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Innovation and Design
Innovation and Design
The lessons of business history have taught us that there is no such thing as a static market. There are no guarantees of continued business success for companies regardless of their field of endeavor. The history of media and telecommunications is replete with examples of companies that were once high flyers (the best of the best) but who failed to plan for the future. Companies
with iconic names like Eastman Kodak, Blockbuster Video, Radio Shack and Blackberry wireless, to name only a few, have been greatly reduced or are no more. Today, the international
business landscape has become ever more challenging. Global competition has engendered a new competitive spirit that cuts across countries and companies alike. No company large
or small remains unaffected by the desire to increase profits and decrease costs. Such companies are faced with the same basic question; namely, what are the best methods for staying competitive
over time? In a word, innovation.
In principle, there are two kinds of innovation; namely, sustaining technology versus disruptive technology. A sustaining technology has to do with product improvement and performance. The goal is to improve on an existing technology or service by adding new and enhanced feature elements. Such examples might include incremental improvements in Microsoft office software or the steady progressions made in the design of the Apple iPhone. In contrast, a disruptive (or breakthrough) technology represents an altogether different approach to an existing product design and process.
It redefines the playing field. Consider, for example, the impact that Zoom (and equivalent conferencing software technology) have had
in redefining organizational workspace and remote working from home.
Photos: Pixabay
Suggested Video Presentations
History of Steve Jobs
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s4pVFLUlx8g
From the 60 Minutes Archives: Steve Jobs
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c-JkrlVhs_0
Steve Jobs: 2005 Stanford University Commencement Address
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UF8uR6Z6KLc
60 Minutes Interview with Bill Gates
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bNKdlnoAqIs
Suggested Readings, Journals and Websites
Albarran, A., Faustino P. and Santos, R. (Eds.), (2011). The Media as a Driver of the Information Society.
Lisbon, Portugal: Media XXI / Formal Press.
Anderson, C. (2006). The Long Tail: Why the Future of Business is Selling Less of More. New York, USA:
Hyperion.
Brooke M. & Mills, W. (2003). New Product Development: Successful Innovation in the Marketplace.
Binghamton, New York, USA: International Business Press.
Carah, N. (2021). Media and Society: Power, Platforms, and Participation. Thousand Oaks, CA. USA: Sage.
Chesbrough, H. (2003). Open Innovation: The New Imperative for Creating and Profiting from Technology.
Boston, MA., USA: Harvard Business School Press.
Christensen, C. (1997). The Innovator’s Dilemma. Boston, MA., USA: Harvard Business School Press.
Christensen, C. (2003). The Innovator’s Solution. Boston, MA., USA: Harvard Business School Press.
Davidson, P. (2022). Democratizing Innovation in Organizations. Berlin, Germany: De Gruyter.
Dal Zotto, C & van Kranenburg, H. (Eds.), (2008). Management and Innovation in the Media Industry.
Cheltenham, UK: Edward Elgar.
Davila, T., Epstein, M. & Shelton, R. (2006). Making Innovation Work. Philadelphia, PA. USA:
Wharton School Publishing.
Deuze, M., & Prenger, M. (2019). Making Media: Production, Practices, and Professions. Amsterdam,
Netherlands: Amsterdam University Press.
Friedrichsen, M. & Mühl-Benninghaus, W. (Eds.), (2013). Handbook of Social Media. Berlin, Germany:
Springer.
Gershon R. (2017). Digital Media and Innovation: Management and Design Strategies in Communication.
Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Gertner, J. (2012). The Idea Factory: Bell Labs and the Great Age of American Innovation. New York, USA:
Penguin Press.
Gillespie, T. (2018). Custodians of the Internet Platforms, Content Moderation, and the Hidden Decisions
That Shape Social Media. New Haven, CN. USA: Yale University Press.
Isaacson, W. (2011). Steve Jobs. New York, USA: Simon & Schuster.
Isaacson, W. (2014). The Innovators. New York, USA: Simon & Schuster.
Johnson, S. (2010). Where Good Ideas Come From: The Natural History of Innovation. New York, USA:
Riverhead Books.
Keen, A. (2007). The Cult of the Amateur. New York, USA: Doubleday.
Kelley, T. (2005). The Ten Faces of Innovation. New York, USA: Doubleday.
Kueng, L. (2020). Hearts and Minds: Harnessing Leadership Culture, and Talent to Really Go Digital.
Oxford, UK: Reuters Institute, University of Oxford.
Kim, W. & Mauborgne, R. (2005). Blue Ocean Strategy, Boston, MA. USA: Harvard Business School Press.
Krumsvik, A. (Ed.), (2013). Media Innovations: A Multidisciplinary Study of Change. Göteborg, Sweden:
Nordicom.
McDonald, P., Donoghue, C. and Havens, T. (Eds.), (2021). Digital Media Distribution: Portals, Platforms,
Pipelines. New York, USA: New York University Press.
Noam, E. (2021). The Technology, Business, and Economics of Streaming Video: The Next Generation
of Media Emerges. Cheltenham, UK: Edward Elgar Publishing.
Poell, T., Nieborg, D. & Duffy, B. (2021). Platforms and Cultural Production. New York, USA: John Wiley & Sons.
Rogers, E. (1995). Diffusion of Innovation. 4th ed., New York, USA: Free Press.
Schmidt, E. & Cohen, J. (2013). The New Digital Age. New York: Alfred A. Knopf.
Schumpeter, J. (1942). Capitalism, Socialism and Democracy. New York, USA: Harper & Row.
Journals
Academy of Management Journal
https://aom.org/research/journals/journal
IEEE Internet of Things Journal
IEEE Wireless Communications
https://www.comsoc.org/publications/magazines/ieee-wireless-communications
International Journal of Media Management
https://www.tandfonline.com/journals/hijm20
Journal of Broadcasting and Electronic Media
https://www.tandfonline.com/journals/hbem20
Journal of Media Business Studies
https://www.tandfonline.com/journals/romb20
Journal of Media Innovations
https://journals.uio.no/TJMI/about
Research Policy
https://www.sciencedirect.com/journal/research-policy
Technology Magazines and Websites
C/net
IEEE Spectrum
MIT Technology Review
https://www.technologyreview.com/
TechCrunch
Wired Magazine