A Study On Preannouncements Of Innovation Products With Indirect Network Externalities

With the coming of the network economy era, preannouncements as a new product marketing strategy are increasingly used in marketing innovation products with indirect network externalities. Investigation on preannouncements of innovation products with indirect network externalities has presented profound significance both from a theoretical and a practical view. In order to provide the effective theoretical guidance for those firms manufacturing innovation products, this thesis analyzes preannouncements of innovation product and proves its necessity.Preannouncements have the abilities of predicting the market and obtaining the feedback. At first, the thesis makes use of population biology quantitative model of interdependence to describe the relationship between innovation products with indirect network externalities and complementary products, which shows the importance of preannouncements strategy. Moreover, we introduce the preannouncements to this model as a factor affecting the initial ownership and final penetration of innovation product in order to prove the validity of the preannouncements strategy. For the purpose of presenting a meaningful and theoretical guidance for practice, we develop a conceptual model to describe the contents and details which should be considered in the preannouncements process. It contains the contents, purposes, target audiences, timing, tools, intensity and risks of preannouncements strategy, respectively. In this thesis, we take the case of Microsoft Windows Vista's preannouncements to illustrate the theory.The results show that we must ensure that there is more than one compatible complementary product in the market if we want the innovation products with indirect network externalities to have a long-term stable development in its process of marketing. Using the preannouncements strategy, we can not only promote complementary product manufacturers to develop a variety of complementary products, but also expand the final market share and speed of market penetration of the innovation products. In addition, preannouncements strategy can reduce the risks of innovation technology commercialization. Innovation product manufacturers, innovation product itself, external market competition, consumer, and some other important factors should be considered when we make a preannouncements strategy. The implement of preannouncements strategy is a series of continuous process. An effective preannouncements strategy can ultimately promote the market expansion of the innovation products and assure them to be competitive in the strong competitive market.