Providing Market Intelligence for 40 Years

In The News

Competition and Regulation Threaten Sharing Economy Markets

Eighty-three percent of U.S. broadband households, or more than 250 million consumers, own and use a smartphone. A recent beneficiary to this mass adoption has been the sharing economy phenomenon, which includes sharing apps such as Uber, Lyft and Airbnb. These business models are augmented by real-time data including location, instant gratification, on-demand pricing, and easy payment options.

Their ease and convenience -- built on the intelligence of social, location, and mobility data through a smartphone-plus-app ecosystem -- have created perfect conditions for sharing economy apps to thrive.

In most cases, sharing economy apps connect buyers and sellers, providers and recipients, or owners and users through a well-designed, low-friction app experience that benefits both sides. When such experiences are delivered at scale, they can be massively disruptive or complementary to existing industries and business models.

Currently, 40 percent of monthly sharing economy app users in the U.S. strongly agree that they rarely use traditional services due to their sharing economy app use.

From the article "Competition and Regulation Threaten Sharing Economy Markets" by Parks Associates.

Previously In The News

Save Time and Money with DIY Home Security

There's a burgeoning market for DIY home security products, thanks to advances in smart tech and more robust, easy-to-install offerings from home security manufacturers. According to market research f...

Walmart partners with MGM to boost video-on-demand service Vudu

There are currently more than 200 video services that bypass cable providers and stream content directly to a TV, laptop, phone or game console. That is up from 68 services five years ago, according t...

Apple’s TV service faces its biggest test yet as free trials run out

Apple reducing its reliance on free trials for Apple TV+ is a “critical point” for the service, said Parks Associates research director Steve Nason, who follows the streaming industry. “For newer o...

Apple explored a TV-streaming dongle as a cheap alternative to Apple TV

Apple's commitment to the high end has crimped its market share of streaming players, preventing it from dominating an exploding market. The number of households with a streaming player has quadrupled...