Leading companies that did NOT innovate on time • Forbes Network • Forbes Mexico

Many companies that experience success from innovation hang on and believe that this is their secret to everlasting success. This mindset puts any company or business at risk of failure, and refusing to evolve with the market can be even more devastating.

Although some of the companies were successful and others were condemned to accept their failure, the point is that failure due to not innovating happens everywhere: from the largest companies to startups. Each company has its specific example of how or why it failed at a certain time.

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Business history is littered with huge failures that were caused by not jumping on the innovation bandwagon or believing that this was not the way to go. Many companies closed and others that were a trend in the sector collapsed, giving way to other companies that did know how to understand the change.

Here I will tell you about some of the more than 50 companies that did not know how to understand technological change and did not innovate on time, which led them to fail miserably:

Kodak: The company led the photography market for much of the 20th century, but missed the opportunity of failing to understand the power of digital photography. In 1975, Steve Sasson invented the first digital camera, but Kodak's owners failed to see it as a good market opportunity.

In other words, the company was unable to identify and lead a disruptive technology. He filed for bankruptcy in 2012.

Nokia: It was the first company in the world to create a mobile phone and dominated the market during the late 1990s and early 2000s. The company failed to understand the importance of investing in software and continued to put all its efforts to stand out in hardware. He did not believe that the future of communication was going to go through data instead of voice.

Empresas líderes que NO innovaron a tiempo • Red Forbes • Forbes México

They refused to lead the drastic change in people's usage experience, which led them to develop a complex operating system that didn't fit the market.

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Blockbuster: The video rental company peaked in 2004, surviving the switch from VHS to DVD. In 1985 they opened their first store, the idea was extremely innovative, to rent movies to watch from the comfort of home, unfortunately, with the arrival of the internet, the rental of tapes was less and less.

Blockbuster was approached to join forces with Netflix, a small company that rented movies through the mail. The offer was to create a streaming service, however, the company rejected it, not considering it a good business.

American On Line (AOL): In the mid-1990s, AOL was not only the only Internet provider next to Trumpet Winsock. Its instant messaging platform was one of the best apps. But the company feared losing its customers when Microsoft's Messenger came along and couldn't come up with a new strategy. Furthermore, the rise of broadband led to a rapid decline in users.

Back in the 2000s, it tried to merge with Time Warner, a major media company, in a $350 billion deal that was the biggest merger failure of the 21st century. In 2015, it was bought by Verizon Communications.

Abercrombie & Fitch: It was once a leader in branded casual wear and accessories, until the early 2000s. Its target was young people influenced by pop culture that shaped what they wanted to wear.

However, the high prices of its clothes, the tendency to consume cheaper brands such as H&M or Forever 21 and some unfortunate statements by its CEO in 2006 caused its brand to lose prestige and teenagers no longer felt identified with it.

Tower Records: A music retail chain where you could buy CDs, cassettes, DVDs, electronics, video games, and accessories. But despite its success, it couldn't deal with digital disruption, piracy and streaming services. Napster, an Internet service launched in 1999 for sharing digital files, spread like a virus and began the industry's downfall.

The company filed for bankruptcy in 2004, due to its large debt.

Compaq: It was one of the leading companies in computer development during the 90's and achieved great things such as producing the first computer with IBM. His big problem was the tough price fight he had with Dell before it was acquired by HP in 2002.

The brand disappeared in 2013.

Large companies that do not innovate risk disappearing. That is the hard truth in “the digital age”.

Survival, in the field of large companies, depends largely on their ability to adapt to constant cultural and technological changes. The world is moving fast and the digital world is becoming more and more a part of the physical world.

The most common mistake in companies: ignoring users.

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Javier López Casarín is an Expert in Innovation*

The opinions expressed are the sole responsibility of their authors and are completely independent of the position and editorial line of Forbes Mexico.