Co-Opetition and Prelaunch in Standard-Setting for Developing Technologies

Firms faced with the decision of whether to standardize or not prior to introducing a new network technology face a tradeoff: Compatibility improves the technology's chances of consumer acceptance, but it also means having to share the resulting profits with other sponsors of the standard. In this paper, we show that even prior to market introduction of a new technology, the timing of decisions is important and that firms have to weigh up the cooperative and competitive elements of pre-market choices. We also show that the option to precommit to a technology before it is fully developed (as has been the case with the Compact Disc) can be profitable for network technologies.Standardization, compact disc, preemption, war-of- attrition

Abstract

Regulatory and technological changes have resulted in a surge in merger and acquisition (M&A) activity in the newspaper industry since the 1980s. This study investigates the "success" of these activities focusing on a particular facet of acquisition performance. We study the completion likelihood of an announced transaction, using a sample of M&A announcements from the newspaper industry (1981-2000). Results show that although firm-level characteristics are relevant, transaction-specific and regulatory factors are even more important. Not surprisingly, the attitude of the transaction - whether hostile or friendly - is a key factor, as are the method of payment and the percentage of control sought by the acquirer. The latter in particular reaffirms the prevailing view on the importance of regulatory influences on media M&As

Co-opetition in standard-setting: the case of the Compact Disc

The success of the CD has (partly) been attributed to the ability of Sony, Philips and Matsushita to cooperate in the run-up to the DAD conference in 1981, where the technological standard was set. We model the situation leading up to the conference in a simple game with technological progress and the possibility of prelaunching a technology. We identify players' trades between prelaunching(which ends technological progress) and continued development (which involves the risk of being pre-empted). Contrasting outcomes with complete and incomplete information, we find that there appeared to be considerable uncertainty about rivals' technological progress

Co-opetition in standard-setting: the case of the Compact Disc

The success of the CD has (partly) been attributed to the ability of Sony, Philips and Matsushita to cooperate in the run-up to the DAD conference in 1981, where the technological standard was set. We model the situation leading up to the conference in a simple game with technological progress and the possibility of prelaunching a technology. We identify players' trades between prelaunching(which ends technological progress) and continued development (which involves the risk of being pre-empted). Contrasting outcomes with complete and incomplete information, we find that there appeared to be considerable uncertainty about rivals' technological progress

Co-opetition and prelaunch in standard-setting for developing technologies

Firms faced with the decision of whether to standardize or not prior to introducing a new network technology face a tradeoff: Compatibility improves the technology’s chances of consumer acceptance, but it also means having to share the resulting profits with other sponsors of the standard. In this paper, we show that even prior to market introduction of a new technology, the timing of decisions is important and that firms have to weigh up the cooperative and competitive elements of pre-market choices. We also show that the option to precommit to a technology before it is fully developed (as has been the case with the Compact Disc) can be profitable for network technologies

Compact Disc

, is a non-profit institution devoted to research on network industries, electronic commerce, telecommunications, the Internet, “virtual networks” comprised of computers that share the same technical standard or operating system, and on network issues in general. Co-opetition in standard-setting: the case of th

Co-opetition in Standard-Setting: The Case of the Compact Disc

The success of the CD has (partly) been attributed to the ability of Sony, Philips and Matsushita to cooperate in the run-up to the DAD conference in 1981, where the technological standard was set. We model the situation leading up to the conference in a simple game with technological progress and the possibility of prelaunching a technology. We identify players' tradeos between prelaunching (which ends technological progress) and continued development (which involves the risk of being pre-empted). Contrasting outcomes with complete and incomplete information, we nd that there appeared to be considerable uncertainty about rivals' technological progress.