In Terms of the Product Life Cycle, the Maturity Stage

In terms of the product life cycle, the maturity stage is

A) when the product is available for purchase for the first time
B) when products are rapidly losing ground to new technologies or product alternatives, and consequently sales and profits are rapidly declining
C) characterized by increasing competition, with new product variants offered to the market, as well as rapid product adoption by the target market
D) characterized by a slowdown in sales growth as the product is adopted by most target consumers, and by a leveling or decline in profits primarily due to intense price competition