Hwang Bro :
There are three things we need to think about platform business.
There are tracks that will take to you to your destinations.
There are platforms where you can get in to trains and cars nicely.
And there is a physical station.
Although the term platform came from where you get into your rides,
platform business requires all three.
For instance, if Seoul Station has platforms and tracks and that’s all it has,
it will only attract those who would like to get to their destinations.
But what do most of well-developed large stations look like?
They have tracks and platforms, of course,
but also have various elements that will draw people in.
In other words, it should be able to draw people in.
Secondly, platforms should be designed so they can take you anywhere you want to go,
and when I catch what runs on the tracks from the platform,
I should be able to go the direction I want.
These three are the most critical elements in platform business.
Mr. Heung :
Earlier you talked about realty office.
The act of finding a place to stay, like Jikbang and Dabang,
occurred through realty offices or realty agents in the past,
but nowadays, you can do it all on your phone.
That is O2O. In fact, delivery apps are in some sense O2O.
Should we consider O2O a platform as well?
What is O2O anyway? What on earth is it?
Hwang Bro :
Online to Offline, Offline to Online, Online to Online.
In the past, online was confined to cyber space and
offline the brick-and-mortar world in concept, right?
You know showroomingers, right?
Mr. Heung :
Showrooming, not grooming?
Hwang Bro :
It means looking around showrooms a lot.
Not a lot of people are familiar with the term, I noticed.
MOONP :
That’s why we have Hwang bro.
Hwang Bro :
We have Danawa. For instance, you have something you want to buy.
You search away for it online.
But you end up looking for something in that price range offline,
or go to offline showrooms to look at it.
The owner of the shop thinks you would buy it, but you end up not buying it!
This is a bit too extreme case,
but the boundary between online and offline is getting blurry and
eventually crumbles down so the two worlds merge.
Nowadays, anything that facilitates the merging of the two can become a platform.
Mr. Heung :
In broader terms, they are all platforms.
Hwang Bro :
Especially with the advent of mobile apps, many platforms have been implemented through apps.
Mr. Heung :
I think it’s a shame, though, that Auction is regarded as where you can buy things very cheap.
I thought you bragged about working with Auction on something.
When and what was it about?
Hwang Bro :
Ten something years ago, I ran a branding agency,
working on how to develop Auction’s brand.
That’s when they came out with the ‘open market place’ concept.
Here is the core concept.
When it isn’t common to get a driver’s license,
pedestrians cussed at drivers, and drivers cussed at pedestrians.
But when most people have a driver’s license, pedestrians don’t always cuss at drivers.
Mr. Heung :
Some still do, though.
Hwang Bro :
There are always those who will.
From the perspective of ‘a place with flexibility to switch positions.’
Mr. Heung :
That’s when you first came out with the brilliant phrase of ‘flexibility to switch positions.’
You brought it back after ten something years.
MOONP :
Why are you mentioning things from decades ago when we need to talk about cutting edge stuff?
Mr. Heung :
The essence won’t change.
Hwang Bro :
The truth won’t waver.
(To be continued)