"Internet impacts and support for new business models
Social networking has provided new models of business. Companies may discuss the big data possibilities of over 1 billion people on Facebook, but social networking has evolved into more than just a place of befriending. Crowdsourcing sites like Airbnb, Skillshare and TaskRabbit, and crowdfunding sites like Kickstarter and Lending Club, are all examples of the power of a networked social infrastructure. A new economy of sharing has fuelled an old approach to selling your skills, renting a room in your home, lending money, and performing tasks for other people.
Research one of Kickstarter.com, Skillshare.com, or Airbnb.ca and answer the following questions:
1. What is the purpose of the site? How successful is the site (in terms of subscribers, jobs, funding, and so on)?
2. Is there a common thread among all three sites that accounts for their success today, as opposed to 10 years ago?"