: Facebook; Fake News; Mark Zuckerberg; Donald Trump; Algorithms; Social Networks; Partisanship; Social Media; App Development; Instagram; WhatsApp; Smartphone; Silicon Valley; Office Space; Digital Strategy; Democracy; Entry Barriers; Online Platforms; Controversy; Tencent; Agility; Social Networking; Gaming; Gaming Industry; Computer Games; Mobile Gaming; Messaging; Monetization Strategy; Advertising; Digital Marketing; Business Ventures; Acquisition; Mergers and Acquisitions; Business Growth and Maturation; Business Headquarters; Business Organization; For-Profit Firms; Trends; Communication; Communication Technology; Forms of Communication; Interactive Communication; Interpersonal Communication; Talent and Talent Management; Crime and Corruption; Voting; Demographics; Entertainment; Games, Gaming, and Gambling; Moral Sensibility; Values and Beliefs; Initial Public Offering; Profit; Revenue; Geography; Geographic Location; Global Range; Local Range; Country; Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues; Globalized Firms and Management; Globalized Markets and Industries; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Government and Politics; International Relations; National Security; Political Elections; Business History; Recruitment; Selection and Staffing; Information Management; Information Publishing; News; Newspapers; Innovation and Management; Innovation Strategy; Technological Innovation; Knowledge Dissemination; Human Capital; Law; Leadership Development; Leadership Style; Leading Change; Business or Company Management; Crisis Management; Goals and Objectives; Growth and Development Strategy; Growth Management; Management Practices and Processes; Management Style; Management Systems; Management Teams; Managerial Roles; Marketing Channels; Social Marketing; Network Effects; Market Entry and Exit; Digital Platforms; Marketplace Matching; Industry Growth; Industry Structures; Monopoly; Media; Product Development; Service Delivery; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Mission and Purpose; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Organizational Culture; Organizational Structure; Public Ownership; Problems and Challenges; Business and Community Relations; Business and Government Relations; Groups and Teams; Networks; Rank and Position; Opportunities; Behavior; Emotions; Identity; Power and Influence; Prejudice and Bias; Reputation; Social and Collaborative Networks; Status and Position; Trust; Society; Civil Society or Community; Culture; Public Opinion; Social Issues; Societal Protocols; Strategy; Adaptation; Business Strategy; Commercialization; Competition; Competitive Advantage; Competitive Strategy; Corporate Strategy; Customization and Personalization; Diversification; Expansion; Horizontal Integration; Segmentation; Information Technology; Internet and the Web; Mobile and Wireless Technology; Internet and the Web; Applications and Software; Information Infrastructure; Digital Platforms; Internet and the Web; Mobile and Wireless Technology; Valuation; Advertising Industry; Communications Industry; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; Information Industry; Information Technology Industry; Journalism and News Industry; Media and Broadcasting Industry; Service Industry; Technology Industry; Telecommunications Industry; Video Game Industry; United States; California; Sunnyvale; Russia

April 2008
Background Note

Broadband and Video Games: Playing and Winning Together

By: Stephen P. Bradley and Nancy Bartlett

This note examines the relationship between video gaming devices (console, handhelds, mobile and PC) and gaming software development. The impact of broadband, wireless technologies and other innovations are also presented. View Details

Keywords: Games, Gaming, and Gambling; Innovation and Invention; Relationships; Information Infrastructure; Applications and Software; Mobile and Wireless Technology; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; Technology Industry

April 1993
Supplement

McCaw Cellular Communications, Inc. (C)

Describes events in 1991 involving Fleet Call, Inc., a potential competitor who plans to introduce an alternative form of mobile communication. View Details

Keywords: Business or Company Management; Competitive Strategy; Telecommunications Industry

31 Mar 2015
News

How to Launch Your Digital Platform

21 Jan 2021
Video

Sunil Bharti Mittal

Sunil Bharti Mittal, Founder and Chairman of Bharti Enterprises, explains the capital necessary to create a mobile service business and the power of modularity. View Details

Video

Quickstor - 2013 HBS New Venture Competition Student Business Track Runner Up

25 Mar 2016
Video

David Chang, Entrepreneur & Angel Investor

Byju’s The Learning App

BYJU’S The Learning App (BYJU’s) is India’s largest K-12 education app with approximately 300,000 annual paid subscribers. The mobile app uses a mix of video lessons and interactive tools to personalize learning for every student. Although there is room to grow... View Details

The Economist Intelligence Unit report

Video Interview: EIU Editor Riva Richmond interviews Harvard Business School Professor Leslie Perlow about the risks to organisations from the undirected, always-connected work enabled by mobile devices. View Details

December 2022
Supplement

Driving Decarbonization at BMW - Video Supplement

By: Shirley Lu, George Serafeim and Michael W. Toffel

Videos of Thomas Becker, Vice President of Sustainability and Mobility at BMW Group, in support of the case "Driving Decarbonization at BMW" (HBS No. 123-008) View Details

August 2004 (Revised April 2005)
Case

MK Taxi: Private Chauffeur Service

MK Taxi Tokyo has developed a system to allow customers to use their mobile phones to find and contact the cab closest to them, bypassing the dispatch center. The system, called the Private Chauffeur Service (PCS), makes use of NTT's i-mode service, which essentially... View Details

Keywords: Information Technology; Entrepreneurship; Customer Focus and Relationships; Transportation; Mobile and Wireless Technology; Transportation Industry; Service Industry; Tokyo

November 2012 (Revised June 2013)
Case

GREE, Inc.

By: Andrei Hagiu and Masahiro Kotosaka

In 2012, GREE was one of the world's most profitable mobile social gaming companies. Its success in Japan was due both to its in-house games and to the development platform that it offered to third-party game developers. Its biggest challenge was to replicate the... View Details

Keywords: Strategy; Technology; Japan