Extending perfect timing theory: not just one but several windows of opportunity

ABSTRACT

A recent study investigated the optimal time to enter emerging industries, introducing the existence of a window of opportunity for firms. The present study doubted its validity in a situation labeled as ‘long-tail industry life-cycle’. It is proposed that the concept ‘window of opportunity’ could be valid also in long-tail industry life-cycle situations, but that in these cases several windows of opportunity could emerge, at the subsystem or component level, after the establishment of a dominant design at the product level. The crux of the problem, as detailed in the rest of the paper, is represented by product architecture.