Traditionally, the first firm to commercialize a
new technology has benefited from the unique
opportunity to shape product definitions, forcing
followers to adapt to a standard or invest in
an unproven alternative. Today, however, the
largest payoffs may go to companies that lead in
developing integrated approaches for successful
mass production and distribution.
Producers of the Beta format for videocassette
recorders (VCRs), for example, were first to develop
the VCR commercially in 1975, but producers of the
rival VHS (Video Home System) format proved to be
more successful at forming strategic alliances with
other producers and distributors to manufacture
and market their VCR format. Seeking to maintain
exclusive control over VCR distribution, Beta
producers were reluctant to form such alliances and
eventually lost ground to VHS in the competition for
the global VCR market.
Despite Beta’s substantial technological head
start and the fact that VHS was neither technically
better nor cheaper than Beta, developers of VHS
quickly turned a slight early lead in sales into a
dominant position. Strategic alignments with
producers of prerecorded tapes reinforced the VHS
advantage. The perception among consumers that
prerecorded tapes were more available in VHS
format further expanded VHS’s share of the market.
By the end of the 1980s, Beta was no longer in
production.
Questions 12–17 refer to the passage above.
12. The passage is primarily concerned with which of
the following?
(A) Evaluating two competing technologies
(B) Tracing the impact of a new technology by
narrating a sequence of events
(C) Reinterpreting an event from contemporary
business history
(D) Illustrating a business strategy by means of a
case history
(E) Proposing an innovative approach to business
planning
13. According to the passage, today’s successful firms,
unlike successful firms in the past, may earn the
greatest profits by
(A) investing in research to produce cheaper
versions of existing technology
(B) being the first to market a competing technology
(C) adapting rapidly to a technological standard
previously set by a competing firm
(D) establishing technological leadership in order to
shape product definitions in advance of
competing firms
(E) emphasizing the development of methods for
the mass production and distribution of a new
technology
14. According to the passage, consumers began to
develop a preference for VCRs in the VHS format
because they believed which of the following?
(A) VCRs in the VHS format were technically better
than competing format VCRs.
(B) VCRs in the VHS format were less expensive
than competing format VCRs.
(C) VHS was the first standard format for VCRs.
(D) VHS prerecorded videotapes were more
available than those in Beta format.
(E) VCRs in the Beta format would soon cease to
be produced.
new technology has benefited from the unique
opportunity to shape product definitions, forcing
followers to adapt to a standard or invest in
an unproven alternative. Today, however, the
largest payoffs may go to companies that lead in
developing integrated approaches for successful
mass production and distribution.
Producers of the Beta format for videocassette
recorders (VCRs), for example, were first to develop
the VCR commercially in 1975, but producers of the
rival VHS (Video Home System) format proved to be
more successful at forming strategic alliances with
other producers and distributors to manufacture
and market their VCR format. Seeking to maintain
exclusive control over VCR distribution, Beta
producers were reluctant to form such alliances and
eventually lost ground to VHS in the competition for
the global VCR market.
Despite Beta’s substantial technological head
start and the fact that VHS was neither technically
better nor cheaper than Beta, developers of VHS
quickly turned a slight early lead in sales into a
dominant position. Strategic alignments with
producers of prerecorded tapes reinforced the VHS
advantage. The perception among consumers that
prerecorded tapes were more available in VHS
format further expanded VHS’s share of the market.
By the end of the 1980s, Beta was no longer in
production.
Questions 12–17 refer to the passage above.
12. The passage is primarily concerned with which of
the following?
(A) Evaluating two competing technologies
(B) Tracing the impact of a new technology by
narrating a sequence of events
(C) Reinterpreting an event from contemporary
business history
(D) Illustrating a business strategy by means of a
case history
(E) Proposing an innovative approach to business
planning
13. According to the passage, today’s successful firms,
unlike successful firms in the past, may earn the
greatest profits by
(A) investing in research to produce cheaper
versions of existing technology
(B) being the first to market a competing technology
(C) adapting rapidly to a technological standard
previously set by a competing firm
(D) establishing technological leadership in order to
shape product definitions in advance of
competing firms
(E) emphasizing the development of methods for
the mass production and distribution of a new
technology
14. According to the passage, consumers began to
develop a preference for VCRs in the VHS format
because they believed which of the following?
(A) VCRs in the VHS format were technically better
than competing format VCRs.
(B) VCRs in the VHS format were less expensive
than competing format VCRs.
(C) VHS was the first standard format for VCRs.
(D) VHS prerecorded videotapes were more
available than those in Beta format.
(E) VCRs in the Beta format would soon cease to
be produced.
No comments:
Post a Comment