Whether ERP software, office applications, open-source products or online games: In terms of its economic characteristics, software differs fundamentally from industrial goods or services. Based on the economic principles and rules of the software industry, the book reveals strategies and business models to software vendors that comprise cooperation, distribution, pricing and production and industrialization strategies, as well as software as a service and platform concepts. Further aspects including the outsourcing behavior of software vendors and users; providing business software as open source software; selecting software; and the value chains in the software industry are also addressed. Based on a number of expert meetings, it contains numerous case studies and new empirical findings. Target audience of the book are professionals and executives from the software, consulting and IT branches as well as students and scholars of business administration, computer science, business and industrial engineering.

Peter Buxmann is a Professor of Software Business& Information Management at Darmstadt University of Technology. His research fields include Software Business, Future Internet Economy, and Information Management. Moreover, he supports the foundation of IT companies and serves as a Department Editor of the Journal Wirtschaftsinformatik / Business& Information Systems Engineering.

Heiner Diefenbach is CEO of TDS AG, Neckarsulm (Germany), a stock market listed IT services company. He has more than 20 years experience in the IT Industry as a board member at major players such as Atos Origin and Computer Science Corporation.

Thomas HessAfter his studies in Information Systems at Darmstadt University of Technology, Thomas Hess completed his doctorate at St. Gallen University (Switzerland) in 1995. Since 2001 Thomas has been a professor at LMU Munich, where he also serves as director of the Institute for Information Systems and New Media. His research focuses on the digitalization of media industries, on software vendors and on new value systems.