How they do it: By providing the most used operating system for personal computers, Microsoft has the advantage to create an environment which prefers their other software solutions such as Internet Explorer or the Office package over competing products. Also, the programs on a Microsoft operating system are ususally not compatible with other operating systems from companies such as Apple or Linux. Hence customers have a barrier to switch to another operating system as they would loose their software programs.
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How they do it: Nespresso coffee system is protected by more than 100 patents. This allowed the company to keep competitors from selling coffee capsules compatible with the Nespresso system. However in recent years some patents expired leading to multiple brands manufacturing and selling Nespresso compatible coffee capsules.
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How they do it: LinkedIn has several mechanisms in place to keep the communication and exchange between users on their platform. One example is that it is not possible to send email adresses in initial contact requests for free users. In addition, the platform’s value to the individual user grows with its network, increasing the barrier to switch to another network.
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How they do it: Through their Google Playstore, the company offers both content and apps for its customers. However, these can only be used on the respective environments and not be transferred to other environments. Hence, once the customer is used to the service and has purchased a lot of content or apps, the switching costs are very high.
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