From Sun Tzu's Art Of War, 2:15: One cartload of the enemy's provisions is equivalent to twenty of one's own, and likewise a single picul of his provender is equivalent to twenty from one's own store.<p>From The Art Of 'Ware, Chapter 2: Supporting Development: Try to gain resources from the competition. Each dollar gained from or spent by the competition is worth two dollars raised and spent by yourself.<p>I don't know if the following is true, but it is a good story, anyhow. Apparently, in the UK, McDonalds spent about 30000 pounds (about US$60000) looking for the optimal placement for an establishment. Burger King subsequently ensured that they were line-of-sight from McDonalds.