Selling mobility instead of cars: new business strategies of automakers and the impact on private vehicle holding
Article type: Abstracts From: Strategic Direction, Volume 28, Issue 9
Firnkorn J.Müller M.Business Strategy and the Environment, May 2012, Vol. 21 Issue: 4, Start page: 264, No. of pages: 17
This article considers the business strategy of an automaker entering the car-sharing market. Given the high growth of the car-sharing industry, this could become a new business segment and simultaneously have effects on branding. The considered case is a car-sharing system called car2go, which was launched by Daimler in 2009. An empirical analysis based on primary data (N=1881)indicates that private vehicles are reduced as a consumer reaction. This constitutes a potential for environmental gains, as shared and consecutively used cars require less of production resources compared to a higher number of private cars being bought, driven and parked individually. Implications for public policy are that the allocation of public space to car-sharing systems could result in a net gain of space in cities. Policy makers should also consider the dependency of car-sharing schemes on municipal support regarding parking spaces and they should anticipate the upcoming electrification. This is the first study on a large-scale car-sharing system operated by an automaker using retrospective primary data. It contributes to the assessment of the current trend of car manufacturers launching car-sharing schemes. Article type:Research paper ISSN: 0964-4733 Reference: 41AK041
Keywords: Automotive industry, Car-sharing, Empirical studies, Environmental management strategy, Product-service system, Urban mobility
