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Carsharing business models in Germany: characteristics, success and future prospects

Author

Listed:
  • Karla Münzel

    (Utrecht University)

  • Wouter Boon

    (Utrecht University)

  • Koen Frenken

    (Utrecht University)

  • Taneli Vaskelainen

    (University of Jyväskylä)

Abstract

Carsharing provides an alternative to private car ownership by allowing car use temporarily on an on-demand basis. Operators provide carsharing services using different business models and ownership structures. We distinguish between cooperative, business-to-consumer (B2C) roundtrip and one-way, as well as peer-to-peer (P2P) carsharing. This paper characterizes these different types of business models and compares their success in terms of diffusion using a comprehensive database of all 101 German carsharing providers in 2016. The key result holds that fleet size is significantly different across business models ranging from a few cars (cooperatives in small towns), to a few hundred (B2C roundtrip in larger cities), to over a thousand (B2C one-way in largest cities), up to multiple thousands (P2P across the country). By analyzing for each operator the number of cars per capita in the city they operate in, we do not find significant differences across business models indicating the viability of each separate business model type. Hence, we conclude that business models will continue to co-exist for a while, although some of the business models may well converge in the longer run due to Internet-of-Things applications and the introduction of self-driving cars.

Suggested Citation

  • Karla Münzel & Wouter Boon & Koen Frenken & Taneli Vaskelainen, 2018. "Carsharing business models in Germany: characteristics, success and future prospects," Information Systems and e-Business Management, Springer, vol. 16(2), pages 271-291, May.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:infsem:v:16:y:2018:i:2:d:10.1007_s10257-017-0355-x
    DOI: 10.1007/s10257-017-0355-x
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    Cited by:

    1. Giovanna Magnani & Beatrice Re, 2020. "Lived experiences about car sharing in young adults: Emerging paradoxes," Italian Journal of Marketing, Springer, vol. 2020(2), pages 207-229, September.
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    3. Grzegorz Tchorek & Michał Brzozowski & Katarzyna Dziewanowska & Agnieszka Allen & Waldemar Kozioł & Michał Kurtyka & Filip Targowski, 2020. "Social Capital and Value Co-Creation: The Case of a Polish Car Sharing Company," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(11), pages 1-20, June.
    4. Nancy Bocken & Alexandra Jonca & Karolina Södergren & Jenny Palm, 2020. "Emergence of Carsharing Business Models and Sustainability Impacts in Swedish Cities," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(4), pages 1-23, February.
    5. Carson Duan, 2023. "A State-of-the-Art Review of Sharing Economy Business Models and a Forecast of Future Research Directions for Sustainable Development: A Bibliometric Analysis Approach," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(5), pages 1-37, March.
    6. Golalikhani, Masoud & Oliveira, Beatriz Brito & Carravilla, Maria Antónia & Oliveira, José Fernando & Antunes, António Pais, 2021. "Carsharing: A review of academic literature and business practices toward an integrated decision-support framework," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 149(C).
    7. Taneli Vaskelainen & Laura Piscicelli, 2018. "Online and Offline Communities in the Sharing Economy," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(8), pages 1-18, August.
    8. Inese Mavlutova & Jekaterina Kuzmina & Inga Uvarova & Dzintra Atstaja & Kristaps Lesinskis & Elina Mikelsone & Janis Brizga, 2021. "Does Car Sharing Contribute to Urban Sustainability from User-Motivation Perspectives?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(19), pages 1-20, September.
    9. Prieto, Marc & Stan, Valentina & Baltas, George, 2022. "New insights in Peer-to-Peer carsharing and ridesharing participation intentions: Evidence from the “provider-user†perspective," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 64(C).
    10. Cossey, Jozef & Dedeurwaerdere, Tom & Périlleux, Anaïs, 2023. "Inherently unstable? Scaling, mission drift, and the comparative performance of community-based platforms in the sharing economy," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 212(C).
    11. Giovanna Magnani & Beatrice Re, 0. "Lived experiences about car sharing in young adults: Emerging paradoxes," Italian Journal of Marketing, Springer, vol. 0, pages 1-23.
    12. Valentin Clemens & Christopher Albert Sabel & Johann Nils Foege & Stephan Nüesch, 2022. "System Design Choice in the Sharing Economy: How Different Institutional Logics Drive Consumer Perception and Consumers’ Intention to Use Sharing Systems," Schmalenbach Journal of Business Research, Springer, vol. 74(2), pages 201-234, June.
    13. Lucia Rotaris & Marko Bumbulovic, 2020. "Carsharing: Business models, and role of the decision maker," ECONOMICS AND POLICY OF ENERGY AND THE ENVIRONMENT, FrancoAngeli Editore, vol. 0(1), pages 63-94.
    14. Maria Nadia Postorino & Giuseppe M. L. Sarnè, 2023. "Using Reputation Scores to Foster Car-Sharing Activities," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(4), pages 1-24, February.
    15. Burghard, Uta & Scherrer, Aline, 2022. "Sharing vehicles or sharing rides - Psychological factors influencing the acceptance of carsharing and ridepooling in Germany," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 164(C).
    16. Narayanan, Santhanakrishnan & Antoniou, Constantinos, 2022. "Expansion of a small-scale car-sharing service: A multi-method framework for demand characterization and derivation of policy insights," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 104(C).
    17. Aguilera-García, Álvaro & Gomez, Juan & Antoniou, Constantinos & Vassallo, José Manuel, 2022. "Behavioral factors impacting adoption and frequency of use of carsharing: A tale of two European cities," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 123(C), pages 55-72.
    18. Loes M. Derikx & Dea van Lierop, 2021. "Intentions to Participate in Carsharing: The Role of Self- and Social Identity," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(5), pages 1-31, February.
    19. Beibei Hu & Yue Sun & Huijun Sun & Xianlei Dong, 2020. "A Contrastive Study on Travel Costs of Car-Sharing and Taxis Based on GPS Trajectory Data," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(24), pages 1-28, December.

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