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So often people are told that keeping up with new technology is the way to make your business succeed. Yet more and more, new technologies are eliminating the very reason for many companies to exist.
One example is the movie rental store. Many such stores are closing in the U.S., because companies like Netflix can easily send DVDs through the mail while offering a much wider selection.
Most movie rental stores went along with the transition from VHS to DVD, shrinking or eliminating their supply of VHS tapes. Most people ended up buying DVD players, even if they didn't really want to.
These stores switched to DVDs so that they wouldn't be "left in the past", but it is actually accelerating their downfall. They should have realized that many people were satisfied with VHS.
If these stores had kept only renting VHS tapes, fewer people would have bought DVD players. People who didn't feel any need to switch to DVD would have continued to frequent them.
Even if new movies had stopped being released on VHS despite this, the variety of VHS movies created during the '80s/90s would have remained quite sufficient, as long as stores added to their selections.
There are real examples of this strategy. During the '90s, a few companies remained prosperous by developing and selling parts, accessories, and publications for "obsolete" computers from the 1980s.
Likewise, some AM radio stations still do well and have many listeners. FM may have seemed like it would replace AM at one time, but the vast majority of radio receivers still cover both bands.
Basically, business owners should keep in mind that catering to an "obsolete" niche is sometimes better than trying to catch up with a new technology which pits them against far too many competitors.
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