As the hypercompetitive stage fades, the winners settle down into a routine. Products become standardized, brands and marketing are fine-tuned, and costs are wrung out of the system. Competition for the market becomes competition in the market. Market shares become well defined, and corporate strategy turns to chipping away at the competition rather than engaging in all-out war. The danger at this stage lies in being too competitive.
Dominant players have to learn how to avoid price wars and costly standards battles.
Companies that have withstood a prolonged war of attrition may find it hard to believe they've won, and find it difficult to make the transition to a less frenetic environment. Worries about survival are replaced with worries about antitrust suits. The Internet's strength lies in selling highly differentiated content and services. The infrastructure providers of basic services may dominate the headlines, but the bulk of the business opportunity lies in customized services and targeted media. It will become something we take for granted.