Taxonomy of digital economy business models

Availability of high speed Internet connections, micropayment and credit card infrastructure has introduced new business models for vendors and enabled average consumers to use the Internet for shopping. Today it is possible to buy anything on the web with just a few clicks of a mouse, from groceries and gadgets to music and software. Penetration of smartphones and similar devices such as Internet tablets and e-book readers has greatly increased the percentage of general population which shops online. This paper presents various business to consumer (B2C) business models, from traditional off-the-shelf selling in stores, online ordering and subscription models to pay-what-you want model, open source business models and cloud computing with hardware and software as a service approach. The paper assesses current business models' potential and rates them according to recent trends.