Current Search: Computer industry--United States--History (x)
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Title
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The locust years: The fall of America's great computer companies and the consequences, 1980-1994.
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Creator
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Bryan, Eugene F., Florida Atlantic University, O'Sullivan, John
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Abstract/Description
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For three decades a handful of giant American Corporations dominated the world computer industry. In the late 1980s a host of relatively small firms seized industry leadership. Many saw in this astounding reversal of fortune the birth of an open, progressive, highly competitive and democratic computer industry. This thesis contends instead that the fall of the great computer companies, and the rise to leadership of firms that were undercapitalized and shortsighted, threatened the long-term...
Show moreFor three decades a handful of giant American Corporations dominated the world computer industry. In the late 1980s a host of relatively small firms seized industry leadership. Many saw in this astounding reversal of fortune the birth of an open, progressive, highly competitive and democratic computer industry. This thesis contends instead that the fall of the great computer companies, and the rise to leadership of firms that were undercapitalized and shortsighted, threatened the long-term competitive strength of the American computer industry. The historical record shows that multi-billion investments by the great computer companies built the technological foundation for the "age of the desktop." As the great companies faltered, new firms entering the industry simply did not take up the slack in research and investment. With investment falling in the U.S., and soaring in the Pacific-Rim countries, continued American leadership of this vital industry became an open question. Insights gained from studying this almost incredible episode have profound implications for all technology intensive industries.
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Date Issued
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1997
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PURL
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http://purl.flvc.org/fcla/dt/15375
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Subject Headings
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International Business Machines Corporation--History, AT&T Bell Laboratories--History, Computer industry--United States--History
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Format
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Document (PDF)
