Question

Question 1
a) State stages of technology evolution. (6 marks)
b) Name a technology which had gone through all the stages. Discuss what had
been evolved in the said technology throughout the stages

Answer 1

(a) Technology evolution refers to the improvement and progress in the technology in different phases over a period of time. The stages of technology evolution are as follows:

• The research & development phase/bleeding phase: in this phase, the income generation is negative and the chances of product to fail in the market are really high.
• The ascent phase: in this phase, the technology improves and puts a strong foot forward in the market. Growth in technology is seen in this phase and the product is being highly used and accepted.
• The maturity phase: in this phase, the earnings are high, profits are earned but there is a stability in the technology. The technology is mature, this means it can anytime enter the decline phase. The profit generation is also high in this phase.
• The decline phase: in this stage, the technology faces downfall since the rivals with better technology comes up and launches a new product in the market. Here the present technology comes to an end and is replaced by the new one.

(b) An example of a technology that have evolved through all the stages of technology evolution is Smart phones.

• The smart phones have been a part of the R&D phase, when in the 90's the first smart phone was launched. In this phase this new technology was researched upon, and initially launched in the market to be used, tested and accepted by the customers.
• Next they were a part of the ascent phase as well where the technology used in smart phones was improved. The variety of GB space was made available in the smart phones, with touch screen technology in the play and more battery life.
• The smart phones were also a part of the maturity phase, where for sometime stability in the smart phones is seen and there are stable number of profits earned by the companies.
• Further, in some of the smart phones the technology has been out dated and the new players are in the market with Artificial intelligence technology, including SIRI and Google assistance. This new technology have made certain smart phones fall into this decline phase and fail in the market.

It can be concluded, that there is no one technology which moves in all the phases step by step, it might experience certain jumps and loops as per the changes in external environment.