Interesting article (subscription required) on how big companies are gobbling up the innovative, smaller ones. Wifi was supposed to be a revival for the tech industry - to date, it hasn't lived up to that billing.

Intel's move into Wi-Fi, and Intersil's retreat, illustrate how a maturing high-tech industry has changed. For all of Silicon Valley's mythic start-ups, sudden billionaires and startling innovations, the advantages of size, longevity and brand identification are now often overwhelming. Giants such as Intel, Microsoft Corp. and Cisco Systems Inc. began as upstarts, but today their sheer size means they don't need to be first anymore. Instead, it's enough for the titans to be observant and nimble, so they can scoop up new ideas before threats develop.

posted by mt at 16:11