Technological competition: a path towards commoditization or differentiation? Some evidence from a comparison of e-book readers

Abstract

Technological rivalry is recognized as a key dimension of competition and innovation strategies in the digital era. It is particularly important in strategies focused on disruptive and repeated innovations, where each step contributes to shaping the design of the offering, the structuring of the market and the value chain. These technological trajectories are built on the basis of tensions between two contradictory objectives: specialization aimed at creating proprietary systems and standardization aimed at supplying the overall market. In the former case, successive innovations support competition between exclusive and proprietary ecosystems. In the latter case, commoditized devices create opportunities for alternative actors to engage in innovation and value creation. The e-book reader market serves as a key example of the issues at stake in terms of technological rivalry among technology suppliers, digital platforms, and publishers.

Publishing

“…Since the appearance of the first e-readers in the mid 2000s, technological competition has led to a series of innovations to improve the quality of display, battery life, and general look and feel of the devices. However, smart phone technology has also evolved to compete in the market for portable screen devices, resulting in the convergence of the various e-readers on the market (Benghozi and Salvador, 2015). The complexity of the market is evidenced by the role of technological suppliers, digital platforms, and book publishers involved in the technological innovations of e-readers.…”