Over the last decade, there has been a renewed and growing interest in deploying loosely coupled networks of companies and individuals as an alternative to integrated supply chains or tight alliances. This form of organisation seems particularly well-adapted to situations where companies are confronted with a high degree of uncertainty and the need to innovate.

These networks have been described as ecosystems because they are analogous with natural ecosystems or communities of living organisms in conjunction with the non-living components of their environment, interacting as a system.

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