Focuses on strategic decisions regarding investment in digital imaging technology facing Polaroid Corp., a worldwide leader in the traditional imaging marketplace, in July 1997. New Polaroid CEO Gary DiCamillo must decide how much emphasis to place on digital vs. traditional imaging technology, how to restructure the organization to capitalize on this new technology, and whether to support a new proposal to develop a digital camera for the mass market.

A condensed version of Crown Cork & Seal Co., Inc. The principal changes are the elimination of details about the early history of the company and condensation of the final section, Outlook for the Future.

Examines a significant example of "technological pioneering"--the development of an emerging technology in pursuit of future commercial opportunity. In this case, the pioneer's efforts resulted in the birth of a major industry, the manufacture of videocassette recorders for the mass consumer market. The authors compare the actions of six firms that were pioneers in the development of this technology, two in the United States and four in Japan. Three firms, all Japanese, emerged in the late 1970s as the big winners in the growth of this new industry. However, this is not another case in which international differences in "competitiveness" were decisive. The real success story lies in the management practices of three pioneers, who just happened to be Japanese.