A business alliance is an agreement between businesses, usually motivated by cost reduction and improved service for the customer. Alliances are often bounded by a single agreement with equitable risk and opportunity share for all parties involved and are typically managed by an integrated project team. An example of this is code sharing in airline alliances.

There are five basic categories or types of alliances:^[1]

• Sales alliance
• Solution-specific alliance
• Geographic-specific alliance
• Investment alliance
• Joint venture alliance

In many cases, alliances between companies can involve two or more categories or types of alliances. A sales alliance occurs when two companies agree to go to market together to sell complementary products and services. A solution-specific alliance occurs when two companies agree to jointly develop and sell a specific marketplace solution. A geographic-specific alliance is developed when two companies agree to jointly market or co-brand their products and services in a specific geographic region. An investment alliance occurs when two companies agree to joint their funds for mutual investment. A joint venture is an alliance that occurs when two or more companies agree to undertake economic activity together.^[1]

[edit] References

• Darby, Mark (2006). Alliance Brand: Fulfilling the Promise of Partnering. Wiley. ISBN 9780470032183. 

[edit] See also

• Business group
• Strategic alliance
• Competition regulator

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