Analyzing the Phenomenon of a “Shake-out”

Abstract

The phenomenon of a “shake-out” (sharp decrease) caused by a large number of companies in an industry occurs with the emergence of a “dominant design.” However, no such shake-out occurred in Japan’s online securities industry. This is because apart from Matsui Securities Co., Ltd., the creator of a dominant design and considered to be the “only winner” in online securities, this industry was not as impacted by “process innovation” as a manufacturing industry. This was because online securities firms implemented package software systems made for the securities industry by one of the two major vendors. As a result, while other companies did not have a high level of performance as Matsui Securities, they survived although they did not become major players. In other words, establishing dominant design for services, as opposed to products, may serve to suppress, rather than promote, the exit of companies.

Keywords

• a–u model
• dominant design
• shake-out