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Lesson 9 Alliance model (an adaptation of the storefront model)
Objective List the features of the alliance model.

Alliance Model (An adaptation of the Storefront Model)

In today's fast-paced economy, knowledge truly is power. As we all know, business and scientific advancements are not created in a vacuum, just look at the development of the Internet. This communication network owes its evolution to the collaboration of a large group of brilliant individuals. Collaboration within a creative community is also a cornerstone of the alliance business model.
The alliance business model is characterized by the sharing of information, rather than the payment for service or product. Creative communities share information, create knowledge, and occasionally design a product. A well-known example of the alliance business model is the Linux operating system. As a young student, Linus Torvalds created the Linux as a hobby. The source code[1] of Linux was distributed freely, and over time, members of the Linux alliance have added to the functionality of this operating system.

Linux in Business
As shown by the Linux example, customers and end users almost always play a prominent role in creating products or services under the Alliance model. When products are created as the result of an alliance, the end customer is responsible for customizing and integrating various components of the alliance solution. Payments between parties are unusual with this business model. With the Internet's capabilities to connect individuals, this model is likely to increase in popularity.
Unlike other business models, the alliance model does not transact goods or services for payment. Its basis lies within the value-added service of sharing information. One might argue that the value-added service is in building relationships and the collaborative product that comes out of information sharing.
Question: Can you think of any other business models that might be successful on the Internet?
After the dotcom bust of 2000, circa 4 years later social media began taking first with primtive networks such as myspace followed later by Facebook.com
[1]Source code: The original set of instructions for a software program. These instructions are written in a source language and later inputted into a compiler, or assembler. Compilers and assemblers translate the source code into object code that the various target machines can understand.