Computer Wars: The Fall of IBM and the Future of Western Technology

An analysis of America's place in the computer industry presents the optimistic theory that small, maverick computer companies have been picking up the slack for such companies as IBM and have been keeping America in the game. 15,000 first printing.

Reading more like a consultant's report than a popular narrative, this densely written analysis suggests that small, maverick companies, rather than giants, have the best chance to lead the computer business. At first, Morris ( The Coming Global Boom ) and computer consultant Ferguson draw on anonymous, inside sources to chronicle the decline of IBM, blaming mainly the corporation's managers but also trade barriers raised by both the U.S. and Japan. Then the authors look more broadly at the industry. Noting America's edge in innovation and software, and Asian advantages in manufacturing, they suggest that the battle will be over "architectures"--the standards that define computer networks--and explore business strategies to control those standards. Only in the final chapters do Ferguson and Morris address industrial policy: they propose a "pro-technology policy agenda" that supports basic research and intervenes to prevent other countries from establishing cartels over crucial components. Even more important to industrial growth, the authors note, is a reordering of federal spending in areas such as health care. Author tour.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Ferguson, a computer analyst, and Morris, an economist, paint a cautiously optimistic picture of America's potential to reclaim its leading market share in the area of technology. They begin by chronicling IBM's rise to dominance in the industry and its dramatically accelerating decline. Next, they analyze the ingenuity and strategies of smaller American companies that constitute the force necessary to win the computer wars without IBM; they delineate the essential rules for future success. Finally, the authors outline political implications and emerging opportunities for Western firms in consumer electronics. Other topics of discussion: the impact of government policy, the prospects and problems facing companies, and the effect of the computer wars on every citizen. A superb blueprint that will intrigue an informed audience.
- Joe Accardi, Northeastern Illinois Univ. Lib., Chicago
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.