Give Up Familiar Light Bulb? Not Without Fight, Some Say

Posted by & filed under Part 1 Business in a Global Environment, Part 4: Marketing Management.

Description: American protests against the encroachment of government have been spurred by many causes — tea, of course, and guns, frequently. The latest catalyst: light bulbs.

Source:  NYTimes.com

Date: 03/11/2011

Link:  http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/12/business/energy-environment/12bulb.html?ref=business

Questions for discussion: 

  • What do you think the issue really is in this report?
  • Do you think government should engineer consumer behavior?
  • Are there ways to solve this problem through market forces, such as pricing?

4-Hour Guru, Tim Ferriss: “Don’t Focus on Personal Branding”

Posted by & filed under Part 3 Management: Empowering People to Achieve Business Objectives.

Description:  Tim Ferriss‘ first book, The 4-Hour Workweek, hit the bestseller lists in its first weeks of publication in 2007and has remained an influential and talked-about phenomenon ever since (as has Ferriss’ blog).   Memorably dubbed “part scientist and part adventure hunter,” Ferriss developed his manifesto for productivity and personal freedom from his early success as an entrepreneur,  angel investor, traveler and athlete.

Source: BNET.com

Date: 03/10/2011

Link: http://www.bnet.com/blog/management/4-hour-guru-tim-ferriss-dont-focus-on-personal-branding/3354?promo=713&tag=nl.e713

Questions for discussion: 

  • What does this report have to say about work, management, and personal career management?
  • What is your opinion of the views expressed?

Moms go gaga for diaper bags

Posted by & filed under Part 2 Starting and Growing Your Business, Part 4: Marketing Management.

Description: The founders of Skip Hop share how they became major players in the baby biz. 

Source: CNNMoney.com – video report

Date: 03/04/2011

Link:      http://money.cnn.com/video/smallbusiness/2011/03/03/smb_hwgs_skip_hop.cnnmoney/

Questions for discussion: 

  • What has made this start-up business successful?
  • How unique are the products they produce and sell?
  • What does this report tell you about entrepreneurial effort and the need to develop conceptually new products in order to succeed?

The U.S.’s tortoise vs. hare problem

Posted by & filed under Part 1 Business in a Global Environment, Part 4: Marketing Management.

Description: Gapminder.org’s Hans Gosling shows Fareed Zakaria how countries like China and Indonesia will pass the U.S. in key economic metrics.

Source:  CNNMoney.com – video report

Date: 03/04/2011

Link:   http://money.cnn.com/video/news/2011/03/04/n_gps_rosling2.cnnmoney/
 
Questions for discussion: 

  • Summarize the analysis presented in this report.
  • Do you agree that there is room enough in the upper sector of the chart for all countries as argued by Hans Gosling?
  • What could interfere with this progress?
  • What will facilitate business and economic growth?
  • Why has Japanese growth slowed?
  • What is the solution, as logically argued by Hans Gosling?

Ben Silverman, Advertainer

Posted by & filed under Part 1 Business in a Global Environment, Part 4: Marketing Management.

Description:  The TV dealmaker is selling a new entertainment vision in which advertising and content are inextricably mixed. Is anyone buying it?

Source: Businessweek.com
 
Date: 03/03/2011

Link: http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/11_11/b4219060707213.htm

Questions for discussion: 

  • Summarize the new business model envisioned by Ben Silverman.
  • Do you think this model can succeed?
  • Do you think this approach will eventually replace the existing thinking in the business?

Cheap, Ultrafast Broadband? At Least Hong Kong Has It

Posted by & filed under Part 4: Marketing Management.

Description: HONG KONG residents can enjoy astoundingly fast broadband at an astoundingly low price. It became available last year, when a scrappy company called Hong Kong Broadband Network introduced a new option for its fiber-to-the-home service: a speed of 1,000 megabits a second — known as a “gig” — for less than $26 a month.

Source:  NYTimes.com

Date: 03/05/2011

Link:  http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/06/business/06digi.html?ref=business

Questions for discussion: 

  • Why has this superior broadband service not spread to other markets in North America?
  • How can this be remedied?
  • How would a forced change to upgrade service affect the financial status of current service providers?
  • How could this be mitigated?

Apple Said in Talks to Sell ITunes Buyers Unlimited Downloads for Devices

Posted by & filed under Part 4: Marketing Management, Part 5 Managing Technology and Information.

Description:  Apple Inc. (AAPL) is in talks with record companies to give iTunes music buyers easier access to their songs on multiple devices, three people with knowledge of the plans said.

Source: Bloomberg.com

Date: 03/04/2011

Link: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-03-04/apple-said-to-negotiate-unlimited-downloads-of-music-purchases.html

Questions for discussion: 

  • How important do you think this issue is to music customers?
  • What are the various business models that could work for customers as well as the music industry?
  • Do you think this issue affects sales of the device makers?

GM gets tiny with EN-V

Posted by & filed under Part 4: Marketing Management.

Description: GM’s EN-V, a pod-like concept car, aims to revolutionize urban transportation.

Source: CNNMoney.com – video report

Date: 02/25/2011

Link:  http://money.cnn.com/video/luxury/2011/02/25/lux_env_rvw.cnnmoney/

Questions for discussion: 

  • Describe the similarities and differences between today’s automobile and driver and the concept s for the EN-V?
  • Do you think the EN-V represents the future of automobile transportation?
  •  Assuming it could be done, would turning an entire urban area – like the Manhattan borough of New York City into a transportation area where only EN-V automobiles could be used be a good test of this concept? Explain why or why not?

Not your granddad’s Airstream

Posted by & filed under Part 1 Business in a Global Environment, Part 4: Marketing Management.

Description: TVs, showers, bedrooms are just a few of the new features added to the classic RV icon.

Source:  CNNMoney.com – video report

Date: 02/24/2011

Link:    http://money.cnn.com/video/luxury/2011/02/24/lux_airstream_review.cnnmoney/

Questions for discussion: 

  • Who was Airstream’s typical target customer in the 1950s and 60s?
  • What has changed the customer buying behavior?
  • Who is the typical customer today?
  • Do you think there is still a market for lower cost units?

Pro Sports vs. the Web Pirates

Posted by & filed under Part 1 Business in a Global Environment, Part 4: Marketing Management, Part 6 Managing Financial Resources.

Description:  Leagues from the NFL and NBA to Ultimate Fighting are finding it nearly impossible to block pirate video sites from streaming live events.

Source: Businessweek.com
 
Date: 02/24/2011

Link: http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/11_10/b4218066626285.htm

Questions for discussion: 

  • Summarize the problems described in this report?
  • How has the industry responded?
  • Besides the legal and technological solutions, what are some marketing solutions that might help mitigate piracy?
  • What are the financial implications for the industry if it cannot find a solution?