Most of the financial benefit to producers, they say, will come from spreading fixed overhead costs, like electricity, over a wider product base.
However, a limited product base, a virtually Mac-only ecosystem and high prices mean that Thunderbolt will never truly compete with USB.
The chief executive of Turquoise, Eli Lederman, said that the exchange's support would enable the struggling platform to "simplify our operational structure, attract a wider network and expand the platform's product base".
Increasingly, as Microsoft moves to expand its services and product base it is competing with, among others, its longtime partner the chip-maker Intel, which is also investing in content and multimedia.
Building on its strengths in fertility, neurology and metabolism, the company broadened its product base to include drugs for multiple sclerosis and the wasting syndrome associated with AIDS, and now gets three-quarters of its sales from recombinant products.
Mr. Cassar said that while CDNow had failed to capitalize on its early lead -- for example, it did not broaden its product base to ticket sales -- it remained a viable takeover candidate.
