The Microcomputer Industry in Brazil: The Case of a Protected High-Technology Industry

In 1977 Brazil initiated the market reserve policy to protect and reserve its domestic market for its own computer manufacturing companies. The basic assumptions on which its plans rested were fatally flawed, however, and the experiment failed to a large degree. This work investigates to what extent the policy, so carefully fashioned, fell short of its target and left Brazil with expensive and poorly made products. The author also evaluates the important and influential role of Brazil’s bureaucracy and military. Scholars of economic development, industrial organization, economic history, and technology should find this work valuable.