Establishing a proprietary standard as the industry standard may
require a company to win a format war against a competing and
incompatible standard. Strategies for doing this include producing
complementary products, leveraging killer applications, using
aggressive pricing and marketing, licensing the technology, and
cooperating with competitors. In this assignment, you will
investigate these standards and strategies in relation to a company
of your choosing.
Write a paper in which you complete the following:
Complete “Strategy Sign-on Article File 7” and “Strategic
Management Project: Developing Your Portfolio 7” on page 259 of
your text, answering Questions 1-6 on page 259.
Find an example of an industry that has undergone a
technological paradigm shift in recent years. What happened to the
established companies as that paradigm shift unfolded? Strategic
Management Project: Developing Your Portfolio 7 This module
requires you to analyze the industry environment in which your
company is based and determine if it is vulnerable to a
technological paradigm shift. With the information you have at your
disposal, answer the following questions:
1. What is the dominant product technology used in the industry
in which your company is based?
2. Are technical standards important in your industry? If so,
what are they?
3. What are the attributes of the majority of customers
purchasing the product of your company (e.g., early adopters, early
majority, late majority)? What does this tell you about the
strategic issues that the company is likely to face in the
future?
4. Did the dominant technology in your industry diffuse rapidly
or slowly? What drove the speed of diffusion?
5. Where is the dominant technology in your industry on its
S-curve? Are alternative competing technologies being developed
that might give rise to a paradigm shift in your industry?
6. Are intellectual property rights important to your company?
If so, what strategies is it adopting to protect those rights? Is
it doing enough?
Answer these additional questions: How could this company
compete in format wars? How will it combat the industry costs of
high technology?
Refer to at least two outside sources in your paper.
