推荐一本书：Modern Monopolies: What It Takes to Dominate the 21st-Century Economy, by Alex Moazed & Nicholas L. Johnson
目前社会上对互联网平台往往误认为存在垄断，而我自始至终就认为目前的互联网第三方交易平台的模式是类似于传统市场的商品交易所，期货市场或者股票市场的商业模式。这些集中化市场提升了市场效率，从来没有被认为是垄断。如果用传统的"垄断"概念，我们永远解释不了互联网第三方平台的市场地位问题。
如果把垄断仅理解为市场集中，互联网第三方交易平台是自然“垄断”，与我们传统意义的垄断完全不同，我们根本不能用传统行业垄断的概念去套用解释这种集中化市场的经济现象，更不能套用传统垄断的判断去解决“垄断”问题。
这本书以美国市场上各种崛起的第三方交易平台为例，说明了用户自然选择的自然垄断以及对生产，消费，流通等的意义。让我们更清楚认识这个全新的商业模式。特别是对垄断的全新认识。请看国外读者的评论。
"Modern Monopolies" is a fascinating look at the modern platform, a business model made possible by technology and embodied by companies radically different than any we’ve seen in the past. And while "platform" is surely a buzzword, "Modern Monopolies" argues that the underlying business model is anything but. Though the book is overstuffed with contemporary case studies and has the same consultant-ey tone that plagues the modern business aisle, it’s unusually relevant and surprisingly insightful, and ultimately worth your time.
The authors do a good job explaining what a platform is. One of the most important points made is that a platform is not a product or piece of technology, but "a business model that facilitates the exchange of value between two or more user groups, a consumer and a producer [emphasis mine]." (29) This definition didn’t quite align with my own interpretation of the word, but I’ve embraced it since. This means, for instance, that Amazon’s AWS isn’t a "platform," and perhaps even SalesForce is ruled out, though things do get blurry.
The authors go on to look at how platforms fit in the greater economy. This is probably the most academic part of the book, and it’s also the best. References to Uber and AirBnb abound, but you’ll also read a bit about Hayek and Coase, and while there’s a smattering of bullshit infographics, but they’re flanked by some interesting discussions about natural monopolies, marginal costs of production, and network effects.
Some interesting points:
In the internet era, most software companies have a zero marginal cost of distribution. But platforms have a zero marginal cost of creation, too (the network handles the production).
Networks are harder to duplicate than "features". This means platform companies are better protected against competitors than traditional software companies.
The bigger a network is, the more valuable it is to be a part of it. This means that platform competition exhibits a "winner takes all" dynamic. A platform company is a "natural monopoly."
This is a very different kind of monopoly than we’re used to, though: "today’s platforms are dominant because users choose them, not because they were able to buy up all available sources of supply." (101) They are "monopolies of the willing." (102)
Platforms monopolies are nonetheless very much subject to competition: "a platform that dominates one industry is still very vulnerable to attack from platforms that have similar user bases." (105) Think of Google moving in on Amazon’s eBook monopoly.
The second half of the book is dedicated to describing the characteristics of a platform - how to build one, how to grow one, and how not to screw things up. It’s mostly good stuff, though the authors are overly reliant on soon-to-be-irrelevant case studies, and start getting cute with things like "the five steps to expand your network, all of which start with the letter C." It’s less intellectually engaging, but still pretty informative.
Some interesting point here:
A platform becomes more valuable the bigger it gets, but it’s often not ‘till it’s REALLY fucking big that you can start to monetize: "there’s often little point in building a small platform business." (93) This means picking the right market is key.
You’ll likely need to subsidize network growth before you reach critical mass. Think Uber subsidizing drivers while they wait for riders or Quora creating its own initial content.
The most important part of designing a platform is defining and streamlining a singular "core transaction," the "set of actions consumers and producers must complete in order to exchange value." (112) You need to make it as easy as possible for network participants to exchange value.
Be very deliberate about how you grow your network and who you let in: "once your network has established an identity, reshaping it can be very difficult." (177) Network growth is "path dependent": future growth depends on how you arrived at the present.
On the whole, I really enjoyed the "Modern Monopolies," in large part because it’s personally relevant. Working at a Silicon Valley startup targeting finance (one of the sectors "Modern Monopolies" calls out as ripe for platform innovation), I think and talk about this stuff a lot (insert shameless plug for Addepar here). If you can relate, you should absolutely pick this book up. If not, it’s probably still worth a read. The internet has changed the way companies do business, and platforms are here to stay. If you’re at all interested in business or economics, "Modern Monopolies" will give you a new lens through which to view the changing world around you.
