AirBNB and Uber are the two most well known brands of the so called sharing economy. This is a concept where — through technology — normal people can earn some extra money by optimisation of resources through information. The concept is highly abused and the sharing economy businesses shows little differences from traditional business. I recommend you to read / listen to the following:
Nothing is being shared when you hire a cleaner to tidy your house or a car to drive you to work, even if you use an app to do it. Full story
- Benjamen Walker takes the subject to other level on his Theory of Everything, calling them Instaserfs:
- The Harvard Business Review tries to clarify the sharing part and comes with the notion that this economy is not about sharing but instead is an access economy. It is all about how information about opportunities becomes available.
But the HEAT is now. And discussion on sharing economy is taking place all over the web. The next few years will define how these companies will are accepted and how their business models evolve.