Wikipedia: Oldest Business Models - Creators Vs Convertors

Oldest and most basic business model

Long before people settled down for commerce, business was conducted by wandering nomads who met in camps and exchanged goods, either through barter or using mediums of exchange such as gold or rare seashells.

Their business models included barter or other medium of exchange. They could be both wealth creation and wealth conversion. 

For example, nomads converted solar energy to human wealth: The sun caused grass to grow. They captured and domesticated sheep, cattle, horses and other grass-eating animals, thus creating wealth based on "chattel". Wealth conversion occurs when other nomads figured out that if they rode on horses with weapons, they could steal chattel. From this came gangs, then armies, then nation-states based on fortified towns.  

The farmer who then grows crops creates wealth (using sun, rain and soil). The soldier is a wealth converter, he does not actually generate wealth. His utility is that he comes from a fortified town and says to the farmer "If you give me some food, I will protect you from that other soldier from that other town who wants to steal your food" . 

Even in the modern age, the classification applies:

• Microsoft's business model is value creation if seen as a shift in technology. If seen a defacto monopoly business model, it is a wealth conversion model too.
• McDonalds business model is a wealth creator as it organised an unorganised sector. However it is also an operative "externalising" business model where it makes profits while medical insurance must be paid to cover the cost of disease produced by such a highly processed food diet, which again is a wealth conversion model.   

(For reading the discussion on http://en.wikipedia.org, please click here)