Fundamental shifts with the business model

Dominik Loncar, CYBF Entrepreneur-in-Residence, dloncar@cybf.ca

We Want Cinema, a start-up from the Netherlands that provides an online platform that allows moviegoers to decide what films are shown in the theater, took top honors at the Creative Business Cup in Copenhagen, Denmark. A featured activity of Global Entrepreneurship Week, the competition provided finalists from 17 countries a chance at a prize package worth roughly US$50,000.

Start­ups are fundamentally changing the traditional business model. Here are the basic principles:

1. The customer literally decides on what the product/service will be sold. Unlike traditional models where the company creates something, with or without customer feedback, We Want Cinema can only create products with customer feedback and customer champions (i.e. only movies that the customer wants and votes for are shown).
2. The customer champions a movie through social media. The customer becomes the owner and seller of the movie and it’s up to them to promote it.
3. The model is easily transferable to other countries. The owner of We Want Cinema has already been approached to offer licensing rights to other countries.
4. The idea is simple yet a great degree of collaboration is essential for its success. The rights of the movie and the cinema location need to be secured; the customer needs to champion a movie; a minimum number of votes need to be attained and an easy online system is needed for customers to participate.

Can you think of other start­-ups that are challenging the traditional business model?