The Technological Environment
The essence of market capitalism is a dynamism that tolerates the creative destructiveness of technology as the price of progress.
Marketers should monitor the following technology trends: the accelerating pace of change, unlimited opportunities for innovation, varying R&D budgets, and increased regulation of technological change.
Accelerating pace of technological change.
More ideas than ever are in the works, and the time between idea and implementation is shrinking. In the first two-and-a-half years of the iPad’s existence, Apple sold a staggering 97 million units worldwide.26 In many markets, the next technological breakthrough seems right around the corner
Unlimited opportunities for innovation.
Some of the most exciting innovations today are taking place in biotechnology, microelectronics, telecommunications, robotics, and designer materials
Varying R&D budgets.
The United States is the world leader in research and development, spending $436 billion in 2012. A growing portion of U.S. R&D, however, goes to the development side, not research, raising concerns about whether the nation can maintain its lead in basic science.
Too many companies seem to be putting their money into copying competitors’ products with minor improvements. China, Israel, and Finland all are beginning to spend a larger percentage of their GDP on R&D than the United States
Increased regulation of technological change.
Government has expanded its agencies’ powers to investigate and ban potentially unsafe products. Safety and health regulations have increased for food, automobiles, clothing, electrical appliances, and construction.
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