The sharing economy. An analysis of the confluence of technological development and social trends

Abstract or Introduction

Within the last few years, companies participating in the sharing economy enjoyed a high degree of media attention. After the financial crisis in 2008, a new model of consumption emerged. The temporary usage of goods and services was valued more than the actual ownership. In the upcoming years, digital platforms evolved thereby facilitating the transaction process in which consumers receive access to a service provider’s otherwise underutilized assets, services or skills. A report from PricewaterhouseCoopers (2015) estimated a potential global revenue growth for the five key sharing industries from $15 billion USD in 2014 to $335 billion in 2025. Furthermore, nearly half of the population of North America have already been acquainted with the sharing economy – of those more than 110 million people have used a sharing platform. Hence, other countries try to catch up, the key markets are China and North America.