Start-up Mentoring

Distimo

From 2009 to 2010 I accompanied the founding phase of Distimo as a mentor and member of its scientific advisory board. Distimo, a Dutch start-up founded in 2009 by four former students of the University of Twente, provided analytics and statistics on mobile app stores. It was later acquired by App Annie. The related research compared the inter-organisational business models of mobile app stores (Journal of Theoretical and Applied Electronic Commerce Research, 2011), showing that there is more than “open vs. closed”.

Value network model of a mobile app store ecosystem with device manufacturer, operating system manufacturer, marketplace, software developer, content provider, payment broker, advertisement broker, network operator and end user — Value network of a mobile app store ecosystem.

Smart Pricer

From 2015 to 2016 I mentored the Berlin start-up Smart Pricer and served on its scientific advisory board. Smart Pricer develops dynamic pricing algorithms for cinemas and sporting events, based on demand indicators and demand forecasts. The start-up was supported by the HWR Berlin start-up centre with an EXIST grant; its clients included UCI, Odeon and Hertha BSC.