Crossing the Chasm, a landmark 1991 book, explored the challenges high-technology markets face while moving from obscurity to ubiquity – early adopters and mainstream users have very different needs. What’s needed, the author argued, is a "beachhead" for new technologies to capture the mainstream market.
For instance, MP3 digital storage first appeared in 1993, but only after Napster (late ‘90s) and iTunes (2001) revolutionized how we buy and share our favorite tunes did digitally-stored and purchased....