Products vs Services Debate

The cluster revolves around discussions distinguishing between product companies and service businesses in tech and startups, debating business models, scalability, and whether companies are truly selling tools or services.

📉 Falling 0.4x Startups & Business
2,318
Comments
20
Years Active
5
Top Authors
#3565
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Keywords

IT IP HP SLA GE LOL TAC service business services providing companies selling company servicing businesses product

Sample Comments

LegitShady Sep 3, 2023 View on HN

Then companies will make everything a service. You need to make a downside for dearing that.

fedd Oct 31, 2011 View on HN

It means making a service not for consumers but for other services is a bad business nowadays?

threeseed Sep 24, 2024 View on HN

You are conflating products with services.

damienkatz Dec 21, 2015 View on HN

A simple explanation for products using existing tech is be s full service vendor instead of just a few profitable niches. But that would imply them being a real business too, which doesn't seem to be the case.

gregknicholson Jan 30, 2018 View on HN

Ah! So they're selling a service, not a tool.

andersa Mar 6, 2024 View on HN

Your company is likely not considered a core platform service, so your analogy is not relevant.

baq Sep 21, 2023 View on HN

is your business' core competency building a distributed grep or actually selling useful stuff?

pilsetnieks Nov 28, 2014 View on HN

Oh, ok. I thought they meant the "...-as-a-service" kind of startups.

snowmaker Sep 23, 2016 View on HN

We might. Usually service companies have not led to huge businesses, so you'd need to explain how yours would be the exception.

micromacrofoot Apr 17, 2023 View on HN

are there enterprise grade products that don't end up spending a large amount of time providing enterprise services?