We're studying business models in my current Marketing class and I'm looking more into the utility model. In short this model is a pay as go type feel. Some current companies who participate in this type of model are Skype and Google Voice to name a couple. When exploring if this has been a profitable business model I reviewed Skype's 2016 annual report. "We generated $85.3 billion in revenue, $52.5 billion in gross margin, and $20.2 billion in operating income this past fiscal year... revenue was $92.0 billion with $27.9 billion in operating income (Microsoft, 2016)." Based on that initial statement this model is profitable. However, when exploring further, Skype has actually seen a decrease in profits across three years. Productivity and Business Processes is actually down $489 from from 2014 $29,976. With exploring this one company we can surmise that this business model doesn't show a positive trend in all three areas consistently.
Conversely, if Skype were to pivot to a subscription model ( a fee based model based on subscribers as opposed to pay as you go) they may be able to see more of a profit. Subscriptions would at minimum allow Skype's customers to predict the revenue of the company on a more consistent basis. With Skype I think their current business model would serve them best and will continue to see them as a relevant company.
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