A trip to the typical U.S. electronics store suggests many Americans would gladly shell out some extra cash for high-end lightweight products. Smaller, lighter, and more-expensive laptops are occupying an ever-increasing amount of shelf space. Even if a larger percentage of Japanese and European consumers reach for higher-end products than their U.S. counterparts, a small percentage of Americans could still spell big sales.

Why, then, do some innovative products never make it to our shores?

The Corporate Quarantine

Many manufacturers prefer to introduce new electronics in their own countries, to see what problems may arise before exporting the goods. There is a strong interest in catching and repairing previously unknown design defects before hitting the U.S. mass market, where the cost of a product recall could be disastrous.

Companies must also gauge consumer reaction locally before exporting. Manufacturers realize that despite extensive consumer testing, it is important to float a limited quantity of a product and see how well consumers react to it before opening the floodgates-only to find less demand than anticipated.

Some products are at a performance disadvantage in the U.S., like cutting-edge smartphones that do not mesh well with the current state of American telecom services, and videophones that operate much better in countries that have higher-speed wireless networks. The faster the network , the smoother the video will appear. In general, Japanese and Korean telecommunications companies have been quicker to provide faster connections than those offered in the U.S., so consumers in those countries are presented with more-advanced phones and more-advanced services.

Plus, according to a major player in this game, the U.S. tech market tends to take its cue from big business, not John Q. Public.

"In Japan, where a majority of the cutting-edge innovation occurs, they're driven by consumer demand. In the U.S., we're mainly driven by business needs. That's why you see more of an emphasis on cheap laptops than on lightweight machines," says Douglas Krone, chief executive of Dynamism.com, an online site that sells technology not found on the shelves of U.S. retail stores. (continued...)

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