SELECT Customers.Country,
AVG(od.UnitPrice * od.Quantity) AS AverageRevenue,
strftime("%m", Orders.OrderDate) AS Month
FROM "Order Details" AS od
INNER JOIN Orders
ON od.OrderID = Orders.OrderID
INNER JOIN Customers
ON Orders.CustomerID = Customers.CustomerID
WHERE Customers.Country IN ('USA', 'Germany', 'Brazil')
AND strftime("%Y", Orders.OrderDate) = '2022'
GROUP BY Month, Customers.Country
ORDER BY MonthAnalysis Report Four - Trend Analysis and Value Creation
Executive Summary
Digital platforms create value by connecting different groups, including customers, sellers, developers, advertisers, and service providers. A platform may grow quickly, but a large number of users does not automatically guarantee long-term success. The assigned readings explain that platforms must create value for every important group while managing competition, switching, and changes in customer behavior.
Apple is a strong example of both the benefits and risks of a platform. Its connected devices, software, and services create a convenient experience and make it harder for customers to switch to another system. This has helped Apple build a large and profitable services business. However, developers and regulators have also challenged Apple’s App Store rules and commissions. This shows that a platform can protect its revenue while also creating frustration for other members of its network.
The Northwind analysis examines changes in value over time. The first visualization compares average order-line revenue from customers in the United States, Germany, and Brazil during each month of 2022. The second visualization compares the maximum order-line revenue for Beverages, Dairy Products, and Confections during the same year. These graphs show that customer activity and product value can change throughout the year. Organizations should regularly review trends, investigate major changes, and use several measures before making important decisions.
Introduction
A platform business creates value by connecting groups that need one another. Amazon connects buyers and sellers. Uber connects riders and drivers. Airbnb connects travelers and hosts. Apple connects customers, developers, devices, and digital services. The success of these businesses depends on the strength of the full network around them.
In Why Some Platforms Thrive and Others Don’t, Zhu and Iansiti explain that it can be easier for a digital platform to grow than to maintain its success. They identify five network characteristics that affect whether a platform can remain strong. These are network effects, clustering, disintermediation, multi-homing, and network bridging (Zhu and Iansiti 2019).
Network effects happen when a platform becomes more valuable as more people participate. Same-side network effects happen within one group. For example, a social media platform becomes more useful when more friends join it. Cross-side network effects happen when one group attracts another group. More Uber drivers can attract more riders, while more riders can attract more drivers (Zhu and Iansiti 2019).
Clustering describes whether a network is divided into smaller groups or connected more broadly. Uber is made up of local groups because riders mainly care about drivers near them. Airbnb is more global because travelers care about hosts in the places they plan to visit. This can make it easier for a competitor to challenge Uber in one city than to challenge Airbnb across many locations (Zhu and Iansiti 2019).
Disintermediation happens when people meet through a platform but later complete transactions without it. Multi-homing happens when people use more than one competing platform at the same time. A driver may work for both Uber and Lyft, while a customer may compare several shopping or delivery apps. Network bridging happens when a company connects different networks and uses them to create more value. Alibaba connects shopping, payments, and financial services, allowing each part of the network to support the others (Zhu and Iansiti 2019).
Marr identifies seven common digital business models. These are advertising-supported, e-commerce, freemium, marketplace or platform, subscription, aggregator, and crowdfunding models (Marr 2023). Companies often combine several models. Amazon sells products, runs a marketplace, offers subscriptions, and sells advertising. Apple sells devices while also earning revenue from subscriptions, services, and App Store transactions.
The Apple reading shows how a connected platform can create value and risk at the same time. Apple’s devices and services work together, creating high switching costs for customers (Mims 2024). This helps Apple keep customers inside its system and earn more revenue from services. However, strict App Store rules have created conflict with developers and regulators. A platform can become weaker when it focuses too heavily on controlling participants instead of maintaining strong relationships with them.
Outside Research
Current business events show that platform companies are still struggling to balance control, competition, and value creation. In April 2025, the European Commission found that Apple violated the Digital Markets Act’s anti-steering requirement. The Commission fined Apple 500 million euros because its rules limited how developers could inform customers about offers outside the App Store (European Commission 2025).
This issue connects to disintermediation and multi-homing. Apple wants digital purchases to remain inside its platform because it can control the customer experience and earn commissions. Developers may want to offer other payment choices or use additional distribution channels. Apple’s restrictions may protect its revenue, but they can also make developers feel that the platform is unfair or too difficult to work with.
Apple presents another side of the issue. In January 2026, the company reported that the App Store had more than 850 million average weekly users around the world during 2025. Apple also reported that developers had earned more than 550 billion dollars through the App Store since it launched in 2008 (Apple 2026). These numbers show that Apple’s network creates a large opportunity for developers to reach customers.
The European Commission and Apple describe the same platform from different viewpoints. Regulators are concerned about competition and the ability of developers to communicate with customers. Apple focuses on the platform’s size, safety, and economic value. Both viewpoints show why platform leaders must consider more than their own revenue.
Research by McIntyre and Srinivasan also explains that platform competition depends on network effects, platform quality, and relationships with companies that provide related products and services (McIntyre and Srinivasan 2017). A large user base is helpful, but a platform can still become weaker when developers, sellers, or service providers reduce their participation. Companies must create value for the full network if they want the platform to remain successful.
Data Visualizations
Northwind is not a digital platform like Apple or Amazon, but its database still represents a connected business network. Customers place orders, suppliers provide products, employees manage transactions, and shipping companies deliver purchases. Time-trend analysis can help Northwind identify changes in customer activity and product value.
Visualization One: Average Revenue by Customer Country
The first analysis compares average order-line revenue from customers in the United States, Germany, and Brazil during each month of 2022.
ggplot(
data = myquery1,
mapping = aes(
x = Month,
y = AverageRevenue,
color = Country,
group = Country
)
) +
geom_line() +
theme_minimal() +
labs(
title = "Average Revenue by Customer Country in 2022",
subtitle = "Monthly order-line revenue from three customer markets",
x = "Month",
y = "Average Revenue",
color = "Country",
caption = "Source: Northwind SQLite database"
)
The graph compares the three countries across the same months. The lines make it easier to see whether average revenue rises, falls, or remains steady in each market. Differences between the lines may help Northwind identify markets that create more value during certain parts of the year.
This information could support marketing, customer service, and sales planning. Northwind could investigate a major increase to determine whether it was caused by stronger demand, a promotion, or several large purchases. A decrease could show weaker demand or a change in customer behavior.
The graph should be interpreted carefully. Average order-line revenue does not show total revenue, the number of customers, or the reason behind a purchase. One unusually large order line could affect the average. Managers should compare this graph with order counts and total revenue before making a major decision.
Visualization Two: Maximum Revenue by Product Category
The second analysis compares the maximum order-line revenue for Beverages, Dairy Products, and Confections during each month of 2022.
SELECT Categories.CategoryName,
MAX(od.UnitPrice * od.Quantity) AS MaximumRevenue,
strftime("%m", Orders.OrderDate) AS Month
FROM "Order Details" AS od
INNER JOIN Orders
ON od.OrderID = Orders.OrderID
INNER JOIN Products
ON od.ProductID = Products.ProductID
INNER JOIN Categories
ON Products.CategoryID = Categories.CategoryID
WHERE Categories.CategoryName IN (
'Beverages',
'Dairy Products',
'Confections'
)
AND strftime("%Y", Orders.OrderDate) = '2022'
GROUP BY Month, Categories.CategoryName
ORDER BY Monthggplot(
data = myquery2,
mapping = aes(
x = Month,
y = MaximumRevenue,
color = CategoryName,
group = CategoryName
)
) +
geom_line() +
theme_minimal() +
labs(
title = "Maximum Revenue by Product Category in 2022",
subtitle = "Highest order-line revenue recorded during each month",
x = "Month",
y = "Maximum Revenue",
color = "Product Category",
caption = "Source: Northwind SQLite database"
)
The second graph focuses on the highest-value order line in each category and month. A large increase may show that a customer purchased a high-priced product or a large quantity. Comparing the categories can help Northwind see which parts of its product network are connected to the largest individual transactions.
Northwind could use this information to investigate important customers, prepare inventory, or make sure suppliers can support larger purchases. It may also help managers identify categories where one major order has a strong effect on monthly performance.
Maximum revenue should not be used by itself. It only represents the largest order line and does not show whether the category performs consistently. A category may have one very large transaction but low activity during the rest of the month. Managers should compare the maximum with average revenue, total revenue, and order volume.
Recommendations for Industry
Platform leaders should create value for customers, sellers, developers, advertisers, and service providers. A company may be able to create short-term revenue through strict control, but long-term success depends on keeping the network useful and fair.
Organizations should compare monthly and yearly trends instead of relying on one overall total. Trend analysis can help managers notice changes in customer demand, product performance, and partner activity before they become larger problems.
A line graph can show where a change happened, but it does not explain why. Managers should review the orders, customers, promotions, prices, and quantities connected to a major increase or decrease.
Companies should also give participants strong reasons to stay instead of relying only on restrictions. Reliable service, fair pricing, useful data, loyalty benefits, and easier transactions can make a platform more valuable than competing options.
Finally, executives should use more than one measure. Average revenue and maximum revenue answer different questions. Total revenue, order count, customer satisfaction, shipping performance, and product availability would provide additional context. Using several measures creates a more complete view and lowers the risk of making a decision based on one unusual transaction.
References
Apple. 2026. “2025 Marked a Record-Breaking Year for Apple Services.” Apple Newsroom. 2026. https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2026/01/2025-marked-a-record-breaking-year-for-apple-services/.
European Commission. 2025. “Commission Finds Apple and Meta in Breach of the Digital Markets Act.” European Commission. 2025. https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/news/commission-finds-apple-and-meta-breach-digital-markets-act.
Marr, Bernard. 2023. “The 7 Most Successful Business Models of the Digital Era.” 2023. https://bernardmarr.com/the-7-most-successful-business-models-of-the-digital-era/.
McIntyre, David P., and Arati Srinivasan. 2017. “Networks, Platforms, and Strategy: Emerging Views and Next Steps.” Strategic Management Journal 38 (1): 141–60. https://doi.org/10.1002/smj.2596.
Mims, Christopher. 2024. “Tim Cook’s Biggest Success Is Now Apple’s Biggest Liability.” The Wall Street Journal.
Zhu, Feng, and Marco Iansiti. 2019. “Why Some Platforms Thrive and Others Don’t.” Harvard Business Review 97 (1): 118–25.