The Disruptive Potential of Game Technologies
Research Technology Management › Vol. 50 Nbr. 2, March 2007
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Summary
Modern computer gaming technologies initially provided low-end capabilities for a small niche within the simulation industry. However, over time they improved to the point where they became more powerful than many of the established tools in the field. This disruption is following the well-established innovation model that was put forward by Harvard professor Clayton Christensen. Game technologies provide significant advantages in industries like training, education, communication, and data analysis. The disruptive potential of these technologies will spur the growth of new types of companies and threaten the positions of established leaders in a number of industries.
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The Disruptive Potential of Game Technologies
Technology innovation has often been characterized as either radical or incremental. Incremental innovation refers to changes that "build on and reinforce the applicability of existing technology" (1). These changes strengthen the value of existing technology and the products that use them by making the products more reliable, simpler to use, lower in cost, or accessible to a larger customer base. Most established companies are involved in researching, creating and marketing incremental innovations to their products. Radical innovation, in contrast, refers to changes that "destroy the value of an existing knowledge base" (2). These changes negate the value of existing technology by providing an alternative that is significantly different and to which older technologies cannot be adapted.
In his 1992 Harvard University dissertion, Clayton Christensen introduced a variation to radical and incremental innovation (3). He explored sustaining and disruptive innovations. Sustaining innovations are similar to Dewar and Dutton's definition of incremental innovation, above; they improve upon established products and technologies by adding to them. However, disruptive innovations are different from radical innovations. They have the va...See the full content of this document
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