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The White Space and Business Model Innovation

He who moves not forward, goes backward.

—Goethe

If you happened to be driving past a certain desolate airstrip in Palmdale, California, one sunny morning in January 2006 and glanced out your window, you would have seen something extraordinary—a large, lighter-than-air aircraft being readied for flight.1 This was not your usual blimp. It resembled three puffy hot dogs strapped together and mounted on four round pillows—a floating version, if you will, of the Oscar Mayer Wienermobile, with large swinging fans protruding from each side and the rear.

Pulling your vehicle off the road, you would have watched in amazement as this strange craft bounced and bumped down the short runway, rose from the ...

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