Tor Andreassen has recently had a paper published in the Journal of Business Research, Volume 191. Here is an article about that paper
Understanding the Business-to-Business Sharing Economy
Most people are familiar with sharing economy platforms like Airbnb or Uber that serve consumers. But what happens when businesses share resources with other businesses? Because most, if not all, research on the topic is based on B2C sharing economy, our research explores the emerging sharing economy trend in the business world.
We found that business-to-business sharing works through specialized platforms that connect companies who have underused assets with other companies who need them temporarily. Think of it like this: a construction company might have expensive equipment that sits idle between projects. Through a sharing platform, they could rent this equipment to other businesses, creating extra revenue from assets they already own.
This system needs at least three players to work:
- A digital platform that connects businesses
- Companies that own assets they're willing to share
- Companies that want to pay for temporary access to these assets
For the companies sharing their assets, this isn't their main business - it's an extra service they can offer to make better use of their resources.
Our research provides guidance for different groups involved in this new economy:
- Companies running sharing platforms
- Traditional businesses facing this new competition
- Businesses with assets to share
- Government regulators and policymakers
We also highlight important questions for future research, including how this might disrupt traditional industries, how existing businesses might respond, and what potential downsides we need to watch out for.
This shift toward sharing between businesses could reshape how companies think about owning versus accessing resources, potentially making business operations more efficient and sustainable.
This article is based on: Benoit, Sabine, Katrin Merfeld, Vivian S.C. Tunn, Tobias Schaefers, and Tor Wallin Andreassen (2025): The B2B sharing economy: Framework, implications, and future research, Journal of Business Research, Volume 191.