VHS became dominant because it initially offered two hours per tape when Beta offered only one. Consumers mostly wanted to record movies and sports, which lasted longer than one hour. By the time beta got around to offering two-hour tapes, users and video stores were already happy with VHS and saw no advantage in switching back. Also, Beta was first. If lock-in mattered, we should have been stuck with Beta.
Regulators seem to regard network lock-in of software products as a foregone conclusion.
But our detailed examination of numerous software markets reveals that better products quickly overtake incumbents, with market-share changes occurring rapidly. But there is certainly no evidence of lock-in here. In all cases, the speed of the turnaround was remarkable. At a time that e-mailing did not cross from one Internet service provider to another, Prodigy's position might have been thought to be walled in. But then Prodigy gave up its price advantage just as AOL was beginning to offer a more intuitive interface and better content.