Product Description

In this analysis of strategy-making and product innovation in the markets of commercial cyberspace, the authors draw lessons from Netscape and how it has employed the techniques of "judo strategy" in its pitched battle against Microsoft.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1019179 in Books
• Published on: 2000-03-07
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 384 pages

Amazon.co.uk Review
No other business rivalry has captured the public imagination quite like the one between Netscape and Microsoft. And for good reason. It pits the world's richest corporation against a relatively recent startup. The implications of this battle--for everything from electronic commerce to network communications--extend well into the next millennium. Competing on Internet Time, by Michael A. Cusumano and David B. Yoffie, is the definitive blow-by-blow analysis of Netscape's battle with Microsoft, starting with the founding of Netscape in 1994 through to the summer of 1998, just as Microsoft was about to enter the courtroom with the Justice department over its alleged monopolistic practices.

Based on a series of interviews with Netscape employees and others, Competing on Internet Time is more than a breathless corporate biography. Rather, the authors draw lessons from the mistakes and victories that both Netscape and Microsoft have suffered and enjoyed in their war for 'Net turf--in terms of browsers, server software, and portal space. The authors come up with some surprising conclusions. For example, in examining the competitive strategies of both companies, Cusumano and Yoffie conclude that Microsoft, more than Netscape, exhibited what they call a "judo flexibility." Here they point to Microsoft's now famous December 7, 1995, Internet Day announcement of the company's embrace-and-extend strategy and its subsequent sacrifice of MSN in a deal with AOL--prime examples of how Microsoft redefined the battle in a way that avoided a direct confrontation with Netscape but nevertheless placed them centre stage in the fight for Internet mind share. The authors also go into fascinating detail about how each company operates--from the hiring of staffers to the conception, development and marketing of products.

But this book is more than just about the conflict between Netscape and Microsoft. Anyone interested in how network-based businesses grow and change will find Competing on Internet Time a glimpse into the not-too-distant network economy. It belongs on the bookshelf of every Internet junkie and entrepreneur. --Harry C. Edwards, Amazon.com

Customer Reviews

Do You Remember Netscape Navigator
Netscape used to own 90 percent of market share for browsing the internet. The company believed that the browser could replace the operating system. This was a direct threat to Microsoft, which attacked it head on, and destroyed Netscape's dominance. Netscape did not place much emphasis on building relationships with other individual companies. Potential partners viewed Netscape as arrogant, unwilling to listen, and only interested in short-term gains.

Most PC software is distributed through two channels:

1) Computer OEM channel which includes companies such as Dell, IBM, Compaq. The software is preloaded.
2) Internet

Netscape had a disadvantage compared with Microsoft because Windows is the default choice for PC users. Since Netscape did not have strong relationships with partners such as Dell, it had to distribute its software via the Internet. When Microsoft placed an Internet Explorer icon on the desktop, this was the start to the end of Netscape's dominance. People did not see a significant difference between Netscape Navigator and Internet Explorer. They simply went with the default - Internet Explorer. I highly recommend this book.

- Mariusz Skonieczny, author of Why Are We So Clueless about the Stock Market? Learn how to invest your money, how to pick stocks, and how to make money in the stock market

Good if you're into management consultancy
The book is heavy going at times and in many ways you could read the last chapter and have read the entire book. Gives a very detailed account of Netscape's evolution that may appeal to some.