Flexibility in Airline Business Models with Core Competence as an Indicator.

The airline industry is often unstable and unpredictable forcing airlines to restructure and create flexible strategies that can respond to external operating environmental changes. In turbulent and competitive environments, firms with higher flexibility perform better and the value of these flexibilities depends on factors of uncertainty in the competitive environment. A model is sought for and arrived at, that shows how an airline business model will function in an uncertain environment with the least reduction in business performance over time. An analysis of the business model flexibility of 17 Airlines from Asia, Europe and Oceania, that is done with core competence as the indicator reveals a picture of inconsistencies in the core competence strategy of certain airlines and the corresponding reduction in business performance. The performance variations are explained from a service oriented core competence strategy employed by airlines that ultimately enables them in having a flexible business model that not only increases business performance but also helps in reducing the uncertainties in the internal and external operating environments.

Definición de un nuevo modelo de negocio sostenible y aplicable a la nueva realidad de negocios y social para la convergencia de operadores de telecomunicación e Internet

La presente tesis analiza la integración del sector de las telecomunicaciones con los de TI y medios que conforman el actual hiper-sector de las TIC, para abordar una propuesta de valor que se plantea a dos niveles. Se expone de un lado, la iniciativa WIMS 2.0, que aborda los aspectos tecnológicos y estratégicos de la convergencia telco e Internet para, posteriormente, definir un nuevo modelo de negocio, que adaptado al nuevo sector integrado y siguiendo paradigmas inéditos como los que plantea la innovación abierta, permita generar nuevos flujos de ingresos en áreas no habituales para los operadores de telecomunicaciones. A lo largo del capítulo 2, el lector encontrará la contextualización del entorno de las comunicaciones de banda ancha desde tres vertientes: los aspectos tecnológicos, los económicos y el mercado actual, todo ello enfocado en una dimensión nacional, europea y mundial. Se establece de esta manera las bases para el desarrollo de los siguientes capítulos al demostrar cómo la penetración de la banda ancha ha potenciado el desarrollo de un nuevo sistema de valor en el sector integrado de las TIC, alrededor del cual surgen propuestas de modelos de negocio originales que se catalogan en una taxonomía propia. En el tercer capítulo se detalla la propuesta de valor de la iniciativa WIMS 2.0, fundada y liderada por el autor de esta tesis. WIMS 2.0, como iniciativa abierta, se dirige a la comunidad como una propuesta de un nuevo ecosistema y como un modelo de referencia integrado sobre el que desplegar servicios convergentes. Adicionalmente, sobre el planteamiento teórico definido se aporta el enfoque práctico que supone el despliegue del modelo de referencia dentro de la arquitectura de un operador como Telefónica. El capítulo 4 muestra el modelo de negocio Innovación 2.0, basado en la innovación abierta con el objetivo de capturar nuevos flujos de ingresos incrementando el portfolio de servicios innovadores gracias a las ideas frescas y brillantes de start-ups. Innovación 2.0 lejos de quedarse en una mera propuesta teórica, muestra sus bondades en el éxito práctico en el mercado que ha validado las hipótesis planteadas. El último capítulo plantea las líneas futuras de investigación tanto en el ámbito de la iniciativa WIMS 2.0 como en el modelo de Innovación 2.0, algunas de las cuales se están comenzando a abordar. 3 Abstract This thesis examines the integration of telecommunications sector with IT and media that make up the current hyper-ICT sector, to address a value proposition that arises at two levels. On one side, WIMS 2.0 initiative, which addresses the technological and strategic aspects of the telco and Internet convergence to later define a new business model, adapted to the new integrated sector and following original paradigms such as those posed by open innovation, which generates new revenue streams in areas not typical for telecom operators. Throughout Chapter 2, the reader will find the contextualization of the broadband communications environment from three aspects: technological, economic and the current market all focused on a national, European and world scale. Thus it establishes the basis for the development of the following chapters by demonstrating how the penetration of broadband has led to the development of a new value system in the integrated sector of the ICT, around which arise proposals of originals business models, which are categorized in a own taxonomy. The third chapter outlines the value proposition of the WIMS 2.0 initiative, founded and led by the author of this thesis. WIMS 2.0, as open initiative, presents to the community a proposal for a new ecosystem and an integrated reference model on which to deploy converged services. Additionally, above the theoretical approach defined, WIMS 2.0 provides the practical approach is provided which is the deployment of the reference model into the architecture of an operator such as Telefónica. Chapter 4 shows the Innovation 2.0 business model, based on open innovation with the goal of capturing new revenue streams by increasing the portfolio of innovative services thanks to the fresh and brilliant ideas from start-ups. Innovation 2.0, far from being a mere theoretical proposition, shows its benefits in the successful deployment in the market, which has validated the hypotheses. The last chapter sets out the future research at both the WIMS 2.0 initiative and Innovation 2.0 model, some of which are beginning to be addressed.

The Analysis of Airline Business Models in the Development of Possible Future Business Options

Innovations in the current interconnected world of organizations have lead to a focus on business models as a fundamental statement of direction and identity. Although industry transformations generally emanate from technological changes, recent examples suggest they may also be due to the introduction of new business models. In the past, different types of airline business models could be clearly separated from each other. However, this has changed in recent years partly due to the concentration process and partly to reaction caused by competitive pressure. At least it can be concluded that in future the distinction of different business models will remain less clear. To advance the use of business models as a concept, it is essential to be able to compare and perform analyses to identify the business models that may have the highest potential. This can essentially contribute to understanding the synergies and incompatibilities in the case of two airlines that are going in for a merger. This is illustrated by the example of Swiss Air-Lufthansa merger analysis. The idea is to develop quantitative methods and tools for comparing and analyzing Aeronautical/Airline business models. The paper identifies available methods of comparing airline business models and lays the ground work for a quantitative model of comparing airline business models. This can be a useful tool for business model analysis when two airlines are merged

E-learning systems support of collaborative agreements: a theoretical model

This paper introduces a theoretical model for developing integrated degree programmes through e-learning systems as stipulated by a collaboration agreement signed by two universities. We have analysed several collaboration agreements between universities at the national, European, and transatlantic level as well as various e-learning frameworks. A conceptual model, a business model, and the architecture design are presented as part of the theoretical model. The paper presents a way of implementing e-learning systems as a tool to support inter-institutional degree collaborations, from the signing of the collaborative agreement to the implementation of the necessary services. In order to show how the theory can be tested one sample scenario is presented.

Impact of knowledge brokering on performance heterogeneity among business models

Purpose – The strategic management literature lacks a comprehensive explanation as to why seemingly similar business models in the same industry perform differently. This paper strives to explain this phenomenon. Design/methodology/approach – The model is conceptualized and accompanied by a case study on the airline industry to explain knowledge brokerage that creates value from the effective utilization of knowledge resources acquired from intra- and inter-firm environments. Findings – The model explains a cyclical view of business model flexibility in which the knowledge-based resource accumulation of the business model is spread across the intra- and inter-firm environments. Knowledge brokerage strategies from the inter- and intra-firm environments result in improved performance of the business model. The flexibility that the business model acquires is determined by how efficiently resource accumulation is aligned with its external environment. Originality/value – The paper effectively integrates the concepts of knowledge brokerage and business models from a resource accumulation-based view and simultaneously arrives at the performance heterogeneity of seemingly similar business models within the same industry. It has performance implications for firms that start out without any distinct resources of their own, or that use an imitated business model, to attain better performance through business model evolution aligned with successful knowledge brokerage strategies. It adds to the resource accumulation literature by explaining how resources can be effectively acquired to create value.

Desarrollo de una herramienta de gestión de proyectos y recursos en la nube integrada en Salesforce CRM

La actividad de muchas empresas, y en concreto las de software, está basada en proyectos. Típicamente, estas empresas tendrán un modelo de negocio orientado a productos para un mercado abierto, o un modelo de negocio orientado a consultoría para otras empresas. La empresa LeadClic Solutions se incluye en el segundo grupo. Se trata de una consultoría especializada en una tecnología emergente, Salesforce, cuya labor consiste en el desarrollo de aplicaciones cloud en esta plataforma que satisfagan las necesidades de sus clientes, desde empresas relativamente pequeñas hasta grandes empresas internacionales. Ante esta variedad de realidades, LeadClic necesita una herramienta versátil que permita una gestión eficaz de proyectos de distinta índole, integrando al mismo tiempo gestión de clientes, planificación, control de tiempo y costes, seguimiento, y gestión de recursos humanos. En la actualidad, la empresa basa esta gestión en un gran elenco de programas especializados, desatacando hojas de cálculo, herramientas de gestión de proyectos en diversos programas locales o en la nube, correo electrónico, servicios de comunicación y desarrollos personalizados en Salesforce. El objetivo de este Trabajo Fin de Grado es el diseño, implementación y validación de una herramienta en la nube, sobre la plataforma Salesforce, que integre las soluciones a todas las necesidades de la empresa. ---ABSTRACT---Many companies’ activity, in particular software companies’, is based on projects. Typically, these companies have a product for open market - oriented business model, or a B2B consultancy business model. The company LeadClic Solutions is included in the second group. It is a small consultancy, specialized in an emergent technology, Salesforce, that develops cloud applications in that platform to satisfy its clients’ needs, from small companies to big international ones. Faced with this variety of situations, LeadClic needs a versatile tool able to cope with an effective management of projects of different types, integrating at once client management, planning, time and costs control, monitoring, and human resources management. At the moment, the company bases this management on a wide range of specialized programs, such as spreadsheets, local and cloud based project management tools, emailing, communication services and Salesforce based custom developments. This Final Degree Project seeks to design, implement and validate a cloud based tool, on the Salesforce platform, to integrate the solution to all of the company’s needs into one single application.

Estudio del fenómeno Social Media en la pequeña empresa del sector TIC español

En un mundo en el que cada vez son más las personas que utilizan Internet para llevar a cabo sus comunicaciones y relaciones, tanto a nivel personal como profesional, las Redes Sociales se han convertido en una herramienta, para muchos imprescindible, de interacción social. A lo largo de este proyecto se realizará un análisis exhaustivo de las características del ya conocido como Fenómeno Social Media, para posteriormente centrar toda la atención en las ventajas y desventajas de dicha actividad en el ámbito empresarial. Dado que hasta el momento no se ha encontrado ningún otro estudio que trate el Fenómeno Social Media en la Pequeña Empresa del sector TIC español, el objetivo principal del proyecto se centra en conocer la influencia que las Redes Sociales están generando en la estrategia empresarial de dicho sector de empresas, cuyas características y particularidades hacen de ellas un modelo de negocio único y diferente y cuyo número se ha visto incrementado en los últimos años, debido quizás, a la situación de crisis que atraviesa el país. Para ello, se analizarán las ventajas e inconvenientes que se derivan de su uso, como afecta a la creación de valor, y, finalmente, cual es el nivel de implicación y/o inversión que la Pequeña Empresa ha adoptado al respecto. Dentro de este marco, se pretende realizar un énfasis especial en el concepto de cocreación de valor y sus variantes (Crowdsourcing, Open Innovation e Innovación Orientada por las Personas), que permita determinar el grado de importancia del usuario como generador de valor. Posteriormente, en la parte práctica, se llevará a cabo un amplio estudio de mercado, a partir de una encuesta online realizada a un conjunto de empresas, cuidadosamente seleccionadas de entre más de 100.000 compañías, según su sector de actividad, número de empleados y volumen de negocios anual, y cuyos resultados serán analizados con la intención de obtener una visión clara del comportamiento global de las empresas seleccionadas. Por último, tomaremos de referencia las dos últimas publicaciones anuales del “Observatorio sobre el uso de las Redes Sociales en las Pymes españolas” (2011 y 2013), estudios dedicados íntegramente a Redes Sociales y Pymes, y cuya información, junto con los resultados obtenidos de nuestro estudio, nos permitirán determinar la tendencia actual y futura, y en consecuencia, obtener las conclusiones oportunas que nos permitan dar respuesta a las cuestiones planteadas durante la realización del proyecto, y determinar si nos encontramos o no ante una verdadera fuente de éxito empresarial. ABSTRACT. In a world where more and more people are using the Internet to perform their communications and relationships, both personally and professionally, Social Networks have become a social interaction tool, indispensable for many people. Throughout this project we will perform a thorough analysis of the characteristics of the Social Media Phenomenon, focusing on the advantages and disadvantages of such activity in a business scope. Given that we have not found no study on the Social Media Phenomenon in Small Business of the Spanish ICT sector, the main objective of this project is to establish the influence that Social Networks are generating in the business strategy of this business sector, the characteristics and peculiarities that make them a unique and different business model and whose number has increased in recent years, perhaps due to the crisis the country is facing. To do this, we will discuss the advantages and disadvantages derived from its use, how it affects value creation, and finally, what is the level of involvement and / or investment that the Small Business has taken in this regard. In this context, we intend to make a special emphasis on the concept of value co-creation and its variants (Crowdsourcing, Open Innovation and People Oriented Innovation), to determine the degree of importance of the user to value generator. Subsequently, on the practical section, out a comprehensive market study will be carried, based on an online test to a group of enterprises, carefully selected from more than 100,000 companies, according to their sector of activity, number of employees and annual turnover, and the results will be analyzed with the intention to get a clear view of the selected company's overall performance. Finally, we will take as reference the last two annual publications of the "Observatory on the use of Social Networks in Spanish SMEs" (2011 and 2013), entirely dedicated to Social Media and SMEs studies, and whose information, together with the results obtained in our study will allow us to determine the current and future trends, and consequently, obtain the appropriate conclusions to respond to the raised questions throughout the project, and determine whether or not they are a real source of business success.

Creating and modelling personal socio-economic networks in on-line banking

The banking industry is observing how new competitors threaten its millennial business model by targeting unbanked people, offering new financial services to their customer base, and even enabling new channels for existing services and customers. The knowledge on users, their behaviour, and expectations become a key asset in this new context. Well aware of this situation, the Center for Open Middleware, a joint technology center created by Santander Bank and Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, has launched a set of initiatives to allow the experimental analysis and management of socio-economic information. PosdataP2P service is one of them, which seeks to model the economic ties between the holders of university smart cards, leveraging on the social networks the holders are subscribed to. In this paper we describe the design principles guiding the development of the system, its architecture and some implementation details.

Análisis, diseño e implementación de un SDK híbrido basado en tecnologías web para la integración de clientes contra una plataforma de servicios RESTFul/JSON

En el departamento de Ocio Digital de bq se desarrollan multitud de proyectos con diferentes modelos de negocio y diferentes stack tecnológicos. Para llevar a cabo todos estos proyectos, es necesario tener un ecosistema de desarrollo lo más unificado y centralizado posible. Por eso, en el departamento existe una plataforma genérica de servicios REST sobre la que se apoyan todos los aplicativos desarrollados. Para agilizar y facilitar la integración de los aplicativos con la plataforma de servicios,se desarrolla este SDK (Software Development Kit) basado en JavaScript llamado corbel-js. Este SDK ha de funcionar tanto en aplicaciones web, como en un middleware basado en node.js desarrollado también en la organización, por lo que el SDK se ha desarrollado de forma híbrida, siendo capaz de ejecutarse tanto en en el lado del cliente, como en el lado del servidor. Además, como parte de la filosofía del departamento, el desarrollo del SDK está basado en tecnologías Open Source, usando metodologías ágiles de desarrollo y un sistema de integración continua y revisión de código, garantizando la calidad del mismo. ABSTRACT A lot of different kinds of software projects are developed in the digital department of bq. To easily develop all of these projects, each one with its own business model and technology stack, it is necessary to have an unique software ecosystem. Because of that, in the software department a generic service REST platform has been developed. To support an easy integration of the applications with the service platform of the organization, this SDK(Software Development Kit) has been developed in JavaScript. As the SDK has to run under a web application and under a software middleware based in node.js, also developed in the organization, the SDK is hybrid, being capable of run inside a web client application or inside a node.js application server. As a part of the software philosophy of the department, the development of the SDK is made with a whole open source software stack, using agile software methodologies.

Empresa y movilidad en el marco del fenómeno Social Media

Pocos mercados en la historia han evolucionado tanto en los últimos años como los relacionados con la movilidad. La necesidad en la sociedad actual de descontextualizar el lugar de trabajo y abrirse hacia un mercado más amplio, ha obligado a las empresas a replantearse cómo adaptar sus modelos de negocios a estas demandas. Algunas empresas aún no se muestran abiertas a estos cambios mientras que en otras se ha materializado, en muchos casos, en la integración de aplicaciones móviles como vía fácil, rápida y cómoda de conexión con el cliente y de interconexión y participación interna en la empresa. Se generan así aplicaciones móviles que permiten crear y mantener una relación utilizándolas como la mejor herramienta de fidelización, posicionando a la marca y ofreciendo una imagen de innovación. Las aplicaciones móviles requieren que el desarrollo de los sistemas sean rápidos, que puedan manejar una gran variedad de acciones sin un alto conocimiento a priori de ellas, que necesiten un número mínimo de parámetros, y que las actualizaciones se realicen de manera tan corta como fuera posible. Este nuevo modelo de negocio ofrece servicios especiales a los clientes, permite obtener sus opiniones, facilita la compra online, auto-gestiona los servicios ofrecidos, aumenta la agilidad en el negocio, motiva su recomendación a otros potenciales clientes y desde la libertad, permite elegir el mejor momento y lugar para llevar a cabo una actividad de manera rápida y efectiva. Se constata el incremento en los ingresos derivados de la incorporación de esta herramienta apostando así por este nuevo modelo de negocio. ABSTRACT. A few market forces have developed in history as much as the present ones regarding mobility. Nowadays the need to set the workplace out of a context and open a wider market in society has made the companies raise again how to adapt their business models to these demands. Some companies haven’t shown this need to change yet. On the contrary, in some others, the change is already a fact. In many cases, it has been materialized the integration of mobile applications not only as an easy, quick and comfortable way to be connected with the client, but also as the interconnection and inner participation in a company. Thus, it is generated a series of mobile applications which allow us to create and keep a relationship by using them as the best tool of fidelity, positioning the trademark and offering an innovation image. Mobile applications require a rapid development of the systems and the management of a great variety of actions without their previous knowledge. Moreover, a minimum range of parameters is needed and updating must be done as soon as possible. This new business role offers the clients some especial services. It permits us to obtain their opinions, expedite online shopping and the self- management of the offered services. It also improves business agility, motivates the reccomendation to other possible clients and it freely let us choose both the best moment and place to carry out an activity rapidly and precisely. It is proved the increasing income derived from the incorporation of this appliance relying on the new business model.

Análisis prospectivo del despliegue de redes de comunicaciones móviles LTE en nuevas bandas de frecuencia mediante el desarrollo de modelos tecnoeconómicos

El estándar LTE se ha posicionado como una de las claves para que los operadores de telecomunicación puedan abordar de manera eficiente en costes el crecimiento de la demanda de tráfico móvil que se prevé para los próximos años, al ser una tecnología más escalable en el núcleo de la red y más flexible en la interfaz radio que sus predecesoras. En este sentido, es necesario también que los reguladores garanticen un acceso al espectro radioeléctrico adecuado, equitativo y no discriminatorio, que permita un entorno estable para el despliegue de redes de comunicaciones móviles avanzadas. Además de la flexibilización del marco regulador del espectro radioeléctrico en Europa, que ha permitido el despliegue de nuevas tecnologías en las bandas de frecuencia históricas de GSM, se ha puesto a disposición espectro adicional para sistemas IMT en nuevas bandas de frecuencia, lo que ha planteando a su vez nuevos retos para la tecnología y la regulación. La fragmentación del espectro disponible para comunicaciones móviles ha impulsado el desarrollo de técnicas de agregación de portadoras en las nuevas versiones del estándar LTE, que permiten explotar mejor los recursos radio en su conjunto. No obstante, el espectro inferior a 1 GHz sigue siendo escaso, ya que el tráfico móvil aumenta y la banda de 900 MHz aún se utiliza para servicios GSM, lo que no ha conseguido sino agravar la disputa entre los servicios de radiodifusión terrestre y de comunicaciones móviles por la parte superior de la banda UHF. En concreto, la banda de 700 MHz se perfila como una de las próximas para aumentar el espectro disponible para los servicios en movilidad, si bien su liberación por parte de las actuales redes de Televisión Digital Terrestre presenta no pocas dificultades en los Estados miembros en los que ésta es la principal plataforma audiovisual de acceso gratuito, abriendo un debate sobre el modelo audiovisual a largo plazo en Europa. Por otro lado, las políticas públicas de promoción del acceso a la banda ancha rápida y ultrarrápida de la presente década han establecido objetivos ambiciosos para el año 2020, tanto en el ámbito europeo como en los diferentes Estados miembros. La universalización del acceso a redes de banda ancha de al menos 30 Mbps constituye uno de los principales retos. Las expectativas generadas por la tecnología LTE y la puesta a disposición de nuevas bandas de frecuencia hace posible que los servicios de acceso fijo inalámbrico adquieran especial relevancia ante los objetivos de política pública establecidos que, como ha sido reconocido en diversas ocasiones, no podrán lograrse sino con un compendio de diferente tecnologías. Para esta Tesis Doctoral se han desarrollado una serie modelos tecnoeconómicos con el objetivo de realizar un análisis prospectivo que evalúa tres casos de especial relevancia en el despliegue de redes LTE: en primer lugar, la valoración económica de la banda de 700 MHz; en segundo lugar, la evaluación de modelos de negocio y reducción de costes considerando tecnologías femtocelulares; y finalmente, la viabilidad de las redes LTE de acceso fijo inalámbrico para el cierre de la brecha digital en el acceso a la banda ancha de 30 Mbps. En relación con la aplicación del análisis tecnoeconómico para la valoración del espectro de 700 MHz, los resultados obtenidos ponen de manifiesto dos cuestiones fundamentales. En primer lugar, la necesidad de asignar a los operadores más espectro para satisfacer las previsiones de demanda de tráfico móvil a medio plazo. En segundo, existe una diferencia notable en los costes de despliegue de una red LTE cuando se dispone de espectro en frecuencias inferiores a 1 GHz y cuando no, pero esta diferencia de costes disminuye a medida que se añade nuevo espectro sub-1GHz. De esta manera, la atribución de la banda de 700 MHz a servicios de comunicaciones móviles supone una reducción relevante en los costes de despliegue si el operador no dispone de espectro en la banda de 800 MHz, pero no así si ya dispone de espectro en bandas bajas para el despliegue. En este sentido, puede concluirse que el precio que los operadores estarán dispuestos a pagar por el espectro de la banda de 700 MHz dependerá de si ya tienen disponible espectro en la banda de 800 MHz. Sin embargo, dado que la competencia por ese espectro será menor, los ingresos esperables en las licitaciones de esta nueva banda serán en general menores, a pesar de que para algunos operadores este espectro sería tan valioso como el de 800 MHz. En segundo lugar, en relación con el despliegue de femtoceldas pueden extraerse algunas conclusiones en términos de ahorro de costes de despliegue y también de cara a la viabilidad de los modelos de negocio que posibilitan. El ahorro que supone la introducción de femtoceldas en el despliegue de una red LTE frente al caso de un despliegue exclusivamente macrocelular se ha demostrado que es mayor cuanto menor es el ancho de banda disponible para la red macrocelular. En esta línea, para un operador convergente el despliegue de femtoceldas tiene sentido económico si el ancho de banda disponible es escaso (en torno a 2x10 MHz), que, en el caso de España, puede reflejar el caso de los operadores del segmento fijo que son nuevos entrantes en el móvil. Por otro lado, los modelos de acceso abierto son interesantes para operadores exclusivamente móviles, porque consiguen flexibilizar los costes sustituyendo estaciones base macrocelulares por el despliegue de femtoceldas, pero necesitan desplegarse en zonas con una densidad de población relativamente elevada para que éstas descarguen tráfico de varios usuarios de la red macrocelular simultáneamente. No obstante, las femtoceldas son beneficiosas en todo caso si es el usuario quien asume los costes de la femtocelda y el backhaul, lo que sólo parece probable si se integran en el modelo de negocio de comercialización de nuevos servicios. Por tanto, el despliegue de femtoceldas en buena parte de la casuística estudiada sólo tiene sentido si consiguen aumentar los ingresos por usuario comercializando servicios de valor añadido que necesiten calidad de servicio garantizada y exploten a la vez de esa forma su principal ventaja competitiva respecto a la tecnología WiFi. Finalmente, en relación con el papel de la tecnología LTE para la provisión de servicios de acceso fijo inalámbrico para la banda ancha de 30 Mbps, se ha desarrollado un modelo TD-LTE y mediante la metodología de análisis tecnoeconómico se ha realizado un estudio prospectivo para el caso de España. Los resultados obtenidos preciden una huella de cobertura de FTTH del 74% para 2020, y demuestran que una red TD-LTE en la banda de 3,5 GHz resulta viable para aumentar la cobertura de servicios de 30 Mbps en 14 puntos porcentuales. Junto con la consideración de la cobertura de otras redes, la cobertura de 30 Mbps de acuerdo a la viabilidad de los despliegues alcanzaría el 95% en España en el año 2020. Como resumen, los resultados obtenidos muestran en todos los casos la capacidad de la tecnología LTE para afrontar nuevos desafíos en relación con el aumento del tráfico móvil, especialmente crítico en las zonas más urbanas, y el cierre de la brecha digital en el acceso a la banda ancha rápida en las zonas más rurales. ABSTRACT The LTE standard has been pointed out as one of the keys for telecom operators to address the demand growth in mobile traffic foreseen for the next years in a cost-efficient way, since its core network is more scalable and its radio interface more flexible than those of its predecessor technologies. On the other hand, regulators need to guarantee an adequate, equitable and non-discriminatory access to radio spectrum, which enable a favorable environment for the deployment of advanced mobile communication networks. Despite the reform of the spectrum regulatory framework in Europe, which allowed for the deployment of new technologies in the historic GSM bands, additional spectrum has been allocated to IMT systems in new frequency bands, what in turn has set out new challenges for technology and regulation. The current fragmentation of available spectrum in very different frequency bands has boosted the development of carrier aggregation techniques in most recent releases of the LTE standard, which permit a better exploitation of radio resources as a whole. Nonetheless, spectrum below 1 GHz is still scarce for mobile networks, since mobile traffic increases at a more rapid pace than spectral efficiency and spectrum resources. The 900 MHz frequency band is still being used for GSM services, what has worsen the dispute between mobile communication services and terrestrial broadcasting services for the upper part of the UHF band. Concretely, the 700 MHz frequency band has been pointed out as one of the next bands to be allocated to mobile in order to increase available spectrum. However, its release by current Digital Terrestrial Television networks is challenging in Member States where it constitutes the main free access audiovisual platform, opening up a new debate around the audiovisual model in the long term in Europe. On the other hand, public policies of the present decade to promote fast and ultrafast broadband access has established very ambitious objectives for the year 2020, both at European and national levels. Universalization of 30 Mbps broadband access networks constitutes one of the main challenges. Expectations raised by LTE technology and the allocation of new frequency bands has lead fixed wireless access (FWA) services to acquire special relevance in light of public policy objectives, which will not be met but with a compendium of different technologies, as different involved stakeholders have acknowledged. This PhD Dissertation develops techno-economic models to carry out a prospective analysis for three cases of special relevance in LTE networks’ deployment: the spectrum pricing of the 700 MHz frequency band, an assessment of new business models and cost reduction considering femtocell technologies, and the feasibility of LTE fixed wireless access networks to close the 30 Mbps broadband access gap in rural areas. In the first place and regarding the application of techno-economic analysis for 700 MHz spectrum pricing, obtained results reveal two core issues. First of all, the need to allocate more spectrum for operators in order to fulfill mobile traffic demand in the mid-term. Secondly, there is a substantial difference in deployment costs for a LTE network when there is sub-1GHz spectrum available and when there is not, but this difference decreases as additional sub-1GHz spectrum is added. Thus, the allocation of 700 MHz band to mobile communication services would cause a relevant reduction in deployment costs if the operator does not count on spectrum in the 800 MHz, but not if it already has been assigned spectrum in low frequencies for the deployment. In this regard, the price operators will be willing to pay for 700 MHz spectrum will depend on them having already spectrum in the 800 MHz frequency band or not. However, since competition for the new spectrum will not be so strong, expected incomes from 700 MHz spectrum awards will be generally lower than those from the digital dividend, despite this spectrum being as valuable as 800 MHz spectrum for some operators. In the second place, regarding femtocell deployment, some conclusions can be drawn in terms of deployment cost savings and also with reference to the business model they enable. Savings provided by a joint macro-femto LTE network as compared to an exclusively macrocellular deployment increase as the available bandwidth for the macrocells decreases. Therefore, for a convergent operator the deployment of femtocells can only have economic sense if the available bandwidth is scarce (around 2x10 MHz), which might be the case of fix market operators which are new entrant in mobile market. Besides, open access models are interesting for exclusively mobile operators, since they make costs more flexible by substituting macrocell base stations by femtocells, but they need to be deployed relatively densely populated areas so that they can offload traffic from several macrocell users simultaneously. Nonetheless, femtocells are beneficial in all cases if the user assumes both femtocell and backhaul costs, which only seems probable if they are integrated in a business model commercializing new services. Therefore, in many of the cases analyzed femtocell deployment only makes sense if they increase revenues per user through new added value services which need from guaranteed quality of service, thus exploiting its main competitive advantage compared to WiFi. Finally, regarding the role of LTE technology in the provision of fixed wireless access services for 30 Mbps broadband, a TD-LTE model has been developed and a prospective study has been carried out through techno-economic methodology for the Spanish case. Obtained results foresee a FTTH coverage footprint of 74% households for 2020, and prove that a TD-LTE network in the 3.5 GHz band results feasible to increase 30 Mbps service coverage in additional 14 percentage points. To sum up, obtained results show LTE technology capability to address new challenges regarding both mobile traffic growth, particularly critical in urban zones, and the current digital divide in fast broadband access in most rural zones.

La crisis del modelo actual. Los MOOC y la búsqueda de un modelo de negocio

La actual crisis económica ha tenido impacto en prácticamente todos los sectores socioeconómicos, entre los que se incluye la educación como uno de los grandes perjudicados. En este momento de incertidumbre sobre la viabilidad de la educación tradicional y la supuesta burbuja en la enseñanza (agravada por las tasas de paro juvenil), surgen los MOOC como respuesta a la necesidad de acercamiento entre la formación y la sociedad del conocimiento. Pero que los cursos masivos y abiertos marquen el futuro de la educación dependerá en gran medida de su viabilidad económica. Aunque aun no se haya encontrado un modelo de negocio definitivo, las plataformas de MOOC experimentan con diferentes alternativas que, unidas a la escalabilidad de los proyectos, es previsible que generen grandes resultados.

The limits of open innovation:openness and (quasi-)markets in the organization of innovation

Recent studies have stressed the importance of ‘open innovation’ as a means of enhancing innovation performance. The essence of the open innovation model is to take advantage of external as well as internal knowledge sources in developing and commercialising innovation, so avoiding an excessively narrow internal focus in a key area of corporate activity. Although the external aspect of open innovation is often stressed, another key aspect involves maximising the flow of ideas and knowledge from different sources within the firm, for example through knowledge sharing via the use of cross-functional teams. A fully open innovation approach would therefore combine both aspects i.e. cross-functional teams with boundary-spanning knowledge linkages. This suggests that there should be complementarities between the use cross-functional teams with boundary-spanning knowledge linkages i.e. the returns to implementing open innovation in one innovation activity is should be greater if open innovation is already in place in another innovation activity. However, our findings – based on a large sample of UK and German manufacturing plants – do not support this view. Our results suggest that in practice the benefits envisaged in the open innovation model are not generally achievable by the majority of plants, and that instead the adoption of open innovation across the whole innovation process is likely to reduce innovation outputs. Our results provide some guidance on the type of activities where the adoption of a market-based governance structure such as open innovation may be most valuable. This is likely to be in innovation activities where search is deterministic, activities are separable, and where the required level of knowledge sharing is correspondingly moderate – in other words those activities which are more routinized. For this type of activity market-based governance mechanisms (i.e. open innovation) may well be more efficient than hierarchical governance structures. For other innovation activities where outcomes are more uncertain and unpredictable and the risks of knowledge exchange hazards are greater, quasi-market based governance structures such as open innovation are likely to be subject to rapidly diminishing returns in terms of innovation outputs.

Constructing institutional change: emergence, contestation and convergence of business models in the field of Java application servers

How are innovative new business models established if organizations constantly compare themselves against existing criteria and expectations? The objective is to address this question from the perspective of innovators and their ability to redefine established expectations and evaluation criteria. The research questions ask whether there are discernible patterns of discursive action through which innovators theorize institutional change and what role such theorizations play for mobilizing support and realizing change projects. These questions are investigated through a case study on a critical area of enterprise computing software, Java application servers. In the present case, business practices and models were already well established among incumbents with critical market areas allocated to few dominant firms. Fringe players started experimenting with a new business approach of selling services around freely available opensource application servers. While most new players struggled, one new entrant succeeded in leading incumbents to adopt and compete on the new model. The case demonstrates that innovative and substantially new models and practices are established in organizational fields when innovators are able to refine expectations and evaluation criteria within an organisational field. The study addresses the theoretical paradox of embedded agency. Actors who are embedded in prevailing institutional logics and structures find it hard to perceive potentially disruptive opportunities that fall outside existing ways of doing things. Changing prevailing institutional logics and structures requires strategic and institutional work aimed at overcoming barriers to innovation. The study addresses this problem through the lens of (new) institutional theory. This discourse methodology traces the process through which innovators were able to establish a new social and business model in the field.

Digital business reporting standards:mapping the battle in France

Government agencies use information technology extensively to collect business data for regulatory purposes. Data communication standards form part of the infrastructure with which businesses must conform to survive. We examine the development of, and emerging competition between, two open business reporting data standards adopted by government bodies in France; EDIFACT (incumbent) and XBRL (challenger). The research explores whether an incumbent may be displaced in a setting in which the contention is unresolved. We apply Latour’s (1992) translation map to trace the enrolments and detours in the battle. We find that regulators play an important role as allies in the development of the standards. The antecedent networks in which the standards are located embed strong beliefs that become barriers to collaboration and fuel the battle. One of the key differentiating attitudes is whether speed is more important than legitimacy. The failure of collaboration encourages competition. The newness of XBRL’s technology just as regulators need to respond to an economic crisis and its adoption by French regulators not using EDIFACT create an opportunity for the challenger to make significant network gains over the longer term. ANT also highlights the importance of the preservation of key components of EDIFACT in ebXML.