Evolution of the business ecosystem: A case study of the Walt Disney Company

This case study analyzes evolution of Walt Disney Company from the viewpoint of the ecology of competition. Although much has been written about evolution of companies, these frameworks provide little systematic assistance for managers who seek to understand the strategic logic of change. However, from our exploratory study, we identify four evolutionary stages of a business ecosystem: birth, expansion, leadership and self-renewal. The evolution process is a co-creation one: a complex interplay between competitive and cooperative business strategies revitalizes a company through continuous innovation. The case study results show that the competition and cooperation of companies in an ecosystem help cultural organizations globalize their business and create value.