Technology development strategy for radical product meaning

Product meaning is important for consumers. Although there exists a substantial amount of research concerning product meaning, the issue that has centred on the relationship between technology and meaning has remained. In this paper, we examine how the companies conducted their technology development aimed at improving product specifications or generating new meanings (improving product languages) for consumers. To this end, we propose a framework that describes an association between technologies and meanings. A case study within the plasma display panel (PDP) industry raises the possibility that mainstream research has shifted from a focus on specifications to a focus on languages. Further, as the growing diffusion rate of PDP, as well as a quantitative analysis of patents described in this paper, illustrate that Japanese manufacturer Panasonic has engaged in both technological and design research concurrently. Results show that technological research and design research are mutually dependent. Copyright