D'Aveni (strategic management, Dartmouth) defines the commodity trap as a form of hypercompetition in which companies are forced to continuously differentiate products and decrease prices in order to keep up with competitors. He draws on a study of 30 industries to explain how commoditization works, how to identify the three most common commodity traps, and how to respond to each. Examples explore the tactics of companies such as Harley-Davidson, iPhone, and Apple. An appendix offers tips for doing price-benefit analysis. Annotation ©2010 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)