Word
cannibalism
Phoneticscan·ni·bal·ism
US/ˈkænəbəˌɫɪzəm/
UK/kˈænɪbəlˌɪzəm/
Definition
n. the act of one animal eating another of its own kind, or a person eating another person. In business, it also describes when a company's new product takes sales away from its own older products.
n. the practice of consuming the flesh of one's own species. In a commercial context, refers to the reduction in sales volume or market share of one product as a result of the introduction of a new product by the same producer.
Examples
“The company worried that the new phone would lead to cannibalism of their tablet sales.”
“Biologists observed cannibalism in the insect population when food sources became scarce during the long dry season.”
“Market analysts warned that launching a cheaper subscription tier might result in corporate cannibalism, effectively eroding the profit margins established by the premium service.”
Examples
simple
“The company worried that the new phone would lead to cannibalism of their tablet sales.”
contextual
“Biologists observed cannibalism in the insect population when food sources became scarce during the long dry season.”
complex
“Market analysts warned that launching a cheaper subscription tier might result in corporate cannibalism, effectively eroding the profit margins established by the premium service.”
Usage
Often used metaphorically in marketing and economics to describe internal competition.
Real-World Examples
“They did so through intrauterine cannibalism—or eating their siblings before birth .” “The authors advance the hypothesis of conflict-related cannibalism, a form of predation targeting females from neighboring groups.” Etymology
From cannibal + -ism.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.