Convergence processes in the mobile communication processor

Abstract

This paper investigates the convergence process at the product-level, defined as the phenomenon of combining several products, once in disparate sectors, into a single product. A simple analytical framework is proposed to analyze the processes and mechanisms by which the convergence of products is being created and managed. Convergence in the mobile communication processor that integrates multimedia features into the mobile communication chip itself is analyzed as a case in point. We observe that convergence processes encompass both technology-side and demand-side convergence and the opportunity for convergence of products depends on not only the producers’ economies of scope but also the consumers’ preferences.