Software Platform Consulting

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RealPage: When Does Revenue Management Software Become Anti-Competitive?

Software Platform Consulting

The District of Columbia, where I live, just sued RealPage, a real estate management platform, and 14 DC landlords for violating its antitrust statute. The complaint provides fascinating reading about pricing and software platforms. (Note: I’m not a lawyer, and I’m not judging the case’s merits per se. I’m commenting on the unique aspects of the RealPage commercial arrangements the DC Attorney General cites in his case.

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Ticketmaster: The Business Model Part of the Story

Software Platform Consulting

I love a story about how a company dominated its industry primarily by changing its business model. (See here and here.) Ticketmaster, which has been in the news lately, has such a story buried in its past. The Prior Business Model: Ticketron. Ticketmaster overcame a near-monopoly named Ticketron. Ticketron was the sole computerized ticketing provider in the US in 1970.

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How well do Governments Buy Catalog Items?

Software Platform Consulting

As taxpayers, we should want to know how well our dollars are spent. At the Federal level, most of these dollars are spent on social security, healthcare, and defense (see below). Articles about spending in these areas are easy to find, but the price of F-35s or my dad’s medicare is too complex for this blog. Instead, let’s focus on the prices paid for common commercial catalog items that we can all relate to.

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10 B2B Blogs Every Software Nerd Should Read

Software Platform Consulting

The vast majority of tech press is about B2C software companies or software for IT department (e.g., databases, security, performance monitoring and other stuff) that does not excite me. But, there are a few good b2b blogs and newsletters those of you interested in enterprise cloud business applications should follow for inspiration. My nominations, in no particular order, are as follows: Price intelligently.

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Take Rates for B2B Marketplaces

Software Platform Consulting

The two questions I’m most often asked are: 1. How do you keep your hair looking so lush and luxurious? 2. How much can a B2B Marketplace or Multi-Sided Platform charge for its services? (Some folks call this the platform’s “take rate” ). The answer to the former question will need to remain a mystery, but the answer to the latter follows.

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Angie’s List and Two-Sided Market Pricing

Software Platform Consulting

For those of us who follow pricing strategy in two-sided markets, last week was a milestone. Angie’s List, which invented the home services marketplace (in 1995) announced it would drop its “paywall” The paywall charged buyers to search its directory and reviews before communicating with contractors. Angie’s List will now offer a freemium model for homeowners (buyers) and will continue to offer a freemium model to contractors/service providers.

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Ferreting out Suppliers’ “Dirty Little Secrets”

Software Platform Consulting

Three separate events last week reminded me that every spend category has its “dirty little secrets” Suppliers can exploit these “dirty little secrets” to squeeze a little more from buyers than buyers bargained for. Not all of these secrets are nefarious, but all reflect the inherently deeper category knowledge suppliers have and the limited resources buyers have to “sweat the details” in every category.