{"id":3732,"date":"2017-02-25T16:22:48","date_gmt":"2017-02-25T21:22:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/digital.hbs.edu\/platform-digit\/submission\/parkwise\/"},"modified":"2017-02-25T16:28:04","modified_gmt":"2017-02-25T21:28:04","slug":"parkwise","status":"publish","type":"hck-submission","link":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-digit\/submission\/parkwise\/","title":{"rendered":"ParkWise"},"content":{"rendered":"

While city dwellers could spend hours debating the proper etiquette of parallel parking, we can all agree on one thing: finding street parking in a city can be a nightmare. Several platform-based startups have launched to disrupt the status quo,\u00a0and several of them have been shut down by regulators. ParkWise’s platform solution,\u00a0however,\u00a0is surviving the regulatory environment.<\/span><\/p>\n

City dwellers arguing about proper parking etiquette [1].<\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

About ParkWise<\/h3>\n

Around the time that Boston City Council passed legislation to effectively ban\u00a0another parking app (Haystack), ParkWise announced its entry into the space [2].\u00a0ParkWise is an app that\u00a0helps users find open public parking spaces and manage other difficulties associated with on-street parking. Users can view a map that overlays street cleaning schedules, open parking spots, and soon-to-be-open parking spots.\u00a0The app also lets users keep track of where they parked and notify others when they’re about to leave their space. [3]<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/a>
ParkWise allows users to see available, valid parking spots [4].<\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Value Creation<\/h3>\n

The value for users comes from solving pain points associated with street parking:\u00a0quickly finding a\u00a0spot, being\u00a0warned about street cleaning, and keeping track of the car. Users can\u00a0open the map as they approach their destination to locate a spot, check for street cleaning conflicts, and mark where they last parked. This could save several minutes per day of circling the block to find a spot or walking around it to find the car.\u00a0It could also save users\u00a0from being ticketed\/towed on street cleaning days.<\/p>\n

The platform\u00a0could create value for businesses through location-based advertising.\u00a0The app tracks when\/where someone is about to exit their car and walk\u00a0down the street, a perfect opportunity for the Dunkin Donuts around the corner to\u00a0trigger\u00a0an impulse purchase.<\/p>\n

Value Capture<\/h3>\n

As with most early platform businesses, ParkWise is not trying to capturing value. The app is free to download and ParkWise has no apparent revenue streams. Many believe that ParkWise will monetize its model through advertisements once it has a large installed user base [5]. This could be a promising option because ParkWise’s real-time location information could be used to better target users with location-specific ads.<\/p>\n

Commentary<\/h3>\n

Network effects are very\u00a0strong with this platform. A high\u00a0number users is critical to maintaining complete, timely information about parking availability. The size of the installed user base will similarly affect the value proposition to businesses. To acquire early adopters, ParkWise offers the app for free and attracts users through features that function without\u00a0a large user base. Reviews\u00a0in the App Store\/Google Play\u00a0indicate that people install the app for the\u00a0street cleaning or car tracking features alone [6, 7].<\/p>\n

ParkWise’s approach to value capture\u00a0could be fairly unique in the space of parking apps. Other\u00a0apps allowed users\u00a0to “sell” their space and captured\u00a0a portion of that revenue, which received catastrophic backlash from the public and city officials. Haystack, for example, was chided for profiting\u00a0from\u00a0the sale of public property and creating\u00a0inequalities in access to a public good [8]. By shifting to an ad-supported model, ParkWise will profit from\u00a0the location information of users as opposed to the access\u00a0of public property. This\u00a0may\u00a0explain why ParkWise has received a warmer reception than competitors [9].<\/p>\n

Another aspect worth noting is how ParkWise leverages technology to avoid\u00a0relying on crowdsourced information. Without this technology, users could\u00a0open the app to find a spot\u00a0but not\u00a0report where they’ve parked or when they’re about to leave. In fact, I imagine this would likely occur\u00a0because ParkWise does not allow users\u00a0to “sell” a space. Instead of relying on users to report information, ParkWise has an algorithm that determines when someone has parked or is leaving a space based on\u00a0changes in their speed [9]. This means that anyone who uses the app passively contributes information. I\u00a0wonder if ParkWise could–or may need to–partner with complementary apps (e.g., ParkBoston) to leverage location information of other installed user bases.<\/p>\n

Summary<\/h3>\n

Despite strong regulatory opposition to disrupting\u00a0the street parking system, ParkWise has\u00a0entered the space with a platform business that is palatable to city officials.\u00a0Though it currently delivers some aspects of its value proposition, it\u00a0will need many more\u00a0users\u00a0to provide useful parking availability information\u00a0and eventually monetize through ads. Its ability to\u00a0quickly grow this user base will be a key risk. It will be interesting to see\u00a0what strategies ParkWise pursues going forward to mitigate that risk.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Sources:<\/strong><\/p>\n

[1]\u00a0\u00a0http:\/\/basementrejects.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/04\/seinfeld-season-3-22-the-parking-space-george-costanza-vs-mike-parallel-parking-pull-in-back-in-jason-alexander-lee-arenberg-review-episode-guide-list.jpg<\/p>\n

[2] http:\/\/bostinno.streetwise.co\/2014\/08\/25\/parkwise-north-end-city-of-boston-parking-app\/<\/p>\n

[3]\u00a0http:\/\/parkwise.us\/<\/p>\n

[4] ParkWise press kit<\/p>\n

[5] http:\/\/www.betaboston.com\/news\/2014\/09\/08\/ylsned-parking-apps-that-boston-may-not-ban\/<\/p>\n

[6] https:\/\/itunes.apple.com\/us\/app\/parkwise-street-parking-made-easy\/id904568698?mt=8<\/p>\n

[7]\u00a0https:\/\/play.google.com\/store\/apps\/details?id=com.tatinfotech.northendparking&hl=en#details-reviews<\/p>\n

[8] http:\/\/www.betaboston.com\/news\/2015\/06\/10\/the-endless-saga-of-haystack-an-illegal-app-that-tried-to-sell-public-parking\/<\/p>\n

[9] http:\/\/www.betaboston.com\/news\/2014\/09\/08\/ylsned-parking-apps-that-boston-may-not-ban\/<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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