What do four of the world’s largest businesses, Amazon, Alphabet (Google), Microsoft, and Apple have in common? They are all platform businesses in some form. As a business model, platforms are not at all new. A platform, by definition, is an organisation that assists in the facilitation of a transaction between two or more parties. Physical platform businesses such as shopping malls and railways have long existed since the 19th century. For example, shopping malls serve as a platform that provides shops with a place to sell their goods and customers with a place to purchase. A significant difference between today’s platforms and traditional platforms is the presence of digital software, which dramatically expands platform reach with greater speed and convenience. For example, Apple’s App Store connects developers to millions of iOS users, and YouTube connects video creators to video viewers worldwide. The Internet has enabled a more extensive network...