The only sure prediction for the auto industry is that no one knows what the future holds. We are still waiting for those flying cars that every forecaster since the first prophet has predicted will happen in just the next 20 years. Just as all businesses need to do, the auto industry is going to have to close its ears to the siren song of maximizing profitability and instead focus on researching and redefining current strategies, and aim for flexibility. In the future, businesses will have to balance the capital market’s desire for ever-increasing profitability against strategic demands of being responsive to market disruptions that arise from changing consumer tastes, increasing regulations and the introduction of new technologies.
Since technology has effectively made all markets global we will see more homogenization of markets. But this will not result in one universally homogenous market. Even after 200 years the United States markets are still not completely homogeneous. So one would expect that cultural barriers separating distant parts of the world will never become so similar that one business model will work for all. Business professionals and those who research the industry will have to take into account myriad business models.