An investment banker and professor explains what really drives success in the tech economy Many
think that they understand the secrets to the success of the biggest tech companies: Facebook
Amazon Apple Netflix and Google. It's the platform economy or network effects or some
other magical power that makes their ultimate world domination inevitable. Investment banker
and professor Jonathan Knee argues that the truth is much more complicated--but entrepreneurs
and investors can understand what makes the giants work and learn the keys to lasting success
in the digital economy. Knee explains what really makes the biggest tech companies work: a
surprisingly disparate portfolio of structural advantages buttressed by shrewd acquisitions
strong management lax regulation and often encouraging the myth that they are invincible to
discourage competitors. By offering fresh insights into the true sources of strength and very
real vulnerabilities of these companies The Platform Delusion shows how investors existing
businesses and startups might value them compete with them and imitate them. The Platform
Delusion demystifies the success of the biggest digital companies in sectors from retail to
media to software to hardware offering readers what those companies don't want everyone else
to know. Knee's insights are invaluable for entrepreneurs and investors in digital businesses
seeking to understand what drives resilience and profitability for the long term.
