The Tech Strategy Podcast

This podcast is about the super cool economics of Adobe Inc. And how they capture the economics of digital by also building strong competitive moats. In Adobe's case, it's mostly network effects and bundling.You can listen to this podcast here or at iTunes, Google Podcasts and Himalaya.The digital economics terms cited are:Zero marginal production costs.Low distribution costs.Non-rival goods that can be simultaneously used.Global scalability at low cost.Versioning. Multiple versions of their products can be easily created at different price points.Bundling.Complements can be added.Lots of integration into other software and products.—–----Related articles:Software and the Sexy but Dangerous Economics of Digital (pt 1 of 3)Digital Economics II: Why Pricing Is Getting Both Complicated and Critical. (Jeff’s Asia Tech Class – Podcast 53)How Digital Creates and Destroys Competitive Advantage. Digital Economics II. (Jeff’s Asia Tech Class – Podcast 55)From the Concept Library, concepts for this article are:Standardization and Interconnection Network EffectsSubscriptions, Cross-Selling and Integrated BundlingFrom the Company Library, companies for this article are:Adobe Inc.-----------I write and speak about digital China and Asia’s latest tech trends.I also run Asia Tech Strategy, a podcast and subscription newsletter on the strategies of China / Asia tech companies.This content (articles, podcasts, website info) is not investment advice. The information and opinions from me and any guests may be incorrect. The numbers and information may be wrong. The views expressed may no longer be relevant or accurate. Investing is risky. Do your own research.Support the show

Competitive advantages can be build on the demand and the supply side. And advantages on the demand (i.e., revenue) side are usually about customer capture in some form. One general category for this is when a company captures a "share of the consumer mind."In this talk, I go into how some companies do this for their own benefit. And against the interests of the consumer. I call these types of competitive advantages "evil moats".You can listen to this podcast here or at iTunes, Google Podcasts and Himalaya.Here are the books and articles I mentioned:Hooked: How to Build Habit-Forming Products. By Nir EyalThe Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business. By Charles Duhigg.Addiction by Design: Machine Gambling in Las Vegas. By Natasha Schull.How Technology Is Hijacking Your Mind. By Tristan Harris.---—–Related podcasts and articles are:WeChat, TikTok and Capturing the Consumer Mind in a Digital Age (Jeff’s Asia Tech Class – Podcast 36)From the Concept Library, concepts for this article are:Share of the Consumer MindFrom the Company Library, companies for this article are:n/a——–I write and speak about digital China and Asia’s latest tech trends.I also run Asia Tech Strategy, a podcast and subscription newsletter on the strategies of China / Asia tech companies.This content (articles, podcasts, website info) is not investment advice. The information and opinions from me and any guests may be incorrect. The numbers and information may be wrong. The views expressed may no longer be relevant or accurate. Investing is risky. Do your own research.Support the show

This week’s podcast is about online-merge-offline (OMO) platforms. A business model that is just emerging in China. I talk about Sun Art Retail and Beike / Lianjia as examples.You can listen to this podcast here or at iTunes, Google Podcasts and Himalaya.Here is the BCG article I mentioned.—–Related podcasts and articles are:Lianjia and Beike’s Big Platform Play in Chinese Real Estate (Asia Tech Strategy – Daily Update)Alibaba Takes Over Sun Art Retail. Is It Going to Take Off? Or Is It Infrastructure? (pt 1 of 2) (Asia Tech Strategy – Daily Update)From the Concept Library, concepts for this article are:Digital Physical HybridsNew RetailOnline-Merge-Offline (OMO)SMILE Marathon: Ecosystem Orchestration and ParticipationOMO PlatformsFrom the Company Library, companies for this article are:AlibabaSun Art Retail GroupKE Holdings / Beike / Lianjia—-I write and speak about digital China and Asia’s latest tech trends.I also run Asia Tech Strategy, a podcast and subscription newsletter on the strategies of China / Asia tech companies.This content (articles, podcasts, website info) is not investment advice. The information and opinions from me and any guests may be incorrect. The numbers and information may be wrong. The views expressed may no longer be relevant or accurate. Investing is risky. Do your own research.Support the show

This week’s podcast is about the current political risks around Alibaba. But also about the very important concept of Worst Case Scenario.You can listen to this podcast here or at iTunes, Google Podcasts and Himalaya.Here is the Harvard Business Review case about Viva Macau.Here is the book I mentioned, Dead Companies Walking by Scott Fearon.–—–Related podcasts and articles are:My 9 Investment Questions (Asia Tech Strategy – Podcast 75)From the Concept Library, concepts for this article are:Worst Case Scenario (Question 9)From the Company Library, companies for this article are:Alibaba———-—-I write and speak about digital China and Asia’s latest tech trends.I also run Asia Tech Strategy, a podcast and subscription newsletter on the strategies of China / Asia tech companies.This content (articles, podcasts, website info) is not investment advice. The information and opinions from me and any guests may be incorrect. The numbers and information may be wrong. The views expressed may no longer be relevant or accurate. Investing is risky. Do your own research.Support the show

This week’s podcast is about how to think tactics that generate short-term growth and results. And we see these coming out of China all the time. In particular, I talk about how Pop Mart used blind boxes. How Joy Spreader and Ruhnn Holding used influencer marketing. And how everyone is using community group buying.You can listen to this podcast here or at iTunes, Google Podcasts and Himalaya.Here is the CBS talk with Li Lu.Three questions for when you are thinking about tactics resulting in high-growth:Will this short-term tactic or growth hack lose strength? When?Is it a required new capability?Is it a structural advantage?—–-----Related podcasts and articles are:Joy Spreader and How to Think About KOL / Influencer Marketing (Asia Tech Strategy – Daily Update)From the Concept Library, concepts for this article are:Community Group BuyingInfluencers and KOLsVirality and Word of MouthChinese Digital Consumer Network (CDCN)From the Company Library, companies for this article are:Joy SpreaderPop Mart----------I write and speak about digital China and Asia’s latest tech trends.I also run Asia Tech Strategy, a podcast and subscription newsletter on the strategies of China / Asia tech companies.This content (articles, podcasts, website info) is not investment advice. The information and opinions from me and any guests may be incorrect. The numbers and information may be wrong. The views expressed may no longer be relevant or accurate. Investing is risky. Do your own research.Support the show

This week’s podcast is about Baidu and its key strategic questions:Can it thrive as a stand-alone search engine? Against competitors such as Tencent and ByteDance.What is its best growth opportunity? I think cloud.Did it need to go into content? How far?Can it compete in the attention market? Search plus feed.You can listen to this podcast here or at iTunes, Google Podcasts and Himalaya.The mentioned slides are here. –-----Related podcasts and articles are:Baidu’s Search Engine Explained in 3 Slides (pt 1 of 3) (Asia Tech Strategy – Daily Update)Baidu is Struggling in Content Creation, Push Feeds and the Attention Market (Pt 2 of 3) (Asia Tech Strategy – Daily Update)From the Concept Library, concepts for this article are:Search EnginesLearning PlatformsStandardization and Interconnection Network EffectsFrom the Company Library, companies for this article are:Baidu——–I write and speak about digital China and Asia’s latest tech trends.This content (articles, podcasts, website info) is not investment advice. The information and opinions from me and any guests may be incorrect. The numbers and information may be wrong. The views expressed may no longer be relevant or accurate. Investing is risky. Do your own research.Support the show

This week’s podcast is about my investment checklist. Which is really just 9 questions. Shown below.You can listen to this podcast here or at iTunes, Google Podcasts and Himalaya.Charlie Munger’s Speech on the Psychology of Human Misjudgment. Located here.———–Related podcasts and articles are:N/AFrom the Concept Library, concepts for this article are:9 QuestionsCompany Quality (Ques 1 and 2)Worst Case Scenario (Ques 9)From the Company Library, companies for this article are:Warren Buffett / Berkshire Hathaway------------I write and speak about digital China and Asia’s latest tech trends.I also run Asia Tech Strategy, a podcast and subscription newsletter on the strategies of China / Asia tech companies.This content (articles, podcasts, website info) is not investment advice. The information and opinions from me and any guests may be incorrect. The numbers and information may be wrong. The views expressed may no longer be relevant or accurate. Investing is risky. Do your own research.Support the show

This week’s podcast is Fiverr and their classic approach to building a marketplace platform (for freelance services). I don't go into it too much but I thought it was a good example of a common playbook for venture capital-backed early stage companies.You can listen to this podcast here or at iTunes, Google Podcasts and Himalaya.Andreesen Horowitz listed 4 types of competitive advantages:Network effectsEconomies of scaleDirect brand powerDifferentiated technologyMy competitive pyramid is here.----------Related podcasts and articles are:N/AFrom the Concept Library, concepts for this article are:Platforms: MarketplaceNetwork EffectsCompetitive Advantage: Differentiated Technology?From the Company Library, companies for this article are:Fiverr——-I write and speak about digital China and Asia’s latest tech trends.I also run Asia Tech Strategy, a podcast and subscription newsletter on the strategies of China / Asia tech companies.This content (articles, podcasts, website info) is not investment advice. The information and opinions from me and any guests may be incorrect. The numbers and information may be wrong. The views expressed may no longer be relevant or accurate. Investing is risky. Do your own research.Support the show

This week’s podcast is about Huawei’s big operating system initiative. It’s the first serious challenge to Android’s global dominance. And how to break-in with a new ecosystem is a fascinating question.You can listen to this podcast here or at iTunes, Google Podcasts and Himalaya.Types of platforms:Marketplace PlatformsPayment PlatformsInnovation and Audience-Builder PlatformsCoordination, Collaboration and Standardization PlatformsLearning Platforms----------Related podcasts and articles are:Alibaba, Android and The Emerging Art of Ecosystem Management. (Jeff’s Asia Tech Class – Podcast 57)Hotpot and Hiking with Huawei Chairman Guo Ping (pt 1 of 2)Huawei Is Going to Beat Trump with Human Resources, Not Technology (Pt 1 of 3)From the Concept Library, concepts for this article are:Ecosystems vs. PlatformsPlatforms: InnovationFrom the Company Library, companies for this article are:HuaweiAndroid———-—-I write and speak about digital China and Asia’s latest tech trends.I also run Asia Tech Strategy, a podcast and subscription newsletter on the strategies of China / Asia tech companies.This content (articles, podcasts, website info) is not investment advice. The information and opinions from me and any guests may be incorrect. The numbers and information may be wrong. The views expressed may no longer be relevant or accurate. Investing is risky. Do your own research.Support the show

This week’s podcast is about JD Central in Thailand. I had an interesting visit and interviewed the CEO. And it raises a bigger point of whether China's ecommerce giants can or will go international?You can listen to this podcast here or at iTunes, Google Podcasts and Himalaya.The McKinsey & Co article I mentioned is here.Related podcasts and articles are:My Interview with JD Central Thailand CEO Vincent Yang (1 of 2) (Asia Tech Strategy – Daily Update)JD Central Plays the Long Game in Thailand and SE Asian Ecommerce (2 of 2)(Asia Tech Strategy – Daily Update)Hold On To Your Hat. Alibaba.com is Building a Massive New E-Commerce Platform (Pt 1 of 2)From the Concept Library, concepts for this article are:N/AFrom the Company Library, companies for this article are:JDJD Central ThailandAlibaba———-I write and speak about digital China and Asia’s latest tech trends.I also run Asia Tech Strategy, a podcast and subscription newsletter on the strategies of China / Asia tech companies.This content (articles, podcasts, website info) is not investment advice. The information and opinions from me and any guests may be incorrect. The numbers and information may be wrong. The views expressed may no longer be relevant or accurate. Investing is risky. Do your own research.Support the show