Dominant design

From InnovationManagementWiki

Dominant design refers to the design that eventually prevails in an industry which has gone through its early phases, the "fluid stage". The concept is closely related to de-facto standards. A dominant design does not necessarily have to better than other designs on the market or technically feasible – it is the one that because of the forces behind it or a conjunction of circumstances evolves as crowding out other alternatives. Once the dominant design has emerged in an industry, it is often difficult for firms to compete unless they adhere to this design, though it does happen that a deviant, 'minority' design can coexist.