This book will give you deep insight into the nature of business models. It describes traditional and bleeding-edge models and their dynamics, innovation techniques, how to position your model within an intensely competitive landscape, and how to lead the redesign of your own organi- zation’s business model. Certainly y ou’ve noticed that this is not the typical strategy or man- agement book. We designed it to convey the essentials of what you need to know, quickly, simply, and in a visual format. Examples are presented pictorially and the content is complemented with exercises and workshop scenarios you can use immediately. Rather than writing a conventional book about business model innovation, we’ve tried to design a practical guide for visionaries, game changers, and challengers eager to design or reinvent business models. We’ve also worked hard to create a beautiful book to enhance the pleasure of your “consumption.” We hope you enjoy using it as much as we’ve enjoyed creating it. An online community c omplements this book (and was integral to its creation, as you will discover later). Since business model innovation is a rapidly evolving field, you may want to go beyond the essentials in Business Model Generation and discover new tools online. Please consider joining our worldwide community of business practitioners and research- ers who have co-created this book. On the Hub you can participate in discussions about business models, learn from others’ insights, and try out new tools provided by the authors. Visit the Business Model Hub at www.BusinessModelGeneration.com/hub. Business model innov ation is hardly new. When the founders of Diners Club introduced the credit card in 1950, they were practicing business model innovation. The same goes for Xerox, when it introduced photo- copier leasing and the per-copy payment system in 1959. In fact, we might trace business model innovation all the way back to the fifteenth century, when Johannes Gutenberg sought applications for the mechanical printing device he had invented. But the scale and speed at which innovativ e business models are transforming industry landscapes today is unprecedented. For entre- preneurs, executives, consultants, and academics, it is high time to understand the impact of this extraordinary evolution. Now is the time to understand and to methodically address the challenge of business model innovation. Ultimately, busines s model innovation is about creating value, for companies, customers, and society. It is about replacing outdated models. With its iPod digital media player and iTunes.com online store, Apple created an innovative new business model that transformed the company into the dominant force in online music. Skype brought us dirt-cheap global calling rates and free Skype-to-Skype calls with an innovative business model built on so-called peer-to-peer technology. It is now the world’s largest carrier of international voice traffic. Zipcar frees city dwell- ers from automobile ownership by offering hourly or daily on-demand car rentals under a fee-based membership system. It’s a business model response to emerging user needs and pressing environmental concerns. Grameen Bank is helping alleviate poverty through an innovative business model that popularized microlending to the poor. But how can we systematically invent, design, and implement these powerful new business models? How can we question, challenge, and transform old, outmoded ones? How can we turn visionary ideas into game-changing business models that challenge the establishment—or rejuvenate it if we ourselves are the incumbents? Business Model Generation aims to give you the answers. Sin ce practicing is better than preaching, we adopted a new model for writing this book. Four hundred and seventy members of the Business Model Innovation Hub contributed cases, examples, and critical com- ments to the manuscript—and we took their feedback to heart. Read more about our experience in the final chapter of Business Model Generation . bmgen_final.indd 5 6/15/10 5:31 PM