Basic Definitions

Integration is a manifestation of the evolution of the customer markets. Kohls & Uhl identified the integration of the market as a process associated with the integration of companies through the consolidation and coordination of marketing functions.

We consider integration in terms of combining the links between customers (users) and companies that make up the business ecosystem. This type of integration is also called horizontal integration which manifests itself in the fact that a certain company performs a certain function for all market participants. The examples are the aggregators, such as Amazon or Yandex Markets. Another example is the US Oil Company acquires oil from independent oil companies.

Note: In contrast to the horizontal integration, the concept of vertical integration could be found in business literature. It means that the company performs several functions in the Value-added chain. This type of integration refers to the companies that form the business ecosystem, so we consider it in the context of analyzing the Value-added chain of the business ecosystem.

This group presents business models that eliminate the contradictions associated with contacts between suppliers (sellers) of products and customers.