...EMBA 8700 – Apple Case Write-Up Executive Summary Apple Inc. is a global producer of personal computers, portable digital music players, and mobile communication devices for the consumer electronics industry. The company is also a provider of complementary software, services, accessories and peripherals, networking solutions, third-party applications and digital content. The company’s core strategic position is to differentiate themselves by delivering the best user experience through a combination of innovative industrial design (hardware) and software harmoniously working in concert resulting in a price premium that exceeds the cost of being unique. From an industry standpoint [see Chart 1], rivalry in consumer electronics is extremely high where product differentiation is short-lived (i.e. copycats). Even “the most valuable company in the world” cannot slow down. The industry, the competition, and advancements in technology are dynamic and continue to evolve at lightning speed. Apple must stick to its blueprint of success over the last two decades – differentiated product development and operational excellence without losing sight of the customer’s value chain – or risk falling behind and dropping market share. Analysis As a company, Apple has created an enviable and unique position in the industry of being able to design, manufacture, and market their own operating system, develop their own customer friendly hardware and application software, creating an ecosystem that...
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...Apple Incorporation Business Analysis Antonio Hayes 521 September 27, 2011 Sally Walters Apple Incorporation Business Analysis For the past three years Apple has been known by fortune as the world’s most admired company. They are known for elegant product design, innovation, customer loyalty, brand-building marketing, and secrecy (Gauging Corporate financial results, 2010.) The financial statement projected that the company will continue to grow because of their product design to meet the consumer needs. The company has seen an increase in demand of products and service. Based on the company historical and projected future earnings and cash flow growth rates, any person who is looking for a smart short to medium term investment, Apple stock would be the right decision. Its steady growth in earnings and dividends can be viewed as acquiring moderate to risky equity. On December 29, 1994, Apple inventory increased to $1 billion. That was the inventory turnover for Apple. Their total revenue rose from $9.8 billion in 1996 to above 19.3 billion in 2006, which is a substantial increase of 96.43% (Shlinds, 2007.) On July 19, 2011 Apple, announced financial results for its fiscal 2011 third quarter ended June 25, 2011. The company earned quarterly revenue of $28.57 billion and earned a quarterly net profit of $7.31 billion. Those billions of dollars in sales had much to do with the sales of the Macs, iPhone, and iPad. The company sold 3.95 million Macs during the...
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...Android by 2012 A study on present and future of Google's Android Dot Com Infoway - Position Paper- www.dotcominfoway.com Android by 2012 A study on present and future of Google's Android S.No 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 Contents Executive Summary The Android Tale Why Google Android Android: Breaking the 'Walled Gardens' What's so different in Android Advantages of Dalvik Virtual machines Android: A promising haven for app developers and OEMs? Market Predictions Final Comments About Dot Com Infoway Sources Interesting Android links Glossary Dot Com Infoway - Position Paper- www.dotcominfoway.com Executive Summary: This paper attempts to study the present conditions of Android OS and unveils the predicted future market possibilities for Android, based on results from several research firms, using current market statistics and popularity among developers and end-users. All the flimflams and excitement about the costlier iphones and Blackberrys are vanishing, after the arrival of the most anticipated, open source mobile operating system, the Google Android, which is fated to turn the industry upside down. Despite the growth and popularity for iPhones and Blackberrys, it is predicted that, Android will make a history in sales and on acquiring the market share, slicing down the markets of both Symbians and iPhones. This paper will elaborately examine the predictions about the future of Android phones, considering the present facts and reasons. The Android Tale:...
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...Executive Summary Apple Inc., formerly Apple Computer, Inc., is a multinational corporation that creates consumer electronics, smart phones, tablets, personal computers, computer software, and commercial servers, and is a digital distributor of media content. Apple's core product lines are the iPhone smartphone, iPad tablet computer, iPod portable media players, and Macintosh computer line. Founders, Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak effectively created Apple Computer on April 1, 1976, with the release of the Apple I, and incorporated the company on January 3, 1977, in Cupertino, California. Apple experienced modest, but above average growth from its founding until the mid-2000s when the popularity of its iPods and iTunes Store were joined by Apple’s release of the first iPhones. This combination, along with then-CEO Steve Jobs’ iconic leadership, catapulted Apple to successes rarely seen as it became the largest publicly traded company in the world by 2012. Our financial analysis of Apple revealed many things, not the least of which is the simple fact that Apple is a well-run, efficient, innovative company. Over the last three years, Apple realized a consistent positive trend in well over half of the twenty-two key financial ratios analyzed, highlighted by improvements in all profitability and inventory management ratios. It kept pace with the growth experienced in the technology and consumer electronics industries, despite significant gains in market share by giants...
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...John Lennon and Politics To write a piece on John Lennon such as this, one is likely to get their throat cut, regardless of the angle one takes. Any article on John Lennon is political non-stop unless you were one of the ‘Apple Scruffs’ (Beatles groupies) who came in through their bathroom window for a shot at one of the Fab Four. For one to understand Lennon: The Activist, one should first consider the formative years of his life. This essay will investigate the personal and cultural influences that led to Lennon’s activism – both political and for peace – as well as an in-depth analysis of four of Lennon’s most political songs. In September 1980 he talked about his family and his rebellious nature: Part of me would like to be accepted by all facets of society and not be this loudmouthed lunatic musician. But I cannot be what I am not. Because of my attitude, all the other boys' parents ... instinctively recognised what I was, which was a troublemaker, meaning I did not conform and I would influence their kids, which I did ... I did my best to disrupt every friend's home ... Partly, maybe, it was out of envy that I didn't have this so-called home, but I really did ... There were five women who were my family. Five strong, intelligent women. Five sisters. Those women were fantastic ... that was my first feminist education ... One happened to be my mother ... she just couldn't deal with life. She had a husband who ran...
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...12 Apple Inc. Strategy Review and Recommendation Group: E2 12 Apple Inc. Strategy Review and Recommendation Group: E2 Content 1. Company Background 4 2. Report Aim and Scope 4 3. Analysis of the Current Environment 5 3.1. PEST Analysis 5 3.2. Porter’s Five Forces 7 3.3. Resource Portfolio Analysis 8 3.4. Current SWOT Analysis 10 4. Analysis of the Future Environment via Scenario Planning 11 4.1. Impact of Scenarios on Apple’s Five Forces 12 4.2. Impact of Scenario Planning on Internal Environment (VRIN) 13 4.3. Future SWOT 15 5. Evaluation of Existing Strategies 16 6. Analysis of Apple’s Organizational Direction 16 7. Strategic Option Generation 18 7.1. Generic Strategy Model 18 7.2. BCG Matrix 19 7.3. Directional Policy Matrix 20 7.4. ANSOFF Matrix 21 7.5. TOWS 22 8. Strategy Evaluation through SAFe 23 8.1. Corporate Level Strategic Evaluation 23 8.2. Media Devices & Mobile Communications SBU Strategic Evaluation 24 8.3. Personal Computers Strategic Evaluation 24 8.4. Portable Media Players Strategic Evaluation 25 8.5. Software Strategic Evaluation 25 9. Comparison of New and Existing Strategies 25 10. Conclusion 26 11. Report Limitations 28 12. References 29 1. Company Background Apple Inc was founded in April 1976 by Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak. The company that invented the first personal computer has diversified into designing and producing a vast range...
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...Global E-Commerce Advanced Multichannel Expectations in Highly Developed Markets Joanne Bethlahmy, Paul Schottmiller Cisco Internet Business Solutions Group December 2011 Cisco IBSG © 2011 Cisco and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved. Cisco Public Internet Business Solutions Group 1 Executive Summary Many retailers are ―going global‖ to capture a larger share of the $1.4 trillion e-commerce market Leading-edge multichannel experiences are becoming the norm in highly developed markets around the globe To compete, retailers will need to understand customers’ needs and expectations in each market, and deliver highly advanced multichannel experiences Source: Cisco IBSG, 2011 Cisco IBSG © 2011 Cisco and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved. Cisco Public Internet Business Solutions Group 2 1 Global E-Commerce Background and Challenges Cisco IBSG © 2011 Cisco and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved. Cisco Public Internet Business Solutions Group 3 E-Commerce 2015: $1.4T, Still High Percentage in Developed, Non-U.S. Markets E-Commerce Spending (US$B) $1,600 Global e-commerce, including travel, will reach $1.36T by 2015—13.5% CAGR over six years This study focuses primarily on highly developed e-commerce and technology markets in Europe and Asia – Generally, high penetration of broadband and mobile, sophisticated delivery infrastructure – Example: U.K., Japan, France, and S. Korea will still represent almost...
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...Samsung as Brand 7 Key Markets that Samsung Electronics Position its products to 7 Samsung Electronics Marketing Concepts: 8 Samsung’s Marketing Mix 11 An environmental scan and SWOT analysis for Samsung Electronics 14 Microenvironments 15 Macro environments 16 SWOT 20 Samsung SWOT analysis 20 Strengths 20 Weaknesses 20 Opportunities 20 Threats 20 Strengths 20 Weaknesses 21 Opportunities 22 Threats 22 STP MARKETING 23 SEGMENTATION: 23 TARGETING: 26 POSITIONING: 27 Samsung marketing mix 27 Product 27 Promotion 27 Price 28 Place 28 Product Line Strategy: 30 Distribution Strategy: 30 Pricing Strategy: 32 Samsung vs Apple Pricing Strategy 33 Integrated Marketing Communication: 38 Conclusion: 40 References: 41 Company background: Samsung was founded in Suwon, Korea in 1969. Its vision 2020 is stated as being “Inspire the world, create the future” (Samsung website). Samsung...
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...thomas a . meyer How Great companies Get Started in terrible times Innovate! Innovate! How Great Companies Get Started in Terrible Times THOMAS A. MEYER John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Copyright © 2010 by Thomas A. Meyer. All rights reserved. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey. Published simultaneously in Canada. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning, or otherwise, except as permitted under Section 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act, without either the prior written permission of the Publisher, or authorization through payment of the appropriate per-copy fee to the Copyright Clearance Center, Inc., 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, (978) 750-8400, fax (978) 646-8600, or on the web at www.copyright.com. Requests to the Publisher for permission should be addressed to the Permissions Department, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030, (201) 748-6011, fax (201) 748-6008, or online at http://www.wiley.com/go/permissions. Limit of Liability/Disclaimer of Warranty: While the publisher and author have used their best efforts in preparing this book, they make no representations or warranties with respect to the accuracy or completeness of the contents of this book and specifically disclaim any implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose...
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...Automatic Effects of Brand Exposure on Motivated Behavior: How Apple Makes You “Think Different” ´ GRAINNE M. FITZSIMONS TANYA L. CHARTRAND GAVAN J. FITZSIMONS* This article first examines whether brand exposure elicits automatic behavioral effects as does exposure to social primes. Results support the translation of these effects: participants primed with Apple logos behave more creatively than IBM primed and controls; Disney-primed participants behave more honestly than E!primed participants and controls. Second, this article investigates the hypothesis that exposure to goal-relevant brands (i.e., those that represent a positively valenced characteristic) elicits behavior that is goal directed in nature. Three experiments demonstrate that the primed behavior showed typical goal-directed qualities, including increased performance postdelay, decreased performance postprogress, and moderation by motivation. P eople see thousands of brand images in an average day. Given how ubiquitous brands have become in people’s everyday lives, it is important that research uncovers the ways in which brand exposure can affect behavior. Although brands are of significant interest to consumer researchers, scant empirical work has addressed the potential behavioral consequences of brand exposure, inside or outside of the consumer decision-making context. And yet, given that consumers encounter many more brands than people in an average day, brands have surely become more...
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...Running head: DIGITAL FREEDOM FIGHTERS Digital Freedom Fighters: Defending Free Speech in the 21st Century Abstract Many forms of speech have been contested over the course of time with many being banned, but comic books have been the target of many critics over the 75 year time span of publication. The First Amendment of the United States Constitution guarantees that free speech should not be impeded. Many organizations, including the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund, are continuing the legal battle of insuring the right of free speech remains unencumbered. Digital Freedom Fighters: Defending Free Speech in the 21st Century Introduction Comic books have been published for over 75 years with a varied subject matter including superhumans, gods, soldiers, historical events and animals. Originally conceived as a child’s reading fodder, comics have evolved beyond the original audience. A recent study found that over 98% of comic book readers are over the age of 18. (Pantozzi, 2012) No longer an art form exclusively for children, comics have been the target of many censorship attacks. With the advent of 21st century technology, comic books have evolved and the criticisms have evolved with them. Newer challenges to this form of speech can sometimes be overwhelming, but there are many organizations which are focused on protecting these freedoms. These are the digital freedom fighters. They are a safeguard against...
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...1 of 83 file:///D:/000004/Buy__ology.html 08/08/2009 10:45 2 of 83 file:///D:/000004/Buy__ology.html CONTENTS TITLE PAGE FOREWORD BY PACO UNDERHILL INTRODUCTION 1: A RUSH OF BLOOD TO THE HEAD The Largest Neuromarketing Study Ever Conducted 2: THIS MUST BE THE PLACE Product Placement, American Idol , and Ford’s Multimillion-Dollar Mistake 3: I’LL HAVE WHAT SHE’S HAVING Mirror Neurons at Work 4: I CAN’T SEE CLEARLY NOW Subliminal Messaging, Alive and Well 5: DO YOU BELIEVE IN MAGIC? Ritual, Superstition, and Why We Buy 6: I SAY A LITTLE PRAYER Faith, Religion, and Brands 7: WHY DID I CHOOSE YOU? The Power of Somatic Markers 8: A SENSE OF WONDER Selling to Our Senses 9: AND THE ANSWER IS… Neuromarketing and Predicting the Future 10: LET’S SPEND THE NIGHT TOGETHER Sex in Advertising 11: CONCLUSION Brand New Day APPENDIX ACKNOWLEDGMENTS NOTES BIBLIOGRAPHY ABOUT THE AUTHOR COPYRIGHT FOREWORD PACO UNDERHILL It was a brisk September night. I was unprepared for the weather that day, wearing only a tan cashmere sweater underneath my sports jacket. I was still cold from the walk from my hotel to the pier as I boarded the crowded cruise ship on which I was going to meet Martin Lindstrom for the first time. He had spoken that day at a food service conference held by the Gottlieb Duttweiler Institute, the venerable Swiss think tank, and David Bosshart, the conference organizer, was eager for us to meet. I had never heard of Martin ...
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...Written By | Greg Stine The Nine Principles of Branding Supplemental Information for the Branding Essentials Workshop 2 4 6 9 12 14 16 18 20 23 26 29 32 Branding at a Glance Branding: What Is All This About, Anyway? Branding Principle #1: Keep It Simple Branding Principle #2: Mass-Produced Word of Mouth (PR) Builds Brands Branding Principle #3: Focused Brands are More Powerful Branding Principle #4: Differentiation is Key Branding Principle #5: The First Brand Advantage Branding Principle #6: Avoid Sub-brands at All Cost Branding Principle #7: Perception vs. Quality Branding Principle #8: Be Consistent and Patient Branding Principle #9: Write Out Your Brand Definition Discovering More Than Just Your Brand About the Author Table of Contents 2 Branding at a Glance By Greg Stine President of Polaris, Inc. The success of a product, service, individual, business, organization, or even a city is based on being perceived as unique. Look at any market leader and you’ll find they each own a place in the consumer’s mind. They have positively differentiated themselves from the rest of the competition. Branding is creating that individual niche in the consumer’s psyche and owning it. More than just marketing, branding is the entire effect that creates a memorable identity. A successful branding program is also based on differentiating yourself as unique. Effective branding creates a perception that there is no other product, service...
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...1 of 83 file:///D:/000004/Buy__ology.html 08/08/2009 10:45 2 of 83 file:///D:/000004/Buy__ology.html CONTENTS TITLE PAGE FOREWORD BY PACO UNDERHILL INTRODUCTION 1: A RUSH OF BLOOD TO THE HEAD The Largest Neuromarketing Study Ever Conducted 2: THIS MUST BE THE PLACE Product Placement, American Idol , and Ford’s Multimillion-Dollar Mistake 3: I’LL HAVE WHAT SHE’S HAVING Mirror Neurons at Work 4: I CAN’T SEE CLEARLY NOW Subliminal Messaging, Alive and Well 5: DO YOU BELIEVE IN MAGIC? Ritual, Superstition, and Why We Buy 6: I SAY A LITTLE PRAYER Faith, Religion, and Brands 7: WHY DID I CHOOSE YOU? The Power of Somatic Markers 8: A SENSE OF WONDER Selling to Our Senses 9: AND THE ANSWER IS… Neuromarketing and Predicting the Future 10: LET’S SPEND THE NIGHT TOGETHER Sex in Advertising 11: CONCLUSION Brand New Day APPENDIX ACKNOWLEDGMENTS NOTES BIBLIOGRAPHY ABOUT THE AUTHOR COPYRIGHT FOREWORD PACO UNDERHILL It was a brisk September night. I was unprepared for the weather that day, wearing only a tan cashmere sweater underneath my sports jacket. I was still cold from the walk from my hotel to the pier as I boarded the crowded cruise ship on which I was going to meet Martin Lindstrom for the first time. He had spoken that day at a food service conference held by the Gottlieb Duttweiler Institute, the venerable Swiss think tank, and David Bosshart, the conference organizer, was eager for us to meet. I had never heard of Martin ...
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...PROJECT REPORT ON A STUDY ON INTERNET SHARING SITE YOUTUBE.COM EXECUTIVE SUMMARY INTERNET -The Internet is a worldwide, publicly accessible network of interconnected computer networks that transmit data by packet switching using the standard Internet Protocol (IP). It is a "network of networks" that consists of millions of smaller domestic, academic, business, and government networks, which together carry various information and services, such as electronic mail, online chat, file transfer, and the interlinked Web pages and other documents of the World Wide Web. COMMON USES OF THE INTERNET - Email, Remote access, Collaboration, File sharing, Streaming media, Voice telephony, Leisure, and Marketing. VIDEOS SHARING SITES - Video sharing refers to websites or software where a user can distribute their video clips. Some services may charge, but the bulk of them offer free services. Many services have options for private sharing and other publication options. YOUTUBE.COM – Founded in February 2005, YouTube is the leader in online video, and the premier destination to watch and share original videos worldwide through a Web experience. YouTube allows people to easily upload and share video clips on www.YouTube.com and across the Internet through websites, mobile devices, blogs, and email. FACTS ABOUT YOUTUBE – Founded in February of 2005 by three former employees of eBay's PayPal unit. In July, more than 30 million people...
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