According to Michael Porter’s 1979 theory, any industry’s competition is driven by five competitive forces: Bargaining power of buyers Nature and intensity of the rivalry amongst competitors Threat of new entrants Threat of substitute products or services The bargaining power of suppliers The composition and strength of these forces collectively determine the nature of industry competition and the average profitability for incumbent competitors. Industry structure changes when new technology, customer needs, or other factors shift these five forces. Smart, connected products, or the Internet of Things (IoT), will substantially affect structure in many industries, not least smart commercial buildings and home automation, as did the previous waves of IT in the 70s and internet-enabled IT in the 90s. Smart, connected products dramatically expand opportunities for product differentiation, moving competition away from price alone. Knowing how customers actually use the products enhances a company’s ability to segment customers, customise products, set prices to better capture value, […]