Advantages and Disadvantages of Networks Essay Example

Advantages and Disadvantages of Networks Paper Advantages and disadvantages of networks I’ll start by saying that setting up a network is a serious job and should be done only by a person that is already familiar with the process of networking. The variety of options for setting up a home network can influence on a decision regarding the equipment needed to be purchase. Before deciding what hardware to buy you must first find out which type of network technology to use (by type of network technology I mean the way computers connect to the network and communicate with each other). I personally have a home Local Area Network (LAN) connected through a cable modem router to my D-LINK DSL modem. Besides LAN I have two computers (notebook and PC) and they are both connected to a printer and scanner, so that I can print or scan anything in a second just with one click. In my opinion the best thing about having a network is to be able to play multiplayer games with my husband or the fact that I don’t need a separate Internet Connection for every computer (although there is a downside to this, because when I’m downloading something from internet, websites take too long to open if my husband is working on the other computer). We will write a custom essay sample on Advantages and Disadvantages of Networks specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Advantages and Disadvantages of Networks specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Advantages and Disadvantages of Networks specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer I can share the one I have on all of them. There are some disadvantages as well. Sometimes it happens that the network simply gets lost and it takes hours to figure out what the problem is. But, when I sum everything up, I really can`t understand how I lived without network before, because now I am able to do almost everything without leaving my home. What is your opinion on this subject? You can write about some of your experiences that can be useful for showing the advantages and disadvantages of networks or about what is already known on this topic. In this essay we will talk about networks and the various ways in which they can be used. While talking about networks we will also discuss various advantages and disadvantages related to them. There are several ways you can connect your computers: cables through the house or office, wireless – by radio waves or by telephone lines. Each of these methods requires configuration of the connected computers so that they are able to share files, printers and internet connection. Setting up a computer to operate in a network is not difficult. Each method has its advantages and disadvantages and we pay attention to them. Advantage of wireless network is that you have the freedom to use the internet from any room in your house or office and more people can use the internet at the same time. The disadvantages are that sometimes a router can’t cover the area needed and it can become difficult to reach a signal. But the biggest disadvantage of wireless Internet is that your network will be available to everyone who is using a wireless router and can use your network to access the internet at any time. This is why this kind of network needs to be protected with a security password in order to prevent it. Advantages of computer networks are numerous, while disadvantages are almost minimal if the networking is done properly. With a small investment in computer network, a person or organization can get the most of computers and accessories they already own or plan to purchase. Division of all resources in a network is possible (internet connection, printers, scanners, fax modems, plotters, etc. ). This means that from each of the computers in the network, you can print anything on a printer that is connected to the network through one of the computers located in another room or in another table. With implementation of network you do not need to get internet connection for each computer separately. It is enough that one has it in order to share it with others. Any user on network will have access to the Internet. This means that this person can read and send letters and surf Internet (surfing is just an option; the system can be set for every user separately, so that users do not have direct access to the Internet). When you have multiple computers at home or at work, and you want to share among them Internet connection, files or playing games, the best thing is to connect them by network. If a network file server develops a fault on the other hand, then users may not be able to run application programs or a fault on the network can cause users to loose data (if the files aren’t saved). Sometimes it can happen that if the network stops operating, it may not be possible to access various resources. Users become dependent upon network and the skills of the systems manager and it is difficult to make the system secure from hackers. Networks that have grown with little thought can be inefficient in the long term; as traffic increases on a network, the performance degrades unless it is designed properly; resources may be located too far away from some users; the larger the network becomes, the more difficult it is to manage. But still setting up an office network it is actually worth a while because the benefits from the fact that it can save you money to the fact that you can this way improve business as well as the quality of services a firm has to offer. And all of the security issues and costs and staff skills, a person can, with combination of proper training and by setting up a proper security system, reduce all of this issues to minimum and you definitely have more advantages then disadvantages. You can use your network to share files, a printer or another peripheral device and Internet connection. In peer-to-peernetwork you can exchange files or informations directly user to user possible. All clients provide resources, bandwidth, storage space, and computing power to the system. This increases the total capacity of the system and enables faster files sharing in peer to peer network. Disadvantage of P2P network is that with ityou can easily catch viruses, spyware or some other kind of malware andmost files shared this way are in breach of copy right. It also eats up a lot of bandwidth and affects anything else you plan on doing on internet. The thing I appreciate the most when it comes to network is if you have to work on another computer that is sharing a network with your computer and you need to access some data on your computer, you can do it easily, provided that your computer is turned on. I would like to discuss more about office networks too. The advantages and disadvantages of using network in office can influence on our decision whether it is a good or bad for our business. If you, for example have multiple computers in an office and you dont have a network, it can end up being too expensive. With implementation of network you could simply network printer and share it. Response times is the most important thing is the hardware you are running, so you have to be sure to run a server on a good hardware, so you can assure improvement in quality and speed up the amount of daily work. Single points of failure could be reduced with a properly implemented backup system for example. This way the problem with lost data when server crashes will be minimized or completely eliminated. In today’s society, it is practically impossible not to use some kind of network. The great advantages such as shared printers or possibility of computers being managed centrally with the same software installed on each one (although looking from Bill Gates prospective this would probably be a disadvantage)or the fact that communication across the network is cheap and fast are making a lot of jobs easier nowadays. There are unfortunately a few disadvantages too. If the person that is implementing the network is not skilled, compatibility issues with different types of software running on the network could be a threat. Sometimes the maintenance can be expensive, or as you’ve mentioned a fault with the server can prevent the whole network from working. A lot of work must be put into security measures so that we can prevent access to our network, especially from crackers and viruses. I hope to hear soon from our two colleagues and I’m looking forward to hear their point of view.

Why Are We So Concerned With Our Image Essay Example

Why Are We So Concerned With Our Image Essay Example Why Are We So Concerned With Our Image Essay Why Are We So Concerned With Our Image Essay We are subsequently concerned with our image and the manner others, around us perceive us. We strive, everyday to shine within a multitude of stars and to be fully appreciated by our friends, family and associates. We put on a show, each day according to the way we aspire others to view us, as individual people, who stand out and deserve an encore on our own, personal stages.Our world is a stage, our life is a drama, perfectly played out in our roles, and we are the actors, performing.   Each and every one of us, share similar aspirations in life and yearn for each one of our presentations to be ideal in order to achieve our goals.   Our personal stage must be precisely set and the audiences’ reaction or perception of our acting abilities will be demonstrated through their feedback.During one’s lifetime, a presentation on stage is not always what we anticipate, an event in which Erving Goffman referred to as a â€Å"dramaturgical analysis†.Our social life all ows for more than one role to played, for example, being a student, daughter, or lover, requires different presentations.   As Goffman mentions in his book â€Å"The Presentation of Self in Everyday life: Selections.† In our show, we offer an impression to the audience through verbal and body language, and the interaction we communicate to others, relays how we perceive ourselves.   Goffman views the world as micro sociology; social interactions, and according to Henslin, it is face to face interaction demonstrating how people react and behave when they come together and demonstrates how they get along and survive.First impressions are incredibly important since they may affect how others regard us as individuals, while they build our confidence and heighten our reputation as award winning. According to Henslin, â€Å"When you first meet someone, you cannot help but notice certain features, especially the person’s sex, race, age and clothing†. We develop oth er impressions through vision and   by listening to the character. You may possibly hear someone’s name or all about their story before you actually meet them and perhaps you have already developed a pre-developed image of that person.When you are first introduced to a person, important factors furnish us with a cause to imagine and possess assumptions regarding that individual, therefore, regardless of their true character or personality, your assumptions have already shaped your first impression. This is an important explanation of why people are so concern in relation to their image, since all factors have persuasive influence on a person’s social life.The scene displayed when Mary Harron first met with Andy Warhol, is one demonstration of a first impression of an individual. (Harron, 1980) In the article â€Å"Pop Art/ Art Pop: The Warhol Connection,† before Harron actually met with Andy Warhol, she had previously heard numerous stories in relation to Warh ol, and she had already develop a vivid impression of Warhol, consequently, there was little shock about his overall appearance and personality and she was only surprised about Warhol‘s age.Pop art was a subject that came to mind when one imagined Warhol, so his age was never a consideration.Henslin mentions in his book titled â€Å"Essential of Sociology†, (Henslin, 2004) that â€Å"We possess ideas on how we want others to judge us, and we use our character roles in everyday life to communicate these ideas. Goffman referred to these efforts which manage the impressions that others receive from us, as â€Å"impression management†.   Goffman also considered impression management as a way to control our performance as we perform in a certain manner; one that an audience expects from us so they may be guided against an unexpected and unfamiliar scene.I play the role of a daughter, for my parents and my attitude is always respectful and polite since this is how I want to present myself to them.According to lecture notes on micro sociology, Professor Steve discusses the Goffman’s Theory where he explains that â€Å"We are all trying to present an idealized vision of ourselves while trying to hide our very real problems or shortcomings†.   We consistently   want to offer a good impression by acting out what we think others want, so we continually perform our roles according to what the audience wants to see, and the advantage is that we will gain an excellent   reputation if we do meet their expectations but if we fail to meet those expectations, we fail while performing that role.Goffman looks at our daily life as a performance played out on a big stage and as actors performing for our audience; we must remember that what we perform will be our major â€Å"appearance.† Goffman also articulates that â€Å"It is an appearance on the front stage,† which also implies that there is an aspect of our personalities that yet remains on the back stage but front stage is what Goffman is concerned with thus our performance for others will be routinely acknowledged by society. As Speakers in our school clubs and dinners, we are considered actors in a front stage performance.According to an article â€Å"The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life: Selections† by Goffman, he refers to our performances as â€Å"All the activity of an individual which occurs during a period, marked by continuous presence before a particular set of observers and has some influence on our observers.†Ã‚   He also mentions that there are various elements in our appearances. The stage setting includes our physical layout while the background supports our stage. The setting will allow the audience to follow our performance, while the appearance and our method basically describes our social status and the role we play will demonstrate to the audience the level of our educational background and enlighten them whet her we are involved in social activities or if we are aggressive actors, displaying us as great leaders in our performance.In â€Å"The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life: Selection†, Goffman divided the front stage into two parts; we â€Å"give† and â€Å"give off†.   The give involves verbal symbols which he utilized to convey the information in helping the performer and audience to engage in the performance, while the â€Å"give off† includes a wide range of action performances in which the audience may consider feeling sympathy for the actor.Since there is a front stage, there must also be a back stage, where we relax and showcase our full identities without being concerned with how others perceive us.According to the lecture notes by Professor Steve, most of our time is spent performing on front stage, which means wearing costumes and dressing up, however, our back stage performance is a place where we hide our true problems, since everyone does have a secret about themselves. A person may have a drinking problem, gambling or some illegal activity that they wish to keep private. They may try to hide   pieces of their life and during their performance, they may give a different impression to others about who they really are. Goffman offers that we have to conceal the process in order to make our stage performance.   If Goffman is correct in his theory, then we all are exceptional actors who deserve to win Oscars!As Goffman pointed out in his article (Goffman, 1959) â€Å"The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life: Selection†, â€Å"In order to get the setting right for the performance, manner calculating is also important,† which means that good designs should be a big part of the setting and like Mary Harron, Goffman shares her ideas of first impressions, as in her online article â€Å"Pop Art/ Art Pop†, she mentions that one of the reasons that Andy Warhol became a famous pop artist was due to the fact that he respectfully, knew how to calculate and manipulate the media.Warhol has displayed a man who had respect for money, fame and power.   He is a famous artist, who within his social connections is incredibly large, therefore, Harron made the connection that it is not only Warhol who became famous but the people around him; his friends and coworkers became famous, as well.   All famous people have one thing in common; they have more stages to perform on than an average individual, while one stage is for the media and the public, the other stages are held out for their friends and family.â€Å"Movies, radio and TV have changed the nature of fame†, Mary Harron explains that Andy Warhol used this type of communication to build the idea of Pop Art and today, in our society because Andy Warhol is a symbol of pop, and plays the achievement role in his performances and Pop Art is a standard that people and society determine on their own.Warhol built up an idealization of society as he heightened their expectations by expressing his wealth and power.   Goffman also agrees that material possessions are expressed as one of the most important parts of social class as a status symbol.According to our lecture notes, Goffman believes that each of us possess secrets and display our freakiness in some fashion and if we behave in an anticipated manner or perform differently than what others expect, they may feel that we are behaving irrationally, so there is the chance that you could be considered less desirable as a human being.The movie â€Å"Boy’s Don’t Cry† was inspired by a true story by Brandon Teena who has a sexual identity crisis, since she was born with a female’s body but thinks like a male. She cut her hair and taped down her breasts which made her look like a man; her way of setting her stage for her own performance; one that began when she arrived in Nebraska.   The new audience had no idea that she was a female. When Brandon Teena falls in love with Lana and becomes one of Lana’s friends, performing as a young male, she offered a grand performance. Garfinkel offered that she â€Å"Engaged in activities that made her appear to be something she wasn‘t.†Ã‚   The movie is not only about Brandon’s performance but about the environment that supports her status. Garfinkel also believes that we have to manage our own identities through hard work, achievement and accomplishment.There was nothing wrong with Brandon Teena as a person but she was not accepted and marginalized by the society, so she failed in her performance and end up murdered by Lana’s friendsI do believe that our society is changing because bisexuals are becoming more common and people tend to treat bisexuality as normal and in the movie â€Å"Boy’s Don’t Cry,† (Peirce, 1999) we understand how important and effective a front stage and back stage performance can be as we all want to find a spot in society where we can belong.In a personal experience of my own, I was studying aboard in England. When I first arrived at the school, I behaved as a quiet and shy stranger because I didn’t know anything about the people, in England. I didn’t want to offer a performance, until I know more about them..   When I was approached for conversation, I changed my performance by offering an outgoing person, who did want to talk and be socially interactive, in order to make friends.Sometimes, I am nice to people that I don’t like and I play that role. Goffman refers to this behavior as playing different roles, while others call it being two-faced, but the more I think about it, I understand that everyone might have more than two faces on their stage in life.There are many instances during my life performances, where I will be forced to make alterations but I will continue performing, offering an award winning performance!

Reading response of the reading identities and social locations Essay

Reading response of the reading identities and social locations - Essay Example The part of my identity that I underplay is physical characteristics. If my idea is tied with the way, I look. Basing my self-worth and identity is a monumental bad idea. This is because if I gain weight, there is no way I will be happy. If I have something that I believe is ugly, it will lower my self-esteem. My people are the people I identify with. People that have characteristics similar to mine, we have common interests and we are all equal, no one feels stronger than the other in any aspect does. I refer Chinese in America as my people. Home according to me is a physical place or an emotion that gives me a sense of belonging, here I identify with each other, and we can share affiliations ((Okazawa-Rey & Gwyn, 110). A social location is a point where all characteristics of my identity meet. It determines the privileges I can have and situations, which are beyond my control. My social location is Chinese, educated class, female, heterosexual, and studying in America. From the dimensions in the social location, the social dimensions that provide privilege and power is class and education. While the dimension that provides less power and disadvantage is race, and sexual orientation. Most white privilege bearers try to do their best in looking out and avoiding ways of helping them get ahead of life. It is not a simple task, this is because education has helped them in recognizing the privileges, and therefore, their understanding has not been with them for their entire life. According to my understanding, for one to be equity activist, they have to dismantle the system that favors some people for no go reason than the social group members (Okazawa-Rey & Gwyn,

Student Learning Methods Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Student Learning Methods - Essay Example Learner-centered learning environments are founded on the principal that learning is an active process. Learning is an interaction between the student and text, involving the activation of prior knowledge and relating new ideas to preexisting schemata. Based on this paradigm learner-centered environments engage the student both personally and intellectually and provide the best method for meeting the needs of all learners. In teacher-centered learning environments, the more traditional and widespread approach, the teacher is viewed as the focal point and leader of learning. The teacher is the authority, leaving the students in the passive role as receivers of knowledge, rather than active constructors of that knowledge. That knowledge is finite and discrete. In teacher-centered learning the lessons are instructionally driven, leaving the students unengaged intellectually and emotionally. These traditional methods include memorization, completing worksheets, reading a text and answering predetermined questions - demonstrating knowledge of the "right" answer. In this form of learning there is limited activation of prior knowledge, and therefore students struggle to create personally significant meaning. This is because in teacher-centered learning the background, values and interests of the learner are nonexistent. The student is passively filled in with information, rather than engaged in his own learning process. Learning environments are controlled, organized and with an emphasis on independent seatwork. Lessons, classwork and homework are results-driven. This unresponsive and static approach also fails to meet the needs of special needs populations, because lesson goals and objectives are standardized, meaning students must adapt to t he methods oftentimes with some students unable to engage the teacher's attention to meet their needs. Assessment One of the most significant challenges in teacher-centered learning is in assessment. Using traditional methods such as standardized tests rather than qualitative measures, teacher-centered learning places the emphasis on performance and repetition of facts. It leaves little room for students to construct their own meaning based on their own experiences, cultural background, values and interests. This causes a mismatch between goals and assessment. For this reason, many times students can appear to understand material in one format, yet in another appear unsuccessful during assessments because of the focus on success rather than on learning. Characteristics of Learner-Centered Environments Theoretical Basis In learner-centered environments the student becomes the actor in his own learning, and therefore the teacher becomes the facilitator to that learning by designing learning activities which actively engage the learner. This is based on the theory that all know- ledge is organized in schemata - the underlying connections that allow new experiences and information to be aligned with previous knowledge (Landry, 2002). Activities: Engaging and Adaptive As the designer of lessons rather than an authority, and with the understanding that Students exhibit various strengths and weaknesses in learning styles and modalities, the teacher's role is to create activities which are varied and engage these differences, rather than repress

Walmart Success In Mexico Canada And China Marketing Essay

Walmart Success In Mexico Canada And China Marketing Essay Global expansion has been gaining a lot of attention from all businesses that planned to expand abroad. Important factors that needs to be considered in the decision making process will be business strategies, entry modes, and threats and opportunities available in the markets. Appropriate strategies used will also help to minimize the risk of failure in the international markets. When a firm makes the right choice of business strategies and entry modes, the firm will then be able to succeed in the market and do well in the market as well. The choice of entry modes and business strategies will influence the future of the retailer in the targeted markets as well. Therefore, retailers who wish to go global should use the most suitable approaches to enter their targeted markets to ensure success to their business. Keywords: global expansion, business strategies, entry modes, threats, opportunities, Walmart Introduction Many researches had been done to study more about internalization of the retail industry and the majority of researches done are mainly used to describe the motivations and scales for international expansion by retailers (Akehurst Alexander, 1995; Williams, 1992). Besides that, many models of internalization explained the sequence of foreign expansion that shows that the companies who go international will do better in foreign markets that are similar to their domestic markets. This is why Walmart chose to enter the markets of Canada and Mexico (Johanson Vahlne, 1977). There are several reasons why international retailing had been a popular issue. Retailers who take the step to go into the international market is mainly because the domestic markets is saturated, needs for larger diverse investments, economic pressures and many external and internal forces that leads retailers to enter new markets and it is important for the retailer to choose the right market entry strategy into th e international markets (Sternquist, 2007). There are several researches done with a conclusion that retailers can minimize the risk of entry strategies by choosing the markets which are similar to the domestic market from the aspects of cultural, geographical and growth potentials. (Barkema Vermeulen, 1998; Welch Welch, 1996). Walmart is established in 1962, by Sam Walton. Walmart got its name from the family name Walton, giving Walmart the meaning of Waltons mart in long. Walmart is a strong company and it managed to survive in the 2008 recession hit in United States. Walmart had been growing fast throughout the years and the sales and market growth were increasing every year. For a fast growing retailer like Walmart, it is important to have use the best entry modes to enter a new market (Fred, 2011). Global expansion Global retail expansion has attracted many businesspersons, especially big sized companies which wish to increase their businesss profits and market share. Global expansion not only attracts large organizations but also small to medium-sized companies, some companies who are new to international expansion as well, and those who are in more mature organizations. The success achieved by newer specialty retailers in the international market, for example, Zara (Spain), HM (Sweden), and Shanghai Tang (Hong Kong) have motivated and created the way for other organizations to follow. However, there is also numerous numbers of well-known retailers who have failed in their expansion in certain global markets which is caused by several reasons, such as regulatory, legal and cultural challenges, competition, and trying to change shopping behavior (Cox, 2011). Besides that, retailers who made the decision to operate only in neighboring markets, as well as it is located geographically close to the ir home markets, will expect to face a lower level of such risks (Burt, 1993; Davis, Desai, Francis, 2000; Hollander, 1970: Knee, 1993; Robinson Clarke-Hill, 1990). Numerous top managers are also becoming more cautious on the problem of maintaining a common identity and culture in the process of trying to build up global enterprises (Joshua Chi, 2007). Moreover, it is very tough for businesses to make their decisions on choosing the most appropriate markets for their business development because there is no accurate and reliable information provided to the businesses. Domestic players in the markets will only portray the potentials side of the markets and hide the disadvantages just to attract businesses into the market (Jackson, Houdard, Highfield, 2008). Comparison of business strategies used by Walmart in Mexico, Canada and China There are different business strategies used by Walmart in Mexico, Canada and China. In Mexico, Walmart acquired Central American Retail Holding Co. who was struggling with accounting issues in 2006. After the acquisition, Walmart renamed the business with Walmart Centroamà ©rica. Central American Retail Holding Co. was previously the largest retailer in Central America. Walmart took the step where they re-launched the whole chain of retail stores under the Central American Retail Holding Co. with wider product assortments, and lower pricing strategy. The reason why they does this is because low pricing strategy is the basic strategy to expand Walmarts philosophy, Every Day Low Price to all part of the world (Basic Strategy: Be More Walmart!, 2011). Walmarts main strategy in Mexico is the multi-format strategy where through this strategy; Walmart can serve different groups of consumers at the same time being able to fulfill all the various needs of these groups of people. Bodega Aur rera in Mexico is the companys fastest growing format. There are three versions of this store. Bodega Aurrera Express stores are designed as very small outlets to serve urban areas such as Mexico City and Monterrey. Mi Bodega Aurrera is designed to serve rural towns and these stores created a great achievement for Walmart (Multiple Formats Equal Flexibility, 2011). In Canada, Walmart Canada is creating a new home branding effort that place the Better Homes Gardens license as the core for both hard and soft home categories (Wal-Mart International Improves Game, 2007). Every products offered has clear and obvious differences from any other products in the market and this will leave a strong image in the customers minds that these products were originated from Walmarts fashion and value chain (Wal-Mart International Improves Game, 2007). Besides that, Walmart Canada is implementing the use of Radio Frequency Identification Technology (RFID) which involves 20 stores and about 12 of their suppliers. This implementation was influenced by the parent country in United States where this system will help eliminate inventories out of stock. The implementation was an important step in the United States and it is important to Walmart Canada as well. Walmart Canada will focus on the use of this technology to improve their supply chain as well as customer se rvices. Equipped stores will be able to use the system to track tagged items in the stores and they can take necessary actions if anything happens. The system is a very important goal to be achieved by Walmart Canada because it can reduce errors occurred in manual restocking methods and the most important issue is that it can reduce over stock in the stores, and it can reduce unnecessary transportation caused which then leads to reduction in emissions of carbons (Mammarella, 2007). The success of Walmart can also be seen through its achievement in having a large grocery insert in its Canadian discount stores where the insert was called Grocery Shelf that provides a big return on capital at low risk (Orgel, 2005). In China, Walmart is targeting to be one of the national retail chains in the country with no interrelated national distribution system.  With this aim, it can be obvious that the rewards are huge, if Walmart is able to succeed. Besides that, the mainland retail market are estimated to be worth US$750 billion by 2008 and this will be a supporting point for Walmart to succeed.  The only thing Walmart need to be worried about is the distribution system.  This is because; the company has given in to unionization demands from the state-run, All-China Federation of Trade Unions, where it shows an important climb down from Walmarts anti-union US point of view (Distribution critical to Wal-Mart China strategy, 2006). However, Walmart will not be influenced. The marketing strategies used by Walmart for BRIC and other developing countries will still involve great huge discounts and great values on all of their products like how they do it in their home country, maintaining low prices ev ery day to all their customers, especially middle-class customers, on the same time, maintaining the growth of their profits as well. According to JPMorgan and analyst Charles Grom, Walmarts main objective for future success is not to overdo Target in the United States. They also said that, Walmart will start to work on more interrelated marketing strategies and merchandising messages to serve their low end customer as well, instead on just focusing on middle-class customers and this could implied to the BRIC countries Walmarts expansions as well (Frazier, 2007). Besides that, Walmart in China had a great success in using cost leadership and this strategy had generated huge revenues for Walmart in China. Therefore, Walmart planned to continue with the cost leadership strategy, as well as implementing a new strategy, that is differentiation (George, 2007). Comparison of entry modes Another reason for retailers to expand into the global markets is because the market in their home country is highly saturated and this created a more competitive market. Therefore, multinational retailers will choose to expand into markets which are less saturated than their home markets. For example, Sears, Kmart and Walmarts most successful expansion is to expand to Mexico and Canada, which is categorized in the North America region. How do multinational retailers choose their entry mode to the selected markets? Multinational retailers that are expanding to markets which are culturally diversified will choose to have a local joint venture with local retailers in the country to help them learn more about the country (Sternquist, 2007). Walmart in Mexico penetrated the market with a joint venture with its local player, CIFRA. CIFRA is the largest retailer in Mexico and Walmart is the largest retailer in the USA. With this reason, Walmarts decision to have a joint venture with CIFRA will definitely be a success because CIFRA will help Walmart have better knowledge on Mexican markets. In Mexico, CIFRA supplied Walmart will supplier connections, knowledge about the local culture as well as helping Walmart to work with local authorities. This will ensure successful expansion of Walmarts power in the Mexican markets, and Walmart can have the greatest influence in the shortest time period. In return of CIFRAs help, Walmart transfers their logistics knowledge to CIFRA which will also help CIFRA to improve on their supply chain management. (Sternquist, 1997). Under Walmarts agreement with CIFRA, Walmart opened membership warehouse clubs, known as Club Aurrera, which does catering to small businesses and selected groups of c onsumers. The first Club Aurrera was opened in Mexico City in December 1991. (Global Push Begins in Mexico, 2012). Besides that, CIFRA and Walmart also announced another two joint ventures, the first one is to start up a wholesale discount Aurrera stores, and the second one is to start up an import-export company that will provide CIFRAs Mexican suppliers to have access to other Walmart outlets in the United States (Millman, 1991). Walmart entered the Canadian markets through the entry mode acquisition. In 1994, Walmart announced its entry into Canada with the purchase of 120 out of 142 Woolco discount stores which are located on the north of the border from the Woolworth Corporation. In 1993, the Woolco stores had total sales of $1.14 billion (Woolco Purchase Yields Entry Into Canada, 2012). Walmart had avoided a time-consuming problem, which are faced by other American retailers who entered the Canadian market, which is to build up stores. Walmart had save their time because they took the step to buy the established stores of Woolco, where most of it had floor space of 100,000 square feet or more. Walmart had also benefited from the making choices for strategic and attractive leases (Woolco Purchase Yields Entry Into Canada, 2012). In 2011, Walmart Canada announced that it had also completed another acquisition from Target Canada with a total of 39 store locations which is currently occupied by Zellers (Canad a Newswire, 2011). Most multinational enterprises had the same thought that entering China is not an option for their business to expand, but it is a strategic necessity for the future of their business. The economy in China is growing rapidly that supports the living of the whole population in China, which is 1.3 billion. China is believed to be a country which has economic superpower and it is a very huge market in the 21st century (Schlevogt, 2000a, 2000b). On the other hand, Walmart is facing slow growth in the United States, and with these available attractive reasons, Walmart aimed to be the top in the retail sector in China with its acquisition of Trust-Mart (Naughton, Schafer, Ansfield, Lin, 2006). Other than using the acquisition strategy, Walmart also used the offshore sourcing strategy. Walmart sees that China is a major production or assembly source country and Walmart needed the help of China for the production and assemble of their products in the United States. Walmart then took the off shore sourcing strategy. Today, Walmart is the single largest export channel from Chinese manufacturers to the United States, with a record of at least 4% in Chinas overseas sales (Goldstein, 2003). Interestingly, Walmart does not have any manufacturing plants in China and it does not have a direct control over the production process of its suppliers in China. Instead, the suppliers are those who take control and responsibility to meet certain levels of requirements, for example cost, quality and delivery (Shih, 2004). With this strategy, Walmart can hold to their Everyday Low Price philosophy. This is because; Walmart can keep their production cost low, at the same time gaining the maximum benefits. Walmart also utilizes its strong bargaining position, at the same time maintaining a high level of ownership. This can be seen in their selling strategy, where Walmart buys the products at a cheaper price from China, and reselling them at a higher price in the United States and other pa rts of the world, at the same time gaining the profits and achieving their aim in providing the lowest prices. In other words, Walmart maintains a high level of ownership control but its management control is low (Goldstein, 2003). Comparison of opportunities and threats Threat and opportunity are two terms which are often used in terms strategic management in businesses (Mintzberg, Raisinghini, Theoret, 1976; Nutt, 1984). These categories are often used to make strategic decisions and it had become a necessity for firms to use these two terms to evaluate their selected markets. The results and issues obtained from environmental analysis are categorized as threats and opportunities faced by the business (Christensen, Andrews, Bower, Hamermesh, Porter, 1982). Opportunities Mexico In 2007, Walmart de Mexico had made a huge investment of $1 billion dollars for new developments and they opened 136 new units from all its existing business formats. This development includes opening of new units of 57 Bodega Aurrera units, 16 Walmart Supercenters, 6 Sams Clubs, 4 Superamas, 15 Suburbia stores and 38 Vips and El Porton Restaurants. The new stores opened spreads on two categories, the existing cities and new cities. The expansion in new cities can increase the firms coverage of new customers, and as for the existing cities, Walmart will have the advantage to dominate the market more widely. Besides that, the expansion of new stores will help boost the amount of new customer, as well as result in greater sales (DATAMONITOR: Wal-Mart de Mexico., 2008). The consumers today have changing preferences on choices of places to buy groceries and other daily products. customer now no longer prefer traditional retail, and they now prefer larger and more standardized hypermarket and supermarket chains, and the most important is the stores can offer lower and more attractive prices, as well as providing the convenience to the customers. In Mexico, the market share of modern formats of stores had increased almost 50% as compared from year 2005-2010. The change in the customers preferences will create an opportunity for Wal-Mart to expand its chains to more cities in Mexico (DATAMONITOR: Wal-Mart de Mexico., 2008). China Walmart Stores had signed an agreement to acquire a little stake of Yihaodian.com, Chinas largest online retailer. If the acquisition is successful, Walmart will have the chance to expand their business to the world of online shopping market, which will then generate more revenue. However, Chinas anti-monopoly bureau considers the acquisition might create an effect that exclude or restrict the competition of value-added telecommunications services market segments in China (China approves Wal-Mart control of Yihaodian., 2012). Apart from Walmart having control of services of Yihaodian.com, Yihaodian.com can also take the advantage of using Walmarts supplier and logistics resources to increase their stock-keeping unit by tracking the inventories closely using the system (Mass Grocery Retail., 2012). Another opportunity available for Walmart is the concept of discount store formats. Walmart can take the first step to start a discount store format expansion before other retailers do because the discount store format is now an attractive option for retailers in China. Walmart is the biggest retailer in China because of the acquisition of Trust-Marts 100-outlet-strong hypermarket network. Therefore, Walmart has the opportunity to expand in China, by launching a new discount compact hypermarket format formed under Trust-Mart in China (Mass Grocery Retail., 2012). Canada Walmart in Canada can expand its chain to the food retailing sector in Canada, since Target will be a competitor of Walmart in Canada. Walmart will have the competitive advantage over Target if they were to get involved in the food retailing industry because Target may be limited in food retailing (Orgel, 2011). Walmart Canada had announced the retailers planning of opening three supercenters in Quà ©bec. Walmart also ensures the quality of products they offer in the new store to gain customers confidence (Canada, 2011). Besides that, Walmarts low price strategy had given Walmart a great opportunity compared to other retailers in Canada, and this will ensure that Walmarts path in Canada will be stable (Swain, 1994). Another opportunity for Walmart in Canada is their decision to bring their warehouse club, Sams Club into Canada and this will help Wal-Mart by gaining increasing popularity in the market (Robin, 2003). Threats Mexico In February 2006, Mexicos retail association Asociacion Nacional de Tiendas de Autoservicio y Departamentales (ANTAD) sent many requests to the Congress to approved the proposals to upgrade the anti-monopoly laws to an international standards. This will affect Walmart de Mexico, because, if the laws are being approved, Walmart de Mexico will lose its advantage of its better technology and larger size as compared to other smaller retailers, to offer the lowest prices in the market. Walmart Stores is also facing this problem in the companys parent country in United States because, Walmart is a big retailer, and they are offering low prices and this will affect smaller retailers to quit from the industry. In this case, Walmart de Mexicos expansion plans in Mexico will be affected by the laws and regulations in Mexico (DATAMONITOR: Wal-Mart de Mexico., 2008). Other than that, another main issue that Walmart Mexico faces is opposition towards their expansion in Mexico, mainly from the government and local retailer. A slow growing economy will cause a lower purchasing power in a country. The economy in Mexico is an important threat to Walmart because the slow growth in the Mexican economy will affect the consumer spending and it will affect Walmarts growth in Mexico (DATAMONITOR: Wal-Mart de Mexico., 2008). Besides that, the intense competition in Mexico will also be a threat for Walmart. In Mexico, Walmart is also facing a strong competition from Mexican supermarket chains because the retail industry in Mexico is saturated. Some examples of Walmarts strong international and domestic competitors are Organizacion Soriana, Controladora, Chedraui, and Gigante. These retailers are having an intense competition with Walmart. The increasing competition from these retailers might affect Walmart de Mexico, especially in terms of profitability (DATA MONITOR: Wal-Mart de Mexico., 2008). China Walmart plans to expand bigger in China and the company had planned to open another ten stores throughout the urban areas. However, the effort faced some challenges, mainly from the government of China. Chinas state-controlled All-China Federation of Trade Union (ACFTU) had planned to take the action to sue Walmart as well as other non-Chinese companies if these companies do not have union branches in their Chinese operations. The main problem in this issue is, Walmart is well-known for their anti-union stance. In order for them to survive in the market, Walmart had agreed to respect the choice of their employees in China who wants to set up a union. This action may benefit China, but Walmart will have restrictions handling employee benefits and limited ways in resolving grievances. Even though there were many problems faced, as a multinational retailer, it is a must for Walmart to adapt to the specific markets they are operating in (Wal-Mart: in union with China, 2005). Canada Walmart Canadas largest threat will be the acquisition of Zellers Inc. by Target Corporation. The entry of Target Corporation will be another add-on to the intense competition of retailers in Canada. In the acquisition, Target took over 220 stores under Zellers, and this could impact Walmart as a big retailer because Target is growing fast after the acquisition (Orgel, 2011). The retail industry in Canada is very intense and saturated and the retail market is full of strong grocers and this will be a threat for Walmart because there will be more competition and this will slow down and eventually reduce Walmarts sales in Canada (Dunn, 2006). Besides that, Walmart also faces Canadas regulatory threats where Walmart needs to face the legal challenges from Saint-Hyacinthe certification (Springer, 2005). Besides that, Walmart is trying to introduce organic food in the country as well, and this will be a threat to Walmart because Walmart does not have a proper marketing strategy to market the product in their stores in Canada because there are other small-sized organic food suppliers which can offer a lower price (Goodbaum, 2006). Discussion Walmart is indeed a good example of a successful retailer that successfully expands and survives in the international markets. This also proves that there is the potential for retailers in domestic markets to expand their business into the international market with the condition that they use the appropriate marketing strategies and entry modes to penetrate the market. However, Walmart should also have sufficient information on the markets so that they can adapt into the market with lesser barriers. Walmart had been a successful retailer in the United States and today, and they are still growing across the world, mainly in United States, Canada and Mexico. Walmart also uses different types of marketing strategies and entry modes to dominate the markets, and this gives the large retailer a huge competitive advantage over other retailers in the market because, Walmarts philosophy, Every Day Low Price had been successfully applied throughout the world where this philosophy had helped Wa lmart greatly in surviving in different markets on the same time providing Walmart with a bright future. Walmart choices of strategies in the Mexican, Canadian and China markets also portray the firms success in adapting into the country. Walmart in Mexico used the multi format strategy to set up different types of stores to satisfy majority needs and demands of the markets, and this helped Walmart in achieving a greater amount of concentration of customers. The Bodega Aurrera store chains are proves the firms intelligence in dominating the market. These stores have different concepts such as discount stores and convenience stores that will serve different types of customers in different areas in Mexico. Secondly, in Canada, Walmart uses the retail format development strategy to approach the market. Walmart in Canda extend their offerings into the home furniture sector where these furnitures can only be found in Walmart. This will create brand awareness and brand loyalty towards Walmart in the customers. Besides that, Walmart also made full use of their satellite communication system to frequently check on the inventories in Walmart stores to decrease shortage in supply. In Canada, Walmart also have discount stores where these stores can generate high profits with low risks in the country. Thirdly, Walmart in China had achieved a huge success by using the cost leadership strategy in the country to attract more people. This is because, the population and economy in China is growing, and Walmart can have large sales volumes, with lower price, to achieve high sales records to maintain their sustainability. Other than these successes, Walmart had also used the appropriate entry modes to enter the markets. In Mexico, Walmart uses the joint venture mode with Mexicos largest retailer, CIFRA. This joint venture had benefited Walmart in the sense that, CIFRA can provide the firm with information on the markets in Mexico, and Walmart can save their time on the process of understanding the markets. This will give Walmart the advantage to grow faster in the market. The strategy used by Walmart in Canada is the acquisition mode, where the firm took over the operations of Woolco, a weak retailer in the Canadian markets. With this acquisition, Walmart does not need to worry on the locations of their stores, because the Woolco buildings were available, since the firm had took over them. In China, Walmart use the offshore sourcing strategy together with the acquisition strategy where Walmart can reduce their cost to find new locations, as well as reducing their production costs because production co sts in China is lower compared to the United States. From the different choices of entry modes that Walmart chose, all of the strategies are working well in different markets, where these strategies helped Walmart to have a strong base in the markets. Walmart have the potential in growing in the spread of their retail stores to outside their region. With the strong market base that Walmart is standing on, it will not be a major problem if Walmart were to expand into other regions in the world. However, Walmart needs to take care of the regulations of the countries they are penetrating, as well as the intensity of the competition in the markets. Conclusion Walmarts decision to expand globally had made a huge success to the firm and this can be seen in Walmarts domination in the markets. Walmarts success had been a glorious story in the business world for being able to sustain their businesses not only domestically, but also in the global context. The business strategies and entry modes used were wisely chosen and it ensures long term profitability to the firm. Even though there are challenges faced in the respective markets they penetrated successfully, Walmart still have outstanding performances in overtaking their competitors in the retail industry. Besides that, Walmart also have very strong strategic management skills because, Walmart choose their locations and targets countries carefully where this leads to the route of success for Walmart as well. Walmart success can also be credited to their efforts in satisfying their customers from all classes. Walmart offers a wide range of products where it covers all varieties of products, from the highest price to the lowest price which is still the lowest retail price in the retail industry. With this point, Walmart will have loyal customers that will make repeated purchases in the stores. Another notable success of Walmart is, the firm is able to survive even in the toughest period of the economy, during recession. Not all businesses can survive in the recession period, because during recession, the cycle of business processes will contract, which will result in slow business growth and there will be unemployment all around. Yet, Walmart still can survive and continue its business operations during the recession period. With only this point, Walmart is considered the most successful retailer in the retail industry for being able survive no matter what environment they are in.

Recover from Drug Addiction: Process vs Event Essay

Picking up the broken pieces of a life filled with insanity and drug abuse, is no overnight task. I’m not just talking of the heroin addict in the 1960s. Recovery from addiction takes constant specialized care. Through intensive work, the addiction can be arrested. The process starts with the person admitting they have a problem. This is the first step to begin to recover. Most importantly, continued involvement with self- help groups is essential. These actions are only a beginning of a life- long journey. Pain medications prescribed by doctors is adding to a problem that already exists. Cares, Council on Addiction Recovery and Educational Services , is aware of the ongoing problem. Potent opiate based pills, derived from the poppy plant, are highly addicting. Hydrocodone, Oxycodone and Lora Tab all contain opiates. The three mentioned are more addicting, readily available than other street drugs (heroin, cocaine, marijuana, methafedimine or hallucigens. ) After listening to many of these addicts in the rooms of NA (Narcotics Anonymous) I’ve gained a better understanding of the extensive problem that exists. My drug of choices were Alcohol, marijuana, ocaine and hallucigens. The society we live in today has more of a variety of mood changing and mind altering chemicals. ( ecstasy, crack cocaine, angel dust, formaldehyde, etc. ) Our youth and our elderly are at risk of being controlled by the stereotypes of taking these highly toxic chemicals as treatment. There is a false sense of security being influenced so the pharmaceutical companies and their stock holders can get rich. Preservation of life has fallen short for greed, personal status and the attitude of irrational beliefs. The damage being done will take years for those so reliant on a pill to overcome. The average recovering addict is not only the old school heroin junkies but school teachers; teenagers, elderly, professionals, businessman and pillars of our communities. Most importantly this epidemic has affected religious sectors of our cities, towns and villages throughout the world. I don’t know how many times I’ve browsed through the newspaper or watched television and seen skits on priests, pastors and ministers caught in active addiction. Recovery is an ongoing process, we don’t graduate from treatment. The best known treatment for chemical dependency has been proven to work in the rooms of NA; through the 12 steps, the fellowship and service work. Some of us who have been guided by a greater consciousness by our groups are fortunate. Many addicts never find NA or shrug off the help when presented, as a result end up in jails, institutions, dereliction and death. NA is recovery in action, focusing on treating the disease of addiction. Those affiliated with NA; that have recovered from a hopeless state of mind nd body, have a singleness of purpose, to carry the message to addict who still suffers. Throughout all continents; many families, friends, relatives are uneducated, misinformed on how insidious this disease is and how true recovery works. Recovery is a journey not a 30 day rehab and you’re cured. Rehabs only give the addict time to dry out in a drug-free safe environment, keep drugs out of reach and some basic information on what action to take upon leaving. The real treatment begins with continued participation in a support group such as NA. The saying in NA is â€Å"you never have to be lone again†. The work within the 12 steps of NA is what treats the disease of addiction. Honesty, Acceptance, forgiveness, humility, and responsibility are the stepping stones to designing a new life. The new lifestyle you developed while working through the 12 steps and applying them in your life brings freedom from active addiction. Addicts will always have the disease of addiction, they say in NA â€Å"you can’t change a pickle back into a cucumber†. The action taken in the 12 steps creates new Attitudes. Whereas the addict obtains the skills and knowledge to become a productive member of ociety. All these facts can be found in the Basic Text of NA, and are the basis of recovery. The statements in the preceding paragraphs are facts based on experience. There is nothing more powerful than the experience of the predecessors in NA, other than god himself. As one addict helping another is without parallel, we do recover. NA as a whole is guided by a god consciousness . Unity between groups holds the program together. With the 12 Steps, the 12 Traditions at the center. The Traditions are the ties that bind us together, it is only through understanding and application they work. They are the principles that keep our fellowship alive and free. The guidelines written within the Traditions help the members of NA grow spiritually. Addiction is such a cunning enemy of life that we alone have lost the power to do anything about it, without help from each other it would be too much for us. Narcotics Anonymous has websites with information about meetings established in every country worldwide. Getting involved with service within the fellowship will give the addict tools to help stay clean as well as people skills to be productive in society. For many addicts addiction leads into isolation, so as not to be discovered or arrested. Service offers more than just a life without using drugs, it offers a new path to freedom and a sense of belonging. The positions that NA offers doesn’t stop at the group level, service continues into Area, Regional and World Service (Chairperson, Vice Chair, RCM, Literature, Treasurer, NA Hotline-Phone, Delegates and Alternates. ) The World Service board controls the printing of books, literature, key tags and many other services needed to keep NA functioning in a Productive anonymous manner. I know a few people in the area I live in who have been all over the world speaking at conventions which was paid for by World Services. They have experienced the unlimited growth that NA has to offer. They told me it was the most invigorating chance to carry the message of hope into another addict’s life. There are members I know that have 30 plus years in recovery that say there is always something new to learn. The journey in NA has no boundaries and is open to any man or woman who seeks it. Recovery from active addiction is a process not an event.

EMI Corporate Finance Essay

In this Internet age, the consumer is using music content more than ever before— whether that’s playlisting, podcasting, personalizing, sharing, downloading or just simply enjoying it. The digital revolution has caused a complete change to the culture, operations, and attitude of music companies everywhere. It hasn’t been easy, and we must certainly continue to fight piracy in all its forms. But there can be no doubt that with even greater commitment to innovation and a true focus on the consumer, digital distribution is becoming the best thing that ever happened to the music business and the music fan. —Eric Nicoli, CEO, EMI Group1 In early spring of 2007, Martin Stewart drove through the darkened streets of Kensington in West London. As chief financial officer (CFO) for global music giant EMI, Stewart already knew most of the news that would break at the company’s April 18 earnings announcement. Annual underlying revenue for the company was down 16% to GBP 1.8 billion (British pounds). Earnings per share (EPS) had also dropped from 10.9 pence (p) in 2006 to −36.3p in FY2007 (fiscal year). Those disappointing numbers were roughly in line with the guidance Stewart had given investors in February. The performance reflected the global decline in music industry revenues, as well as the extraordinary cost of the restructuring program EMI was pursuing to realign its investment priorities and focus its resources to achieve the best returns in the future. The earnings announcement would include an announcement of the dividend amount, which had not yet been determined. The board would meet soon to review EM I’s annual results, International Federation of Phonographic Industry (IFPI), â€Å"IFPI: 07 Digital Music Report,† January 2007. This case was written by Elizabeth W. Shumadine (MBA ’01), under the supervision of Professor Michael J. Schill, based on public information. Funding was provided by the L. White Matthews Fund for Finance case writing. Copyright  © 2008 by the University of Virginia Darden School Foundation, Charlottesville, VA. All rights reserved. To order copies, send an e-mail to sales@dardenbusinesspublishing.com. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, used in a spreadsheet, or transmitted in any form or by any means— electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise—without the permission of the Darden School Foundation. Rev. 2/09. .2 On an annual basis, EMI had consistently paid an 8p-per-share dividend to ordinary shareholders since 2002 (Exhibit 1). Now in light of EMI’s recent performance, Stewart questioned whether EMI should continue to maintain what would represent a combined GBP 63-million annual dividend payment. Although omitting the dividend would preserve cash, Stewart appreciated the negative effect the decision might have on EMI’s share price, which was currently at 227p. Stewart recognized that EMI faced considerable threat of a takeover. Although its board had recently been able to successfully reject an unsolicited 260p-per-share merger offer from U.S. rival Warner Music, there remained considerable outside interest in taking  over EMI. It seemed that boosting EMI’s share price was imperative if EMI was to maintain its independence. EMI With a storied history that included such names as the Beatles, the Beach Boys, Pink Floyd, and Duran Duran, it was not difficult to understand why EMI considered its current and historical catalog of songs and recordings among the best in the world. EMI, Warner Music Group, Sony BMG Music Entertainment, and Universal Music Group, collectively known as â€Å"the majors,† dominated the music industry in the early 21st century and accounted for more than two-thirds of the world’s recorded music and publishing sales.3 Exhibit 2 contains a list of the global top-10 albums with their respective record labels for the last four years. Recorded music and music publishing were the two main revenue drivers for the music industry. EMI divided its organization into two corresponding divisions. EMI Music, the recorded-music side, sought out artists it believed would be long-term commercial recording successes. Each EMI record label marketed its artist’s recordings to the public and sold the releases through a variety of retail outlets. EMI’s extensive music catalog consisted of more than 3 million songs. Recorded-music division sales came from both new and old recordings with existing catalog albums constituting 30% to 35% of the division’s unit sales. Exhibit 3 contains a list of EMI’s most successful recording artists in FY2007. EMI Music Publishing focused not on recordings but on the songs themselves. Generally, there were three categories of publishing-rights ownership in the music industry: the lyric’s author, the music’s composer, and the publisher who acquired the right to exploit the song. These publishing-rights owners were entitled to royalties whenever and however their music was used. Music publishers categorized their revenue streams as mechanical royalties (sales of recorded 2 In the United Kingdom, companies typically declared dividends twice a year, first with the midyear results and second with the full-year results. Typically, EMI paid an interim dividend of 2p per share and a final dividend of 6p per share. In addition, both EMI’s interim and final dividends were paid out to shareholders in the following fiscal year. In November 2006,  EMI’s board committed to paying the interim dividend of 2p per share following its 2007 fiscal midyear results with actual payment to shareholders expected in April 2007. Both the 2p interim dividend and the recommended final dividend would be reflected in the 2008 financial statements. 3 EMI included a fourth category of royalties labeled â€Å"other,† which included sales of sheet music and, increasingly, mobile ring tones and ring backs. Similar to the recorded-music division, the music-publishing division identified songwriters with commercial potential and signed them to long-term contracts. The division then assisted the songwriters in marketing their works to record companies and other media firms. EMI’s current publishing catalog encompassed more than 1 million musical compositions. Exhibit 3 includes a list of EMI’s most-successful songwriters in FY2007. EMI’s publishing business generated onefourth of the total group revenue. Revenue in the publishing business was stable, and  operating profits were positive. In addition to seeking out and signing flourishing recording artists and songwriters to long-term agreements, both EMI divisions also expanded and enhanced their individual catalogs and artist rosters by strategic transactions. Two key acquisitions for EMI’s recorded-music division were the 1955 acquisition of a leading American record label, Capitol Records, and the 1992 acquisition of Virgin Music Group, then the largest independent record label. Together the transactions added such key recording stars as Frank Sinatra, Nat King Cole, Janet Jackson, and the Rolling Stones. The music-publishing division similarly targeted existing publishing assets with large, proven commercial potential such as the purchase in various stages of Motown founder Berry Gordy’s music catalog in 1997, 2003, and 2004. Since the company’s founding in 1897, EMI’s model had been that of â€Å"constantly seeking to expand their catalog, with the hits of today forming the classics of tomorrow.†4 Both divisions pursued the goal of having the top-selling artists and songwriters and the deepest, mostrecognized catalog assets. EMI welcomed technological innovations, which often drove increased music sales as consumers updated their music collections with the latest music medium (e.g., replacing an LP or cassette with the same recording on compact disc). But the latest technology, digital audio on the Internet, was different and revolutionary. Digital audio on the Internet demanded rethinking the business model of all the majors, including EMI. Digital Audio and the Music Industry Digital audio had been around since the advent of the compact disc (CD) in the early 1980s, but the 1990s combination of digital audio, Internet, and MP3 file format brought the music industry to a new crossroads. The MP3 format had nearly the same sound quality as CDs, but its small file size allowed it to be easily downloaded from the Internet, stored on a computer hard drive, and transferred to a digital audio player, generally referred to as an MP3 player. Peer-to-peer file-sharing Internet services, most notably Napster, emerged in the late 1990s. First available in mid-1999, Napster facilitated the exchange of music files. The use of Napster’s file-sharing program exploded, and Napster claimed 20 million users by July 2000. EMI Group PLC annual report, 2007. Napster’s swift growth did not go unnoticed by the music industry. While the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) was eventually successful in using the court system to force Napster to remove copyrighted material, it did not stop peer-to-peer file sharing. New services were quickly developed to replace Napster. The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI), an organization representing the recording industry worldwide, estimated that almost 20 billion songs were downloaded illegally in 2005. EMI was an early presence on the Internet in 1993. In 1999, EMI artist David Bowie’s album, hours†¦, was the first album by a major recording artist to be released for download from the Internet. None of the record labels were prepared, however, for how quickly peer-to-peer file sharing would change the dynamics of the music industry and become a seemingly permanent thorn in the music industry’s side. In the wake of Napster’s demise, the music labels, including EMI, attempted various subscription services, but most failed for such reasons as cost, CDburning restrictions, and incompatibility with available MP3 players. Only in the spring of 2003, when Apple launched its user-friendly Web site, iTunes Music Store, did legitimate digital-audio sales really take off in the United States, the world’s largest music market. Apple began to expand iTunes globally in 2004 and sold its one-billionth download in February 2006. According to the IFPI, there were  500 legitimate on-line music services in more than 40 countries by the beginning of 2007, with $2 billion in digital music sales in 2006. Despite the rise of legally downloaded music, the global music market continued to shrink due to the rapid decline in physical sales. Nielsen SoundScan noted that total album units sold (excluding digital-track equivalents) declined almost 25% from 2000 to 2006.5 IFPI optimistically predicted that digital sales would compensate for the decrease in physical sales in 2006, yet in early 2007, IFPI admitted that this â€Å"holy grail† had not yet occurred, with 2006 overall music sales estimated to have declined by 3%.6 IFPI now hoped digital sales would overtake the decline in physical sales in 2007. Credit Suisse’s Global Music Industry Forecasts incorporated this view with a relatively flat music market in 2007 and minor growth of 1.1% to 1.5% in 2008 and 2009.7 The Credit Suisse analyst also noted that the music industry’s operating margins were expected to rise as digital sales became more significant and related production and distribution costs declined.8 Lehman Brothers was more conservative, assuming a flat market for the next few years and commenting that the continued weakness in early 2007 implied that the â€Å"market could remain tough for the next couple of years.†9 Many in the industry feared that consumers’ ability to unbundle their music purchases— to purchase two or three favorite songs from an album on-line versus the entire album at a physical retail store—would put negative pressure on music sales for the foreseeable future. A Bear Stearns research report noted: While music consumption, in terms of listening time, is increasing as the iPod and other portable devices have become mass-market products, the industry has still not found a way of monetizing this consumption. Instead, growing piracy and the unbundling of the album, combined with the growing power of big retailers in the physical and iTunes in the digital worlds, have left the industry in a funk. There is no immediate solution that we are aware of on the horizon and in our view, visibility on sales remains poor.10 Recent Developments at EMI The last few years had been incredibly difficult, particularly within EMI’s recordedmusic division, where revenues had declined 27% from GBP 2,282 million in 2001 to GBP 1,660 million in 2006. (Exhibits 4 and 5 show EMI’s financial statements through FY2007.) Fortunately, downloadable digital audio did not have a similar ruinous effect on the publishing division. EMI’s publishing sales were a small buffer for the company’s performance and hovered in a tight range of GBP 420 million to GBP 391 million during that period. CEO Eric Nicoli’s address at the July 2006 annual general meeting indicated good things were in store for EMI in both the short term and the long term. Nicoli stressed EMI’s exciting upcoming release schedules, growth in digital sales, and success with restructuring plans. EMI’s digital sales were growing and represented an increasingly large percentage of total revenues. In 2004, EMI generated group digital revenues of GBP 15 million,  which represented just less than 1% of total group revenues. By 2006, EMI had grown the digital revenue to GBP 112 million, which represented 5.4% of total group revenues. The expected 2007 digital sales for EMI were close to 10% of group revenues. Given the positive expectations for its 2007 fiscal year, financial analysts had expected EMI’s recorded-music division to see positive sales growth during the year. EMI’s surprising negative earnings guidance on January 12 quickly changed its outlook. EMI disclosed that the music industry and EMI’s second half of the year releases had underperformed its expectations. While the publishing division was on track to achieve its goals, EMI’s recorded-music division revenues were now expected to decline 6% to 10% from one year ago. The market and investor community reacted swiftly to the news. With trading volume nearly 10 times the previous day’s volume, EMI’s market capitalization ended up down more than 7%. EMI further shocked the investment community with another profit warning just one month later. On February 14, the company announced that the recorded-music division’s FY2007 revenues would actually decrease by about 15% year-over-year. EMI based its new dismal forecast on worsening market conditions in North America, where SoundScan had calculated that the physical music market had declined 20% in 2007. The investment community punished EMI more severely after this second surprise profit warning, and EMI’s stock price   dropped another 12%. British newspaper The Daily Telegraph reported shareholders were increasingly disgruntled with performance surprises. One shareholder allegedly said, â€Å"I think [Nicoli]’s a dead duck. [EMI] is now very vulnerable to a [takeover] bid, and Nicoli is not in any position to defend anything. I think the finance director [Martin Stewart] has also been tainted because it suggests they did not get to the bottom of the numbers.† EMI analyst Redwan Ahmed of Oriel Securities also decried EMI management’s recent news: â€Å"It’s disastrous †¦ they give themselves a big 6% to 10% range and a month later say it’s 15%. They have lost all credibility. I also think the dividend is going to get slashed to about 5p.†11 Exhibit 6 contains information on EMI’s shareholder profile. As its fiscal year came to a close, EMI’s internal reports indicated that its February 14 forecast was close to the mark. The recorded-music division’s revenue was down, and profits were negative. The publishing-division revenue was essentially flat, and its division’s margin improved as a result of a smaller cost base. The company expected underlying group earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA), before exceptional items, to be GBP 174 million, which exceeded analysts’ estimates. Digital revenue had grown by 59% and would represent 10% of revenue. EMI management planned to make a joint announcement with Apple in the next few days that it was going to be the first major music company to offer its digital catalog free from digital-rights management and with improved sound quality. The new format would sell at a 30% premium. EMI management expected this move would drive increased digital sales. Management was pleased with the progress of the restructuring program announced with the January profit warning. The plan was being implemented quicker than expected and, accordingly, more cost savings would be realized in FY2008. The program was going to cost closer to GBP 125 million, as opposed to the GBP 150 million previously announced. Upon completion, the program was expected to remove GBP 110 million from EMI’s annual cost base, with the majority of savings coming from the recorded-music division. The plan reduced layers in the management structure and encouraged the recorded-music and publishing divisions to work more closely together for  revenue and cost synergies.12 One headline-worthy change in the reorganization was the surprise removal of the recorded-music division head, Alain Levy, and Nicoli taking direct responsibility for the division. The Dividend Decision Since the board had already declared an interim dividend of 2p per share in November 2006, the question was whether to maintain the past payout level by recommending that an additional 6p final EMI dividend be paid. Considering EMI’s struggling financial situation, there was good reason to question the wisdom of paying a dividend. Exhibit 7 provides a forecast of the cash flow effects of maintaining the dividend, based on market-based forecasts of 11 Alistair Osborne, â€Å"Nicoli ‘a dead duck’ as EMI issues new warning,† Daily Telegraph, February 16, 2007. Restructuring efforts over the previous three years had collectively saved the company GBP 180 million annually; however, the result was a one-time implementation cost of GBP 300 million. Omitting the dividend, however, was likely to send a message that management had lost confidence, potentially accelerating the ongoing stock price decline—the last thing EMI needed to do.13 (Exhibit 9 depicts trends in the EMI share price from May 2000 to May 2006.) Many believed that music industry economics were on the verge of turning the corner. A decision to maintain the historical 8p dividend would emphasize management’s expectation of business improvement despite the disappointing recent financial news. Forecasts for global economic growth continued to be strong  (Exhibit 10), and reimbursements to shareholders through dividends and repurchases were on the upswing among media peers (Exhibit 11). As Stewart navigated his way home, the radio played another hit from a well-known EMI artist. Despite the current difficulties, Stewart was convinced there was still a lot going for EMI. Historically, there was strong evidence of significant negative stock-price reactions to dividend cancellations (see Balasingham Balachandran, John Cadle, and Michael Theobald, â€Å"Interim Dividend Cuts and Omissions in the U.K.,† European Financial Management 2:1 (March 1996), 23–38, for a study using only British firms, and Roni Michaely, Richard Thaler, and Kent Womack, â€Å"Price Reactions to Dividend Initiations and Omissions: Overreaction of Drift?† Journal of Finance, 50, 2 (June 1995), 573–608, for a larger study using U.S. firms. Both academics and practitioners vigorously debated the impact of dividend policy. In fact, Nobel laureate economists had argued that dividend policy should maintain little relevance to investors. Exhibit 8 contains a summary of Modigliani and Miller arguments.