Matchmakers

anyone who wants to better understand how the companies behind the products and services they use every day work."

Dan Schulman, President and CEO, PayPal—
“Matchmakers is an insider's look at one of the critical business models of our era—one that only looks easy because the drivers around successful multi- and two-sided networks are anything but self-evident. It's an entertaining read, yet filled with the insights essential for anyone interested in starting or scaling these complex yet powerful businesses."

Lawrence H. Summers, Charles W. Eliot University Professor and President Emeritus, Harvard University; former US Secretary of the Treasury—
“More than the Internet, the sharing economy or automation platform companies and matchmaking markets are defining the new economy. Evans and Schmalensee are pioneers in developing economic theories that explain this new economy. Here they share what they've learned to the great benefit not just of economists, but also of entrepreneurs, policy makers, and consumers."

Hikmet Ersek, President and CEO, Western Union—
“Entirely new business models have evolved around the platform, connecting supply and demand, service provider and customer, sender and receiver. Matchmakers captures this phenomenon—the platform ecosystem—in a way that makes this book compelling reading for anyone seeking to understand the role that platforms play in today's economy."

Jean Tirole, Chairman, Toulouse School of Economics; Winner, 2014 Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences—
“David Evans and Richard Schmalensee are masters at combining strategic analysis and economic theory. Matchmakers is a journey through the strategies of platform businesses, which are central to our economies. Full of stories, fun to read, stimulating, and rigorous, this terrific book is required reading, from the economics and MBA student to the entrepreneur looking at building a platform to any reader curious about how our economy evolves."

Bob Solomon, former Senior Vice President, Network and Financial Solutions, Ariba, Inc.—
“Matchmakers will be mandatory for anyone building or investing in multisided platforms—in the cloud or on the ground. It's not only full of great stories like the rise of M-PESA, it's also a practical guide to getting your platform business off the ground. If the people behind Apple Pay had this book to read, maybe they would have started differently."

Gary Katz, President and CEO, International Securities Exchange—
“This book provided me, as a cofounder of the International Securities Exchange, with a different lens through which to view my business and industry. This framework would have been a valuable addition to my playbook as my colleagues and I grappled with questions of pricing and building critical mass when we were planning the launch, eighteen years ago, of the first all-electronic options exchange in the United States."

Cathy Baron Tamraz, Chairman and CEO, Business Wire—
“The ‘matchmaker' is one of the oldest business models, but it's ever more important in today's interconnected, networked world. This deep dive into today's multisided businesses provides a clear, compelling, and entertaining road map for how net platform businesses can blast off and ignite. Bravo!"


Praise for Catalyst Code:

Bill Gates—
“. . . an important book for anyone interested in understanding how breakthrough businesses can be built in today's economy."

Patrick McGovern, founder and former Chairman, International Data Group—
“Catalyst Code shows that in the Internet Age, the greatest business successes will be based on creating communities in which buyers and sellers are brought together efficiently, rather than making a new product or providing a new service."

Peter S. Lynch, Vice Chairman, Fidelity Management & Research Company—
“Evans and Schmalensee reveal the inner workings of what is rapidly becoming a new model for businesses."