Keeping the U.S. Computer Industry Competitive Defining the Agenda (1990) / Chapter Skim
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6. Turning Point
6. Turning Point
Pages 64-70
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From page 64... ...
In turn, manufacturers of computers and related equipment find their base of domestic support eroding as competitors strengthen theirs. For now, the nation's software, services, and systems-integration industries sit atop global markets, but given events in other parts of the sector and developments abroad, one feels compelled to ask, For how long?
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From page 65... ...
Colloquium participants shared the view that a narrow economic analysis focusing on comparative production efficiencies across countries ignores the rationale for a more strategic perspective. Computer development and manufacturing are not simply ends in themselves- although they are nontrivial ends in terms of their contribution to the GNP, the balance of trade, employment, and other conventional measures.
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From page 66... ...
It is because of the growing pervasiveness of computing, argued Perlis and others, that we cannot yield a leadership role complacently. "For the computer industry," commented Perlis, "yielding control to foreign concerns will have an impact in the intellectual sense that yielding agriculture would have in the biological sense." Echoed Teece from the University of California at Berkeley, "The computer industry generates significant positive technological and market demand spillovers to other industries.
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From page 67... ...
Such novel cooperative arrangements represent a fundamental break from past ways of doing business, but more are likely to be needed, many colloquium participants believed: "We are learning about cooperation," Ferguson noted, "but Japanese firms understand it already." Teece, of the University of California, also noted the importance of cooperation and in his writings has stressed the need to form alliances in accordance with shifting corporate and market boundaries. As the digital technologies once used almost exclusively in computers continue to spread to telecommunications, consumer electronics, and other areas, new interfirm relationships will be required to harness the manufacturing, marketing, and other capabilities required to compete in global markets.
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From page 68... ...
"Whether we succeed or fail," said John Doyle of Hewlett Packard, "depends on how we manage our businesses and how the government manages the business environment." Most colloquium participants saw the government as playing an enabling role, as setting up a policy and regulatory framework that accommodates the flexibility needed to compete in global markets and fosters a long-term strategic view of competitive issues. Taking this argument further, Paul Turner, director of research at Price Waterhouse Technology Center, cautioned against an active, protectionist posture.
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From page 69... ...
The challenge may be even greater than the colloquium's discussion of technical aspects suggests. The United States is in some sense outnumbered in international standards arenas, because each country effectively has an equal vote.
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From page 70... ...
From this dialogue, perhaps, will come the necessary leadership to ensure that the United States responds effectively to the strategic challenges mounted by foreign competitors. Fragmented, piecemeal responses will not be sufficient.
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