This case is suitable for graduate- and postgraduate-level courses on marketing management or digital marketing courses that cover platform mobilization, customer segment selection, and customer lifetime value. It can also be used for market entry strategy formulation, where the late entrant builds the business by taking upfront financial losses. The case discusses the use of loss-leader strategies in networked businesses, where a first-mover advantage can be substantial and where monetization strategies can be profitable over the long term. It discusses cross-side network effects, winner-takes-all strategies, platform mobilization techniques using loss-leader strategies for customer acquisition, customer lifetime value, and different mechanisms to monetize a business. After working through the case and assignment questions, students will be able to do the following: ·Describe how the operation of platform businesses differs from that of other businesses (e.g., due to the specific network effects of a platform operation). ·Diagnose situations that can create winner-takes-all outcomes, and identify the benefits of using loss-leader strategies to acquire customers. ·Outline the ways that monetization strategies can include sources beyond the main business, such as consumer data that can be synthesized to make meaningful marketing inferences. ·Use the customer lifetime value to evaluate business potential and make decisions on marketing investments.

digital payments; market entry strategy; tipping of markets; customer lifetime value

MBA/Postgraduate

Finance and Insurance
India
Large