Thursday, September 9, 2010
Insights and Opinions: Consolidation As Industry Evolution
For today's Insights and Opinions, piece, where we feature interesting comments, insights, opinions, and advice from the local community, we have a post from Megan Jones, of Hadley Partners. Jones talks about the history of industry consolidation, and why it is a natural part of the evolution of industries.
All the lessons of history in four sentences: Whom the gods would destroy, they first make mad with power. The mills of God grind slowly, but they grind exceedingly small. The bee fertilizes the flower it robs. When it is dark enough, you can see the stars.
Charles A. Beard
This morning I was speaking with David Cremin of DFJ Frontier (VC) and drinking some excellent coffee. The topic turned at one point to industry consolidation.
My initial point had been that select media related spaces will likely consolidate at some point (and indeed are starting to do so). This theme has been a big one for me lately and its roots arise from the industry consolidations I saw early in my career as a tech banker in Menlo Park. A number of companies that I've spoken to recently have had a potential acquirer lurking nearby – whether or not they are interested in selling.
Why do emerging industries sometimes evolve quickly into consolidating ones?
Read the rest of Megan's article, Consolidation: or one industry evolution which often repeats.