A classic case study of disruptive innovation is how steam-powered ships eventually replaced wind-powered ships in the transoceanic business. The first steamship operated on the Hudson River in 1819, and as Clay Christensen wrote, "It under-performed transoceanic sailing ships on nearly every dimension of performance: It cost more per mile to operate; it was slower; and prone to frequent breakdowns." Hence, it was not considered a serious threat to wind-powered transoceanic travel, even though it was well suited for inland waterways, where its performance was measured very differently.
"In rivers and lakes," noted Christensen, "the ability to move against the wind or in the absence of a wind was the attribute most highly valued by ship captains, and along that dimension, steam outperformed sail."' Sailing ship makers, however, continued to focus on different attributes (e.g., cost per mile) until finally steamship performance surpassed that of sail.
The seeds of the demise of sailing ships were found in the sailing ship builders' reluctance to change strategy and build steamships for the inland waterways. Why? The customers of sailing ship manufacturers were transoceanic shippers and they did not demand the use of steamships until technology improvements made them economically competitive for transoceanic voyages.
Here is the point. All makers of sailing ships ignored steam power, and not one survived once steam-powered ships dominated the high seas.