ASSIGNMENT 01

TechnoIogicaI Discontinuity

Technology can be defined as those tools, devices, and knowledge that mediate between inputs
and outputs (process technology) and/or that create new products or services (product
technology).
A technological discontinuity is represented in a new technology or in the re-packaging of a set
of existing technologies that results in quickly obsoleting a product or service. An example from
the 1960s is the introduction of the electronic calculator. n a very short time, slide rules and
mechanical calculators disappeared and, in some cases, the companies that made these
products disappeared when they could not adapt to or find ways to use the new technology.
Another more recent example is that of using the nternet and the tcp/ip protocol to transport
voice calls. This application of the nternet represents a technological discontinuity for traditional
telephone companies and provides an opportunity for small entrepreneurs to enter the
telephone business with relatively little investment. n general, the nternet and the Web
represent technological discontinuities for the library and thus both an opportunity and a threat
for the future.

A competence-destroying product discontinuity either creates a new product class (e.g.,
xerography or automobiles) or substitutes for an existing product (e.g., diesel vs. steam
locomotive; transistors vs. vacuum tubes).

Competence-enhancing product discontinuities represent an order-of-magnitude improvement
over prior products yet build on existing know-how. For example, BM's 360 series was a major
improvement in price, performance, and features over prior models yet was developed through
the synthesis of familiar technologies


TECHNOLOGICAL CHANGES IN PRODUCT


Competence-Destroying

Competence-Enhancing

New product class:

Airlines (1924)

Plain paper copying (1959)

Product improvements:

Jet Turbo fan

Mechanical Electrical Typewriters


Product substitution:

Vacuum tubes Transistor

Records Compact disks