The more dominant a single brand is in the marketplace, the easier it is for an innovator to compete with them. So says Hugh Martin, Chairman and CEO of Pacific Biosciences, who headed the start-up that once competed with dominant telecoms like Nortel, Lucent, and Alcatel. His reasoning? Monolithic entities in a sector get lazy, lose touch with their customers, and become overly confident with their price point, creating tremendous opportunities for competition. Upstart entrepreneurs should never be afraid to slay a giant.