Recently, special issues of prestigious journals have been dedicated to the topic of business models
(Badan-Fuller & Morgan, 2010). In such a recent issue, Teece (2010) overviews state-of-the-art
research on business models in strategic management. His article analyzes the significance of
business models and explores their connections with business strategy, innovation management, and
economic theory. Given the importance of business design, he regrets the paucity of literature on the
topic. He observes that business models are mentioned frequently in the strategy literature but are
rarely analyzed and poorly understood, with too little attention given to their design. He explicitly
recognizes that increased understanding of the essence of business models should help the
understanding of a variety of subjects including market behavior, competition, innovation, strategy,
and competitive advantage.