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Japan has a strong lead over both the United States and Western Europe in the development of liquid crystal displays (LCDs). We argue in this article that LCDs and associated integrated display technologies are critical for competition in a growing proportion of global electronics markets. The “architecture of supply” is the issue here, and U.S. firms need help from the government to insure that they will have access to the latest display technologies in a timely manner at market prices. Besides adopting foreign economic policies designed to achieve this purpose, it will be necessary for the government to continue to work with the domestic electronics industry to raise the industry's technological capabilities in new display technologies.

In an era in which the electronics sector is the driving industry in the economy, “Wintelism” is the codeword used in this article to reflect a shift in competitive dynamics away from final assembly and vertical market control, towards a struggle over setting and evolving de facto product standards at any point in the value chain. It is argued that “Wintelism” has its origins in the American high-technology sector, but is now diffusing through the creation of international production networks.

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