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# Business mashups
- URL: https://www.lorcandempsey.net/business-mashups/
- Published: 2006-11-19T23:05:14.000Z
- Updated: 2020-10-28T09:38:53.000Z
- Author: Lorcan Dempsey
- Tags: Systems

Business Week had an article on business mashups a few days ago. Here is one of their smaller examples. 

> For any company mulling mashups, there’s a growing variety of case studies. Caryn Truitt owns Cookies, a small Seattle shop that sells cookie-baking gear. She keeps track of inventory using an accounting program sold by Microsoft ([MSFT](https://host.businessweek.com/businessweek/Corporate%5FSnapshot.html?Symbol=MSFT&ref=lorcandempsey.net)). Now that Microsoft has woven eBay’s ([EBAY](https://host.businessweek.com/businessweek/Corporate%5FSnapshot.html?Symbol=EBAY&ref=lorcandempsey.net)) auction tools and PayPal payment service into Microsoft Office Accounting 2007, Truitt can upload items for sale onto eBay directly from her accounting software in just a few mouse clicks. Truitt hadn’t sold on eBay before, but it looked so easy that she decided to try it. “It was something I had always planned to look into, but being a small-business owner there are always too many things to do,” she explains. \[[When Companies Do the Mash](https://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/nov2006/tc20061113%5F630705.htm?chan=search&ref=lorcandempsey.net)\]

Another example it gave involved Rearden Commerce.

> In many cases, employees won’t even realize they’re using mashups. Pfizer, GlaxoSmithKline, and JDS Uniphase have begun to use a Web application from Rearden Commerce to make travel and dining reservations. Rearden Commerce provides a marketplace of corporate services, essentially mashing up many services from different providers in the areas of travel, dining, entertainment, conferencing, and package shipping (see BusinessWeek.com, 9/21/05, [“A Man for All Services”](/technology/content/sep2005/tc20050921%5F3182%5Ftc024.htm)). Rearden Commerce is integrated with corporate applications such as Microsoft Outlook and Lotus Notes so that travel and dining reservations automatically appear on an employee’s calendar once they’re made. \[[When Companies Do the Mash](https://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/nov2006/tc20061113%5F630705%5Fpage%5F2.htm?ref=lorcandempsey.net)\]

Now comes the major news about an alliance between American Express and Rearden. 

> Rearden Commerce’s [Personal Assistant service](https://www.reardencommerce.com/products/assistant.php?ref=lorcandempsey.net) taps into corporate workflow, identity management systems, scheduling and contacts help employees discover, purchase and manage travel, dining reservations, package shipments, conference and other commerce services from a network approved suppliers. American Express Business Travel is launching under its own brand a marketplace that uses Rearden Commerce’s Personal Assistant and other services. \[[» Rearden Commerce goes for scale with American Express | Between the Lines | ZDNet.com](https://blogs.zdnet.com/BTL/?p=3955&ref=lorcandempsey.net)\] 

The [invisible engine](https://www.amazon.com/Invisible-Engines-Platforms-Innovation-Industries/dp/0262050854/sr=1-1/qid=1163996724/ref=sr%5F1%5F1/104-8022033-0155916?ie=UTF8&s=books&ref=lorcandempsey.net) of such platforms is becoming more important.  
*Invisible engines* via Brian Lavoie.

Related entries:

- [Recombinant modularity](https://blog.oclc.org/lorcand/archives/001047.html?ref=lorcandempsey.net)
- [Recombinance all the way up, remixing all the way down](https://blog.oclc.org/lorcand/archives/000657.html?ref=lorcandempsey.net)
- [Libraries, maps and platforms](https://blog.oclc.org/lorcand/archives/000713.html?ref=lorcandempsey.net)
- [From web page to web platform](https://blog.oclc.org/lorcand/archives/000780.html?ref=lorcandempsey.net)
- [Web 2.0 again](https://blog.oclc.org/lorcand/archives/000814.html?ref=lorcandempsey.net)
- [iPods, platforms and ecosystems](https://blog.oclc.org/lorcand/archives/000770.html?ref=lorcandempsey.net)
- [The Amazon platform](https://blog.oclc.org/lorcand/archives/001025.html?ref=lorcandempsey.net)
- [Quotes of the day: moving to the network level](https://blog.oclc.org/lorcand/archives/000962.html?ref=lorcandempsey.net)
- [Recombinance](https://blog.oclc.org/lorcand/archives/000766.html?ref=lorcandempsey.net)
- [Service-oriented architectures in libraries](https://blog.oclc.org/lorcand/archives/000468.html?ref=lorcandempsey.net)