Since October 2, 2008, the SPDR Homebuilder (XHB) ETF is down 25%, while Toll Brothers is 40% lower, Standard Pacific is down 48% and big losers like Hovnanian and KB Home have plummeted 83% and 69%, respectively.

FORBES: Real Estate Creeps Cat-Like To Lower Lows

Because its technology underlies the third-generation mobile-phone standard, Qualcomm has become a toll bridge that all equipment-makers must cross.

ECONOMIST: The arms race

One is the housing market as job growth has long been a key driver and that bodes well for shares of Toll Brothers (TOL), The Ryland Group (RYL), Standard Pacific (SPF), D.

FORBES: Jobs Report Better But No Blockbuster, Big Problems Persist

In 1999, when the studios began to discuss the need for a digital standard for film, all parties agreed they did not want any toll-takers such as Dolby.

FORBES: Seeing in Dolby