Publications

January 2010 (Revised April 2011)
Case

Google Inc.

By: Benjamin Edelman and Thomas R. Eisenmann

Describes Google's history, business model, governance structure, corporate culture, and processes for managing innovation. Reviews Google's recent strategic initiatives and the threats they pose to Yahoo, Microsoft, and others. Asks what Google should do next. One... View Details

Keywords: Digital Marketing; Business Model; Growth and Development Strategy; Network Effects; Mission and Purpose; Expansion; Internet and the Web; Information Technology Industry

July 2020 (Revised November 2020)
Case

Pricing at Netflix

By: Elie Ofek, Marco Bertini, Oded Koenigsberg and Amy Klopfenstein

Since its launch in 1998 as “the Amazon.com of DVDs,” Netflix had evolved from a DVD rental company to a video streaming platform and producer of original films and television shows. As the company matured, it regularly increased prices and adjusted its product... View Details

Web

Baker Library / Bloomberg Center | About

Internet service. The space also houses some historical treasures for the School, including the Written Analysis of Cases slot; the Baker 20 case distribution center; a rendering of the original Baker Library stacks and grille; and an... View Details

January 2019 (Revised October 2019)
Case

Rural Taobao: Alibaba's Expansion into Rural E-Commerce

By: Tarun Khanna, Ryan Allen, Adam Frost and Wesley Koo

Alibaba's Rural Taobao initiative had been launched in 2014 as a public service initiative to increase e-commerce adoption in China’s remote rural areas. In the first two iterations of the initiative, dubbed “1.0” and “2.0,” Alibaba had partnered with local businesses... View Details

Keywords: Strategy; Business Growth; Ecommerce; Corporate Social Responsibility; Business And Government; Emerging Market; Digital Platforms; Internet and the Web; Emerging Markets; Rural Scope; Growth and Development Strategy; Competitive Strategy; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Business and Government Relations; Decision Making; E-commerce; China

April 2020 (Revised February 2023)
Case

GitLab and the Future of All-Remote Work (A)

By: Prithwiraj Choudhury and Emma Salomon

GitLab is arguably one of the world’s largest “all-remote” companies. Started in 2011 and with more than 1,000 employees at present, it has no physical offices and all employees, including the entire C-Suite, work remotely from all parts of the world. The case... View Details

Keywords: Remote Work; Internet and the Web; Technology Adoption; Value Creation; Business Model; Organizational Structure

01 Mar 2024
News

Unlocking the Power of Community

When Tara Fung (MBA 2016) explains Co:Create, the company she cofounded in 2022 and now leads as CEO, she doesn’t mention Web3 first. “We help innovative brands and creators unlock the power of community,” she explains. Co:Create does this with a new, gamified approach... View Details

Keywords: April White

Web

Historical Data & Sources - Business History

Statistique Agricole , various years Download Data Set in Excel Boston Consulting Group “A Truly Global Firm,” BCG website Map created by John Regan, MBA 2016 Download Data Set in Excel Broadband Subscriptions per 100 People The World Bank, “Fixed Broadband View Details

January 2016 (Revised February 2016)
Case

Citizens United and Corporate Speech

By: David Moss and Marc Campasano

The story of Citizens United began in late 2007, as leading members of the Republican and Democratic parties were preparing for the 2008 presidential primaries. Democrats expected a three-way contest in their party between Senator Barack Obama of Illinois, Senator (and... View Details

Keywords: Rights; Internet and the Web; Political Elections; Lawsuits and Litigation; Business and Government Relations

31 Jul 2023
News

Striving for Imperfection

Subscribe on iTunes Subscribe on Spotify More Skydeck episodes Since he left HBS in 1990, Charles Conn (MBA 1990) has built a full and varied portfolio career. Early on, he was a partner at McKinsey and then a tech executive, founding Ticketmaster-Citysearch. Today,... View Details

Keywords: Management of Companies and Enterprises; Management

22 Aug 2022
Research & Ideas

Can Amazon Remake Health Care?

At a time when health care providers have gone all in on telemedicine, Amazon, the world’s biggest online retailer, surprised Wall Street in late July when it announced it would acquire 1Life Healthcare Inc., which runs the subscription-based One Medical primary-care... View Details

Keywords: by Christina Pazzanese, Harvard Gazette; Health

03 May 2023
Research & Ideas

Why Confronting Racism in AI 'Creates a Better Future for All of Us'

share research on the intersection of race and capitalism—specifically, on race and technology since we live in the age of the digital transition and race is inherently embedded in algorithms and code simply because of who created the View Details

Keywords: by Barbara DeLollis

23 Mar 2022
Blog Post

Learning Curve: The Brother-and-Sister Team Behind a New Edtech Nonprofit

children and parents alike. “Our interests really aligned on early childhood education,” Mahajan says. Recognizing that more than 50 percent of Indians have smartphones—and that mobile internet penetration is high, even among low-income... View Details

October 2009 (Revised June 2011)
Case

Zappos.com 2009: Clothing, Customer Service, and Company Culture

By: Frances X. Frei, Robin J. Ely and Laura Winig

On July 17, 2009, Zappos.com, a privately held online retailer of shoes, clothing, and other soft line retail categories, learned that Amazon.com, a $19 billion multinational online retailer, had won its board of directors' approval to offer to merge the two companies.... View Details

Keywords: Mergers and Acquisitions; Customer Focus and Relationships; Decision Choices and Conditions; Governing and Advisory Boards; Service Delivery; Organizational Culture; Internet and the Web; Valuation; Apparel and Accessories Industry; Retail Industry

04 Jun 2001
What Do You Think?

What’s the Future of the Subscription Model?

Richard Feder maintains that the subscription model will gain momentum on the Internet as the memory of free service fades and the utility of new service increases. The response gives hope for those hoping to utilize the subscription... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett

March 2020 (Revised August 2020)
Case

Culture at Google

By: Nien-hê Hsieh, Amy Klopfenstein and Sarah Mehta

Beginning in 2017, technology (tech) company Google faced a series of employee-relations issues that threatened its unique culture of innovation and open communication. Issues included protests surrounding Google’s contracts with the U.S. government, restrictions of... View Details

01 Jan 2012
News

Hiroshi Mikitani, MBA 1993

owners of small businesses, as well as Japanese society as a whole, Mikitani began working on a web-based shopping mall. “At the time, the Internet was at an early stage,” he notes. “No one was buying things online in Japan.” Working with... View Details

15 Feb 2024
News

Startup Shepherds

By their count, Catalina Daniels and Jim Sherman (both MBA 1991) listened to approximately 300 startup pitches in 2016, the first year the HBS classmates worked side by side as angel investors in New York. “You meet a lot of very smart people, with what sound like good... View Details

Keywords: April White

September 2017 (Revised November 2018)
Case

Marriott International: The Next 90 Years

By: Chiara Farronato and Gary Pisano

The case examines how Marriott should respond to the potential threats from new home-sharing platforms and the rise of online travel agencies. In 2017 Marriott was the largest hotel chain, with more than one million rooms and 7% of worldwide room supply. In the... View Details