Looking at the Internet situation you kind of think of the Life Cycle of Products we all know from Marketing 101. This concept could be applied here. Each of the four major players is in a different point of the Life Cycle. AOL, the eldest company, reached the down slope of the curve. Yahoo and Microsoft are at the top of the curve but their future is an enigma. Both companies can remain at the top for some time due to inertia and their big size. Google, the youngest of the four companies, is in the up slope of the curve and will keep on climbing the up cycle. Eventually new contenders will appear in the future.
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