What are ecosystems?
Ecosystems can either be:
'Transactional ecosystems' or 'solution ecosystems'.
Transactional ecosystems bring together two sides of a marketplace that would not naturally find each other without intermediaries, if at all.
Amazon Marketplace is an example of a transactional ecosystem.
Solution ecosystems, by contrast, are built around an enabling technology on which ecosystem contributors depend for their reach and use to connect to other providers within the ecosystem.
In this way, the "whole becomes greater than the sum of the parts"
An example of this is the smart-home ecosystem where individual product manufacturers benefit from the internet of things to deliver enhanced services to their customers.
BCG recently published a series of 6 articles on ecosystems informed by their own research and active consulting engagements.
Their final article offers a step-by-step framework for developing your company’s ecosystem strategy.
