Japan quake shakes up oil prices

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

Description:   The earthquake in Japan may not cause prices to plunge more Friday but the long-term impact on oil could be drastic Source: CNNMoney.com – video report Date: 03/11/2011 Link:   http://money.cnn.com/video/markets/2011/03/11/mkts_japan_quake_oil2.cnnmoney/ Questions for discussion:  How does this incredible disaster in Japan connect to the international demand and price for oil? What are some of the… Read more »

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… Read more »

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… Read more »

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… Read more »

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… Read more »

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… Read more »

Why food prices have skyrocketed

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

Description: U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack says corn-based ethanol didn’t cause record food prices, weather and trade policies did. Source:  CNNMoney.com – video report Date: 02/10/2011 Link:  http://money.cnn.com/video/markets/2011/02/10/mkts_usda_food_prices.cnnmoney/ Questions for discussion:   Summarize the reasons for the global rise in food prices. Do you think bio-fuel production contributes to higher prices? How does population and… Read more »

Excess is back as Ferrari sales soar

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

Description: Sales of the Italian automaker rose 20% in North America in 2010 and big gains are being made in China. Source:  CNNMoney.com – video report Date: 02/04/2011 Link:  http://money.cnn.com/video/luxury/2011/02/04/lux_ferrari.cnnmoney/ Questions for discussion:   Who is the target market for this firm? Why have sales fluctuated? How should the company handle these issues? How do you… Read more »

In a Graying Population, Business Opportunity

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

Description: IT’S not easy being gray. For the first time ever, getting out of a car is no picnic. My back is hunched. And I’m holding on to handrails as I lurch upstairs. Source:  NYTimes.com Date: 02/05/2011 Link:  http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/06/business/06aging.html?ref=business Questions for discussion: Summarize the basic points made in this report. What are the primary opportunities… Read more »

Your private data pays for ‘free’ Facebook and Google

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

Description:  “The cost of reading the New York Times for free is being tracked. The cost of being on Facebook is being data-mined,” Peter Eckersley, a senior staff technologist for the Electronic Frontier Foundation, said Friday at a panel discussion on the intersection of technology and privacy. Source: CNNMoney.com   Date: 01/28/2011 Link: http://money.cnn.com/2011/01/28/technology/google_data_privacy_day/index.htm Questions… Read more »