... cars, bikes and other appliances which can be hired online on an hourly basis.
According to Frank Pörschmann, the head of CeBIT: "Knowledge is the only resource that multiplies when it is shared. That's the core of what we are seeing today on social networks - in the age of Twitter and Facebook people are sharing knowledge, contacts and experiences.
"And that - what I call 'facebookisation' - is also a growing trend in the economy. Through it, the availability of knowledge as a scarce resource is widened - that can help the economy develop faster and bring about innovation."
Mr Porschmann is not alone in his enthusiasm for the concept. Mobile operators also want to be the drivers and beneficiaries of the shareconomy.
Because of the steadily falling prices of internet flat rates, mobile networks are forced to investigate other areas able to generate revenues in the future. Vodafone Germany, for instance, feattured at its CeBIT stand a new idea for a carsharing model.
Explains Vodafone spokesperson Kuzey Esener: "Using your smartphone, you find a car, book it, and open it."
Vodafone is also trying to offer integrated solutions to the working world because jobs are becoming more mobile, Esener says: "The trend spans many sectors. We are also linking the health sector and many other industries, which we're thereby making more efficient."
[Editor's Note: CeBIT is a German language acronym for Centrum für Büroautomation, Informationstechnologie und Telekommunikation. Literally translated: 'Center for Office Automation, Information Technology and Telecommunication'.]
Read the original unabridged Deutsche Welle article.