<<<Is it just me, or does it seem the optical business is becoming a commodity business... competition has a way of doing that very quickly>>>
Kinda seems that way to me, too. In fact, back in my funnymental days, that's what kept me from liking FNSR. Back then it seemed like they were just producing the same stuff as everyone else, i.e., without developing any new stuff of their own.
On the other paw, there will always be a need for the latest and greatest new thing, today's ultimate whizbanger. So, there still should be some extra profits for those companies which can consistently deliver those new items, assuming, of course, they can do so at the right cost, etc, etc, etc.
On the other paw, I think there is still a great deal of over capacity in the whole optical "space" -- POS companies like LU should have the life expectancy of an ice cream cone in hades.
On the other paw, (we doggies have four of them you know), another point to consider is not just whether this is becoming a commodity business, but how long it will take the market to figure that out. So long as one is not holding un-protected long positions when the market decides the opticals should be dividend payers, then there is probably still huge $$ to be made off these things.
JMDO, etc.
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