Abstract

The printing of software manuals has become a very important and distinct subsector within the overall printing industry. This thesis sets out to examine the development of this subsector by examining the market structure of the sector, identifying the competitive forces that exist and outlining the strategies adopted by the firms in the market. The starting point for the thesis is an examination of the traditional structureconduct- performance model and its relationship with the wider business policy field.- This examination is elementary and serves to provide a very useful starting point. Next a specific framework is developed to examine the software manual printing sector. This framework concentrates on the dimensions of structure and conduct, with the causality flowing from structural criteria; conduct is equated with a firm's business strategy. The dimension of performance is reduced in importance, reflecting the view that performance is largely a matter for the individual firms; however performance does influence both conduct and structure. Before examining the software manual sector an outline is provided of the printing and publishing industry (NACE 473/474). This outline highlights the broader industrial context within which the software manual printing industry has emerged. The software manual printing sector is examined by means of the industrial organisation framework developed. This comprises two elements; an analysis of the market structure, along the dimensions of market definition, market concentration and entry barriers, and a review of the generic strategies adopted by the suppliers. The thesis concludes with a number of industrial policy recommendations for this sector, and in particular it outlines that industrial policy is required for both traded and non-traded sectors.