Publications

21 Jan 2020
Research & Ideas

Lessons for Retailers from the Rebirth of Indie Bookstores

business,” he says. “I embed myself into an industry for multiple years to understand the nuances of what’s happening, and I try to uncover unexpected patterns that can be difficult to predict using traditional statistical models.” Three... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding; Entertainment & Recreation

March 2000 (Revised April 2004)
Case

VacationSpot.com & Rent-A-Holiday: Negotiating a Trans-Atlantic Merger of Start-Ups

Describes a potential trans-Atlantic merger between two young companies in the Internet space. VacationSpot.com, based in Seattle, and Rent-A-Holiday, based in Brussels, both offer online listings and reservations for independent leisure lodging (i.e., villas,... View Details

Keywords: Negotiation; Valuation; Internet and the Web; Mergers and Acquisitions; Business Startups; Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues; Travel Industry; United States; Brussels

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; Transportation Industry; Tokyo

August 2012 (Revised October 2015)
Case

LinkedIn Corporation, 2012

By: David Yoffie and Liz Kind

Since its inception in 2003, LinkedIn had become a leading Silicon Valley institution with a brand name that was recognizable throughout the U.S. and in many countries overseas. As of March 2012, LinkedIn was the world's largest professional network on the Internet... View Details

Keywords: Social Networking; Media; Technology; Strategy; Growth Management; Internet and the Web; Corporate Strategy; Social and Collaborative Networks; Brands and Branding; Social Media; Service Industry; Service Industry; California

January 2000 (Revised October 2001)
Case

@Hoc: Leveraging Israeli Technology in the United States

Describes @Hoc, an idea for an Internet software company, developed by two HBS MBA 1999 graduates, Guy Miasnik and Ly Tran. @Hoc's software, loaded into a browser, enables instant, context-sensitive information retrieval and shopping. @Hoc's R&D team is located in... View Details

Keywords: Geographic Location; Internet and the Web; Applications and Software; Financing and Loans; Business Startups; Information Technology Industry; Israel; Boston

Research Summary

Managing Product Development in Rapidly Changing Environments

By: Alan D. MacCormack

A consistent finding in many studies of innovation is the repeated failure of established firms when faced with radical changes in their core markets or technologies. Professor MacCormack's research takes the view that many of these failures can be attributed to the... View Details

January 1999 (Revised March 2004)
Case

Mobile Communications Tokyo, Inc.

Describes a young Japanese telecommunications equipment and software company. The founder and president, Hatsuhiro Inoue, has just seen revenues double over the last two years and expects further rapid growth. The company currently has three product lines:... View Details

Keywords: Growth Management; Initial Public Offering; Financial Markets; Telecommunications Industry; Tokyo; United States

15 Apr 2002
Research & Ideas

In the Virtual Dressing Room Returns Are A Real Problem

Many distinctive aspects of the textile and apparel industries present challenges to implementing electronic commerce. First, and perhaps most important, is the difficulty of accurately characterizing the product online. Many of the... View Details

Keywords: by Jan Hammond & Kristin Kohler; Apparel & Accessories; Fashion; Consumer Products; Manufacturing; Retail

14 Feb 2005
Research & Ideas

Desktop Search and Revenue Streams

The name of the game in Internet search has always been helping users find what they're looking for as quickly as possible, as precisely as possible. The panelists at the 2005 Cyberposium's "Search Visionary" session at Harvard... View Details

Keywords: by Julie Jette

November 2000 (Revised July 2001)
Case

Intuit QuickBooks

By: Rajiv Lal and Punima P Kochikar

Internet QuickBooks, a successful product with a strong brand and an 85% share of retail sales, was faced with the challenge of meeting market growth expectations in a mature, slowing market segment. Generating recurring revenues by providing value-added online... View Details

Keywords: Budgets and Budgeting; Decisions; Growth and Development; Brands and Branding; Market Participation; Problems and Challenges; Internet and the Web; Value; Web Services Industry

August 2014 (Revised October 2014)
Case

Beyoncé

By: Anita Elberse and Stacie Smith

In December 2013, music superstar Beyoncé is about to surprise her fans with the release of her self-titled album. The team at her company Parkwood Entertainment, which general manager Lee Anne Callahan-Longo described as "a management, music, and production company... View Details

Keywords: Marketing; Beyoncé; Internet and the Web; Music Entertainment; Distribution Channels; Product Launch; Music Industry

August 1998
Background Note

Selling Books Online in Mid-1998

By: Jeffrey F. Rayport, Carin-Isabel Knoop and Cate Reavis

Provides an overview of the trends and predictions for the online book retail industry as of August 1998 and the current status of Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com, and other main players' online ventures. View Details

Keywords: Internet and the Web; Books; Retail Industry

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January 2009 (Revised March 2009)
Case

A Chinese Start-up's Midlife Crisis: 99Sushe.com

By: William C. Kirby, F. Warren McFarlan and Tracy Manty

Now into their third year at the helm of an Internet start-up in China, Ken Pao and Bill Li were managing a totally different company (with a new name) from the one they first founded in 2006. Having changed their business model from a social networking site to an... View Details

Keywords: Business Growth and Maturation; Business Model; Games, Gaming, and Gambling; Entrepreneurship; Venture Capital; Investment Funds; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; China

March 2008 (Revised April 2009)
Case

Eliot Spitzer: Pushing Wall Street to Reform

By: Rawi Abdelal, Rafael Di Tella and Jonathan Schlefer

New York State Attorney General Eliot Spitzer faced a decision about how to stop wrongdoing committed by major Wall Street firms during the Internet boom. The equities analysts of Merrill Lynch and other Wall Street firms were charged with objectively advising retail... View Details

Keywords: Crime and Corruption; Decisions; Financial Institutions; Stocks; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Laws and Statutes; Lawsuits and Litigation; Conflict of Interests; Internet; Financial Services Industry; United States

January 2000 (Revised April 2000)
Case

StarMedia: Launching a Latin American Revolution

By: Thomas R. Eisenmann and Jon K Rust

By the fall of 1999, StarMedia had sprinted to a sizable lead in the race to acquire Latin American Internet users. Its pan-regional, horizontal portal was the first to target Spanish- and Portuguese-language speakers on the Internet, registering 1.2 billion page views... View Details

Keywords: Private Ownership; History; Risk Management; Business Cycles; Corporate Entrepreneurship; Infrastructure; Media; Emerging Markets; Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues; Web; Information Technology Industry; Information Technology Industry

December 1999 (Revised December 2000)
Case

Charles Schwab: A Category of One

By: Stephen P. Bradley and Thomas H. Esperson

Examines Charles Schwab's on-line discount brokerage firm and questions whether or not Schwab has effectively balanced the old and new world of stock trading, and has remained a leader between giants like Merrill Lynch and Internet pure plays like E-Trade. Also looks... View Details

Keywords: Financial Institutions; Banks and Banking; Technological Innovation; Goals and Objectives; Growth and Development Strategy; Growth Management; Competition; Competitive Strategy; Competitive Advantage; Banking Industry; Banking Industry

August 2003 (Revised September 2003)
Case

Tower Software

Tower Software (TS) is a publicly traded corporation engaged in multiple facets of the computer software business. Its flagship product, TS SERVE, is a successful proprietary network operating system. TS also develops and sells applications software for word... View Details

Keywords: Applications and Software; Product Launch; Web Services Industry; Web Services Industry

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April 2017 (Revised January 2020)
Case

Korea Telecom: Building a GiGAtopia (A)

By: Shane Greenstein, Feng Zhu and Kerry Herman

Korea Telecom (KT) has committed $4 billion in investments and R&D to build a GiGAtopia, essentially ushering in the next generation of mobile (5G) and wired infrastructure. CEO Dr. Chang-Gyu Hwang, and his team are considering which areas to prioritize in terms of new... View Details

Keywords: Mobile and Wireless Technology; Technological Innovation; Infrastructure; Growth and Development Strategy; Competitive Strategy; Decision Choices and Conditions; Telecommunications Industry