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Question 1

What does the term electronic business (e-business) refer to?

Answer 1

The term electronic business refers to the initiation, partial or complete support, handling, and maintenance of service exchange processes between economic partners by means of information technology (electronic networks).

Question 2

What are the three central building blocks of e-business?

Answer 2

The three central building blocks of e-business are: information, communication, and transaction.

Question 3

What are the three central platforms of e-business with different objectives?

Answer 3

The three central platforms of e-business with different objectives are: platforms for procurement (e-procurement), sales (e-shop), and trade (e-marketplace).

Question 4

What additional platforms are included in a broader consideration of e-business?

Answer 4

The additional platforms included in a broader consideration of e-business are: platforms for contact networks (e-community) and cooperation (e-company).

Question 5

What is the basis of the success of e-business compared to previous approaches?

Answer 5

The success of e-business is based on the fact that it achieves a new added value compared to previous approaches.

Question 6

What types of values can be created in e-business?

Answer 6

The types of values that can be created in e-business are: structuring value, selection value, matching value, transaction value, relation value, and communication value.

Question 7

What is the definition of digital business models according to Bijedic & Hoffmann (2018)?

Answer 7

The definition of digital business models is: the creation of value or benefits in the company is purely digital, essentially on the basis of digital components or through an activity that is essentially based on digital technologies.

Question 8

How should digital business models be distinguished from digital technologies, goods, and strategies?

Answer 8

Digital business models must be distinguished from: digital technologies, digital goods, and digital strategies

Question 9

Which six technologies are considered enablers for digital business models?

Answer 9

The six technologies that are considered enablers for digital business models are: cyber-physical systems (CPS)/Internet of Things (IoT)/Smart Factory/Industry 4.0, big data, cloud computing, artificial intelligence (AI), extended intelligence (EI)/machine learning, digital platforms, block chain technologies

Question 10

What are the four aspects that represent particular challenges in the transition to digital business models, especially for medium-sized companies?

Answer 10

The four aspects that represent particular challenges in the transition to digital business models, especially for medium-sized companies are: the necessity for managers to build up new skills, the need for external service providers or in-house ICT specialists with IT skills, considerable legal uncertainty, the increasing importance of digital infrastructure

Question 11

What new skills are essential for managers in the transition to digital business models?

Answer 11

It is essential for managers to build up new skills in: understanding ICT technologies in terms of their trends and potential

Question 12

What is one way for SMEs to address the shortage of required ICT specialists?

Answer 12

One way to address the shortage of required ICT specialists is through: the qualification of their own personnel or cooperation partners

Question 13

What are the areas of legal uncertainty associated with digital business models?

Answer 13

The areas of legal uncertainty associated with digital business models concern: both data security and questions of ownership of raw data, a number of liability issues, unresolved transfers of rights and ownership in block chain technologies

Question 14

Why is digital infrastructure becoming increasingly important, and how do factors like transmission rates and security influence location decisions?

Answer 14

Digital infrastructure is becoming increasingly important because: location decisions are influenced by transmission rates, reliability, and security of data networks

Question 15

What are the advantages of solutions like cloud-as-a-service for businesses?

Answer 15

The advantages of solutions like “cloud-as-a-service” for businesses are: they are inexpensive and allow decentralized, flexible forms of work and production that bring a certain independence from local locations

Question 16

Which four successful business model types for the digital age were identified in a multi-year research project analyzing business model transformations?

Answer 16

The four successful business model types for the digital age are: product business model, platform business model, project business model, solution business model

Question 17

What are the key characteristics of the product business model?

Answer 17

The key characteristics of the product business model are: the offer consists of standardized goods in large quantities with little individualization, supplemented by simple services such as maintenance (one-off sales)

Question 18

What is the defining feature of the platform business model?

Answer 18

The defining feature of the platform business model is: different players jointly provide a service (“winner takes most/takes it all”)

Question 19

How is the project business model characterized?

Answer 19

The project business model is characterized by: highly individualized products where a project is carried out once

Question 20

What distinguishes the solution business model?

Answer 20

The solution business model is distinguished by: offering and implementing highly individualized services at the customer’s site (“plan-build-run”)