Lux Soap Marketing Project Essay

Executive Summary Unilever is a multinational consumer product manufacturing giant operating in over hundred countries all around the globe. Unilever Bangladesh is the Bangladesh chapter of Unilever, where the company holds 60.75% share whereas the Government of Peoples Republic of Bangladesh holds 39.25% share. UnileverÂ’s one of the most popular brand is LUX. They segments LUX.Â’s market according to geographical locations. It further differentiates these segments into Socio Economic Cluster (SEC) which takes into account the criteria of education and profession which ultimately measures the financial ability of consumers. The cluster is divided into five parts starting from A to E. Unilever targets the urban and sub urban upper middle class and middle class segment of the population, who falls under A to C of SEC. Tactical marketing tools, 4PÂ’s, are extensively used by the company to market LUX. Though LUX is produced in Bangladesh, Unilever Bangladesh maintains the same standard all around the globe. The product is available in six different fragrances under three different sizes. Since the demand for beauty soap market is to a great extent oligopolistic, variations in price lead to price war which can eventually break down the companyÂ’s market share. Thus Unilever cannot provide a better price than its competitors. But the price is affordable by most of the people. Unilever Bangladesh has outsourced its distribution channels to third party distributors which allow them to distribute LUX in massive bulks amounting to around ten million pieces. It undertakes the largest promotional activities in the beauty soap industry. The beauty soap industry has a few major producers of which Unilever holds market share of slightly less than 50%. Other competing brands like Tibbet, Aromatic and Keya have started to have a strong consumer base, but LUX.Â’s product features distribution and promotional activities have created high brand loyalty for which it is still the market leader. Unilever, with the aid of its heavy promotional activities, has been able to penetrate the market. But the other producers in the industry are posing a  threat towards UnileverÂ’s market share as they have moved towards the rural masses of the population. Therefore, Unilever Bangladesh should undertake further steps such as moving towards the rural and/or poorer segment; attract children (by making a special product for kids) and other innovative promotional activities to retain its command in the industry. Chapter 1Introduction1.1 Unilever at a Glance:Unilever is one of the worldÂ’s largest and leading multinational companies; Unilever commenced their business activities on a larger scale by setting up their first factory in Netherlands, in the year of 1872. Operating in Bangladesh for over the last four decades the company is trying to significantly contribute towards the augmentation of the standard of living by bringing world class high quality products at the door step of their customers. The usage of Unilever products by over 90% of the people in Bangladesh stands a testimony to their successful operation. . Their array of products show that they produce household care, fabric cleaning, skin cleansing, skin care, oral care, hair care, personal grooming, and tea based beverage products under worldwide famous brand names Wheel, LUX, Lifebuoy, Fair & Lovely, Pond’s, Close Up, Sunsilk, Lipton, Lipton Taaza, Pepsodent, All Clear, Vim, Surf Excel, and Rexona. 1.2 Objective of this report:This report is an outcome of an analysis of marketing strategies used by Unilever Bangladesh Ltd. The main purpose of the report is to find what strategies the company uses to market its world famous beauty soap, LUX, in Bangladesh; the positive and negative aspects of those strategies. The report further analyzes the position of Unilever Bangladesh Ltd. in the toiletry industry in comparison to its competitors. The report discusses the process of using market segmentation, target marketing, the product, pricing, promotional and distribution strategies and a competitive analysis. 1.3 Methodology of this report:For accessibility and availability of information we have chosen to work on the strategies of Unilever Bangladesh Ltd. As the company operates in the market with a huge number of products in different industries, we have decided to focus on one of their world wide  successful brands, LUX. Most of the information used in this report is from primary sources. The main source of information was the focus group discussion. In addition information was also collected from websites. Chapter 2Product Category, Market Segmentation, Target Marketing and PositioningThis chapter describes the category of the selected product. The chapter is organized into four sections. Section 1 states under which category the product falls. Section 2 describes how Unilever Bangladesh Ltd. differentiates the population and categorizes them into different segments. Section 3 analyzes which segment the company targets and why they target that specific segment. Finally section 4 describes the process through which the company tries to capture a place in the buyers mind i.e. the product positioning method. 2.1 Product Category:LUX falls under the category of toiletry product as a beauty soap. 2.2 Market Segmentation:The company claims that LUX is the highest selling beauty soap in Bangladesh. Moreover some survey reports also reveal the same result. Though LUX is the highest selling beauty soap in Bangladesh, it does not go for traditional mass marketing. Moreover as a beauty soap LUX does not even segment its market according to gender. The population of the country is segmented into three parts which are urban, sub urban and rural area consumers. The company further differentiate the geographical segments according to Socio Economic Cluster (SEC) i.e. education and Income. The SEC divides the population in five segments starting from A to E, where A categorizes the highly educated and high income earners holders, and sequentially in descending order E categorizes the opposite. 2.3 Target Market:urban and sub urban middle class, and rural poor people are the largest part of Bangladesh population. A research carried out by Unilever Bangladesh reveals that urban rich people are more likely to buy imported and expensive products. Moreover rural poor people tend to buy cheap products even without evaluating its quality. However urban and sub urban upper middle and middle class people tend to buy affordable and quality products. LUX is not a highly expensive but an affordable product. That is why the company targets urban and sub urban upper middle and middle class people who are the second highest population of segment of the country. From the segmentation of customer according to SEC they target category A, B and C, because they are assumed to be financially well-off and can afford to buy LUX. 2.4 Product Positioning:Unilever Bangladesh Ltd obtained a good position in the buyersÂ’ mind through better product attributes, price and quality, offering the product in a different way than the competitors do. The company offers improved quality of products in the industry at an affordable price with high branding, which ultimately helps to position the product in the buyersÂ’ mind as the best quality beauty soap. The market share of the company in the beauty soap industry is somewhere around 43%.Since in the beauty soap industry all products are of same price Unilever cannot provide its consumers with better price but it is in a great position in reference with its packaging, fragrances and product designing. A positioning map of the company is shown Figure 2.2 (P-10) to describe LUXÂ’s position in the consumers mind on two dimensions, price and quality. It states that though in comparison to its competitors the pricing of LUX is same but consumers rate it as the product which gives them the highest quality. This positioning created a strong customer loyalty for LUX, for which it the market leader in the industry. Chapter 3Using the Tactical Marketing ToolsThis chapter describes the way Unilever Bangladesh Ltd. use the tactical marketing tools for marketing LUX in Bangladesh. The chapter comprises of four sections. 3.1 Product:LUX is an internationally renowned beauty soap brand of Unilever. Though manufactured in Bangladesh for the local market by Unilever Bangladesh Ltd, as an international brand, it maintains an international quality for the product. Formula given by Research and Development departments in foreign countries, LUX is produced in Bangladesh from imported raw materials like sodium soap, glycerol and different extracts according to flavors, coming from Unilever plants situated abroad. LUX is offered in Bangladesh in six different flavors which are: LUX Energizing Honey, LUX Golden Glow, LUX Nature Pure, LUX Orchid Touch, LUX Almond Delight and LUX Aqua Sparkle. Taking into account the convenience of its customers, the company manufactures all flavors of LUX in three different sizes, 40gm, 80gm and 120gm. 3.2 Price:Though Unilever Bangladesh gives its LUX customers a lot in terms of the product itself, it cannot provide a better pricing. This is due to some constraints in the beauty soap industry. Beauty soap is a product with a vulnerable demand in Bangladesh. A change in price has a high risk of creating price war among the rivals which will eventually cause a loss of profit. Its prices are almost equal to its competitor. Company carries out research on competitorsÂ’ price and brand loyalty when it feels extreme necessaity of chaging price. The brand loyalty test is an exploratory research which is known as Brand Health Check-Up (BHCU). 3.3 Place:Unilever Bangladesh Ltd. has a huge distribution channel for LUX all over the country as its sales reach more than 10 million pieces a year. The company has six huge warehouses, one in each division of Bangladesh, where the product goes after they are manufactured at Kalurghat factory. The company does not use its own fleet of transport for distributing its product. However, it has outsourced its distribution process to various  third party distributors, exclusively dedicated to Unilever Bangladesh Ltd. These distributors then supply the product all over Bangladesh to a huge number of retailers. Even though LUX targets the urban and sub urban middle and upper middle class people they are distributing their products all over Bangladesh because of a recent increase in demand of its product to all segments of the population. 3.4 Promotion:Unilever Bangladesh undertakes huge promotional activities to promote LUX which has topped the beauty soap industry of Bangladesh. It spends almost 20% to 25% of its Net Proceeds from Sales (NPC) of LUX for promotional activities for LUX 1ItÂ’s certain annual promotional campaigns like LUX Channel i Superstar and LUX Channel i Annual Cinema Awards has made the product a part of the glamour world. Since the 1930s, over 400 of the worldÂ’s most stunning and sensuous women have been proudly associated with Lux advertisements. They do not only promote LUX in Bangladesh for the beauty conscious females, it also promotes the brand for males and the company proved that, by including world famous male celebrity Shahrukh Khan for their advertising campaign. Unilever Bangladesh Ltd spends a huge amount of money for promoting LUX through TV commercials, newspaper advertisements and billboards. Moreover it also undertakes small promotional campaigns at different schools, colleges, universities and recreational parks with winners of its Zonal Beauty Contests. Till now promotional activities of LUX has always been successful which has made it a household common name and helped it reach almost one billion taka sale value in the year 2004 2. Chapter 4Analyzing the Market for LUXFor better comprehension of Unilever Bangladesh, its marketing strategy, product quality, positioning and placement, we present here a comparative analysis of its competitors. This part of the report illustrates the market share of different companies in the beauty soap industry. 4.1 Market Share:The beauty soap industry in Bangladesh consists of only seven major producers. Unilever Bangladesh Ltd is operating in the industry  with its world famous brand LUX. Out of these giant companies Unilever Bangladesh Ltd is the market leader with a share of around 43%. market share of all the companies in the sector. Unilever Bangladesh Ltd is leading the market. The other competitors are very competitive among themselves but they cannot put a intense competition with Unilever Bangladesh Ltd, as they have market share much less than Unilever Bangladesh Ltd. Other companies in the industry are not as big as Unilever Bangladesh Ltd but they are posing threat to the company by a tendency of a gradual increase in their market share. Kohinoor Chemicals which is operating with the brand name Tibet is an extremely famous brand to the rural segment of the population and possess a significant share in that segment which is the largest population group in Bangladesh. Moreover Keya Cosmetics Ltd operating with the brand name Keya and Marks & Allys Ltd operating with the brand name Aromatic are also uprising brands to both the rural and sub urban segment of the population. Moreover a recent takeover of Aromatic by multinational consumer product giant MARICO who operates with famous brands in other industries like Parachute Coconut Oil is posing to be a threat to Unilever BangladeshÂ’s market share. Chapter 5ConclusionThe beauty soap industry of Bangladesh consists of a few producers in the industry. The demand for this product is very much vulnerable in terms of pricing. Unilever Bangladesh is providing LUX. at a price which is affordable to most of the people in the country. Beauty soap is an uprising product in Bangladesh as a greater portion of the population, both male and female, are now getting more beauty conscious. As a multinational company Unilever Bangladesh with heavy promotional activities, has been able to penetrate the market. With six different fragrances, three different sizes, international standard and high quality design, as a product, LUX has been highly successful over  the years. Its distribution process is highly efficient. Its promotional activities, like the beauty contest has been a milestone in attracting a huge number of customers. Overall with its marketing activities LUX has been a successful brand. The only place where rival companies are progressing is in giving customers redemption offers. Research revealed that Bangladeshi customers are highly attracted to this sort of offers. These offers are not sustainable in the long run but still it takes away a considerable part of LUXÂ’s sale in the short run. Chapter 6RecommendationIn this chapter the team would suggest some recommendations to Unilever Bangladesh Ltd. to adopt more successful operation in Bangladesh. Since a huge portion of the rural poor people is demanding LUX in recent days, Unilever Bangladesh Ltd should expand their target market also towards the rural people. They should also conduct different promotional activities in rural fairs and socially responsible promotional activities to attract rural consumers and social awareness . Because Lux has different skin type soap so now if they provide different types of beauty soaps for male and female soapunder the same brand name i.e. LUX it might increase their sales. Lastly, as Bangladeshi culture children have a huge say in shopping so they should also promote the product to children like their another brand “Dove”. These are the recommendations suggested by teem members to Unilever Bangladesh Ltd. to adopt for a more successful operation in Bangladesh with large market share. Bibliography 1.www.unilever.com•http://www.unileverea.com/ourbrands/personalcare/lux.asp•http://www.unilever.co.uk/ourbrands/personalcare/lux.asp2.www.unileverbd.com3.Report on “Competition Scenario in Bangladesh”, page 18, prepared by Bangladesh Enterprise Institute, July 2005.)4.http://www.gfk.be/ProductsAndServices/ConsumerDiagnosticTools/SpecialAnalyses/BrandHealthCheckUp5.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unilever6.http://ladytobaby.com/show.php?item=155

Aqa Psya3 Interventions for Addiction Notes

Interventions for addiction (Key: – = negative criticism/limitations + = positive criticism/support Biological interventions Methadone for heroin: Heroin addicts are given Methadone, which gives similar effects but is less addictive. Their dose is slowly increased to build up tolerance, then slowly decreased to wean the addict of it until the addict need neither substance. Some people just switch from being heroin addicts to Meth addicts – Statistics show more than 300 methadone related deaths in the UK in 2007 – Methadone consumption is often unsupervised, which has created a black market, where addicts can sell their doses for only ? 2 Potential drug treatments for gambling: not approved in the UK yet, but there is evidence that SSRI’s (selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitors which increase serotonin= good mood) or Naltrexone (a dopamine receptor antagonist, which reduces the reward of gambling by reducing dopamine) may be effective. Hollander found tha t gamblers treated with SSRI’s showed improvements compared to a control group – BUT Hollander’s study only had 10 participants; a larger, longer study by Blanco et al (32 gamblers over 6 months) showed SSRI was no more effective than a placebo + Kim and Grant showed that naltrexone led to decrease in gambling thoughts and behaviours after 6 weeks of treatment – Intervention bias of doctors: Cohen and Cohen suggest that clinicians don’t believe addictions are too difficult to treat, because they only come across them when the addiction is too advanced to respond to treatment Psychological interventions:Reinforcement: Sindelar did a study with addicts on methadone therapy (+ counselling). One group was rewarded every time they tested negative for drugs. By the end, the reward group had 60% more negative urine tests than the control (who weren’t offered rewards). + Sindelar showed it to be effective at reducing the addictive behaviour – BUT Reinforcement doesn’t address the underlying problems that caused the addiction in the first place, so as soon as the rewards are removed, addicts may just go back to engaging in the same, or another addictive behaviour again (eg an alcoholic may go back to alcohol, or develop an new addiction for sex). The rewards would have to be paid for by the NHS, which is a public service funded by taxes. The general public wouldn’t want their taxes being spent on giving addicts rewards CBT: CBT helps people change the way they think about their addiction and learn ways of coping effectively. (eg. in gambling addiction, the addict has a cognitive error in believing they can influence the outcome of the game, CBT would correct this wrong thinking by showing them that the belief is irrational) + Effective: Ladoceur et al randomly allocated 66 pathological gamblers to either a CBT group or waiting list.At the end, 86% of the treatment group were no longer classed as pathologica l gamblers, and had increased self-efficacy. + ALSO Sylvian et al looked at treatments that targeted both cognition and behaviour. Pathological gamblers were given cognitive therapy, social skills training and relapse prevention, resulting in improvements which were maintained at a 1yr follow-up. Research has tended to show that no psychological treatment to be superior, but that they are most effective when combined with pharmacological treatments. Public health interventions The NIDA (National Institute on Drug Abuse) Study:US government sponsored interventions such as the NIDA Collaborative Cocaine Treatment (CCT) study are designed to intervene in the cycle of drug-related personal and social problems. + The NIDA intervention led to a reduction in cocaine use, and subsequent reductions in related behaviours (eg. unprotected sex, which led to a reduction in HIV transmission) Telephone smoking ‘Quitline’: Stead et al found that smokers who received repeated Quitline c ounselling telephone calls were 50% more likely to quit than a control who only received brief counselling. Has real-world applications: Military personnel deployed overseas often take up, or increase smoking habits. Beckham et al found that combining Quitline services with nicotine replacement therapy was highly effective in treating US military veterans. Prevention of youth gambling: Messerlian et al proposed a prevention model based on research into teenage pathological gambling using denormalisation, protection, prevention and harm reduction principles. (eg. programme based on prevention would include early identification of ‘at risk’ youths, and attempt to avert them from escalating towards pathological gambling. + Public health intervention in gambling is proactive and addresses a potentially devastating social issue. Research shows that problem gambling as a teen can lead to subsequently adverse outcomes, (eg. strained relationships, criminal behaviour, depressio n and even suicide) so early prevention is essential. (Derevensky and Gupta)

Sound and Images, the Culture and the Role of Media

Due to the fast evolution of the technology in the society, there has been an increasing integration of sound and images in the media that people are exposed to. The film industry started only with moving images. Later on, as technology progressed, it became possible for sound to be integrated to it, making the experience of watching these movies more pleasurable. Naturally, the integration of sound and images also helps create a greater level of the believability of the movies that people watch. This means that people are able now to suspend their disbelief more easily and immerse themselves into the movies that they are watching. The message that images carry in this regard become more pronounced since they are able to manipulate sound as well. Given the joining of these disjointed features of film that may be generated in different times and in different locations, such an interaction of sound, space, and image reinforce the postmodernism ethos already affecting media, culture and the awareness of people around the world (Darley, 2000). The recent innovations in sound and image integration also give power to the visual digital culture being propagated among young people nowadays. A lot of media platform use this integration such as music videos, film, video games, and other platforms. With the changes in digital visual culture, there has been a change in the way that story, representation, and meaning are being presented to the audience. This is remarkably different from the way that traditional visual culture enhances the experience of audience (Darley, 2000). Audiences now are more critical of style, sensation and image performance. According to Frith, Goodwin, and Grossberg (1993), studying sound and image would require the serious student of mass communication to look into the nature of music television and the way it shapes perceptions among people young and old. Music videos, particularly, are making it possible for young people to redefine their styles and their views. Such approach would of course take a look at particular aspects of the development of young people’s personalities and views. In this kind of analysis, psychology and sociology come into the fore to analyze the impact of sound and image integration into the lives of those who adhere to this form of media. Modern video, with its integration of music and sound is now emerging as an important platform of mass media being analyzed by mass communication practitioners and theorists in the world today. The role of sound and image in this area of media production cannot be discounted. As such, these two platforms become carriers of meaning, which can be more easily understood by viewers and audiences alike (Cubitt, 1993). With sound and image, the practice of the imagination to recreate a place or a scene in the mind is no longer needed. In fact, since the setting, the actions in question, and the dialogues of the characters are played out as clearly as possible, little is left in the imagination as to how it could have occurred otherwise. With books in the form of novel and short stories, the viewers participate in the creation of virtual worlds in their minds. The way that the protagonist looks and how he speaks are all objects of imagination which he has to recreate based on the text that he reads. With image and sound, however, this is done away with. He just have to keep his eyes wide open and ears listening and he will understand what is being played out in the movies or shows that he is watching and enjoying. The emergence of video where sound and image interaction is already a given also has an important impact on how people make sense of themselves as members of the society and as individuals trying to make sense of their world. Through the movies and shows that they watch, new variables and ways of looking at things are being brought to the fore. Where will these mediations lead them? Do these mediations lead to a better understanding of their lives and their world? Or do they introduce new practices and views that undermine the prevalent understanding regarding their world and their environment (Cubitt, 1993). Through these videos also, there are cultural practices that are evolving. Such practices help artists and their audience find expressions for their passions and the way in which sound and image interact in creating cultural items. These movies and shows then carry cultural weight with them, which can fill the curiosity of students of mass communication for years to come. Conclusion People never imagined that image and sound can attain the heights that they have already achieved so far. There are still advancements along the way. Whatever forms of progress this will take, for sure, videography, and the way that sound, image, and motion interact with each other will challenge traditional perspectives in trying to understand mass media and the impact that it exerts on the development of the culture of society. These changes may be little but they are all significant. Reference Campbell, R., Martin, C. R., & Fabos, B. (Media and Culture: An Introduction to Mass Communication. Bedford: St. Martin’s Press. Cubitt, S. (1993). Videography: Video Media as Art and Culture. New York: St. Martin’s Press. Darley, A. (2000). Visual Digital Culture: Surface Play and Spectacle in New Media Genres. London: Routledge. Frith, S., Goodwin, A. & Grossberg, L. (1993). Sound and Vision: The Music Video Reader. London: Routledge. Â   Â   Â  

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Does Global warming exist - Essay Example Global warming usually occurs when greenhouse gas emissions such as carbon dioxide is trapped in the atmosphere thus causing a thickening blanket that traps the heat from the sun, making the planet earth to warm up continuously over a period of time (National Research Council (U.S.), 2010). There is clear evidence that there has been a marked change in the composition of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere that currently stands at 390 ppm and even higher levels have been recorded at 400ppm at Mauna Loa, Hawaii in May 2013. It can now be proven that the average global temperature has undergone a change of about 1.4 °F in the last one hundred years (National Research Council (U.S), 2010). While the American National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) found that, the period between years 2000 and 2010 was the warmest on record with 2005 and 2010 being the warmest (Giese, 20113). Scientists also project that Earth's average temperatures will raise between 2 and 12 degrees Fahrenheit by 2100 which will be disastrous to human life and all the animal life on the planet earth (National Research Council (U.S.), 2011).The rise in the global temperature has been shown through the changes in weather and ultimately the climate of regions such as changes in rainfall pattern and intensity. The oceans, seas and glaciers have equally undergone changes while the oceans have become more acidic, the glaciers and ice caps on mountains and the Polar Regions have melted while the sea levels have risen (United States. (2010). These changes can be attributed to climate change have been due to human activities and natural variations in the weather and climate of a place. It is important to observe that the earth goes through a natural cycle of cooling, warming that may be attributed to factors such as changes in solar system, and acts such as volcanic activity and these cannot be the only explanation for the rise in temperatures (U.S. Global Change Research Program and Karl, 2009).   According to the National Research Council (U.S) (2010), the biggest cause of the increase in the global temperature of the earth is the trapped greenhouse gases in the air that trap the warmth leading to heating. This has been proven using satellite technology to measure the fluctuations in the energy from the sun; scientists have proven that the sun’s contribution is minimal as compared to human activities. The upshot of this is that the increase in temperatures currently experienced globally is due to the warming properties from greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide that trap heat in the atmosphere. The increased concentration of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions increase the amount of water vapor in the atmosphere that also aids in the trapping and retention of the excess greenhouse gas emissions. Because water vapor is a greenhouse gas, it leads t o further warming through a

What does Unconscionable Mean Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

What does Unconscionable Mean - Term Paper Example To identify whether that a contract is unconscionable or not one must understand and analyze the questions of competency, fairness, and honesty. A competent person would never enter to an unconscionable contract. Generally, the level of competency hinges on the age of a person. For instance, an adolescent singer who signs a contract with a music executive who shows unfair favoritism towards the music company than the court can rule it as unconscionable contract due to the relative expertise and age of the music director. Questions of honesty are concerned with whether the facts of the contract have been truly represented or misrepresented by one of the parties. The Times Magazine of July 3, 1986 reports a case of frail old man aging 80 years who obtained relief after having agreed to sell his bungalow for  £2950 when the actual price should have been  £29,500. The contract was declared void and deemed an unconscionable contract. Adhesion contracts are also categorized as a form of unconscionable contract. In adhesion contracts, a contract is prepared by one party on a â€Å"take it or leave it† basis. An employee named Paul Mantor worked for circuit city during 90’s. In 1995, the company planned to enter into a contract with the employees regarding signing an agreement for an arbitration program to prevent the employees from filing lawsuits as they resulted in prohibitive litigation costs. The managers admonished the employees to sign the agreement or either be prepared for termination. Mantor resisted from signing the agreement in the first place but was forced to sign the agreement by 1998. When he was terminated in 2000, he filed a lawsuit at the trial level court where it was ruled that the problem should be solved through arbitration since he had signed the contract.

The Teachings of Isaiah and Their Relevance to the Contemporary Reader Essay Example for Free

The Teachings of Isaiah and Their Relevance to the Contemporary Reader Essay Isaiah, 30. 21 Isaiah (meaning â€Å"the Lord saves†) was a prophet who lived in Jerusalem about 2700 years ago and is considered â€Å"one of the greatest figures in the prophetic series† (Blunt 1953: 49). Little information is known Isaiah the man, and what information exists is often contradictory or ambiguous. What Charpentier (1982) gathers from his writing is that he had a wife (known as the prophetess) and three children. Isaiah’s most famous prophecy was that of the birth of Jesus when he wrote, â€Å"Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. (Isaiah 7:14) but his other writings are also often accredited with being some of the most accurate of all the prophets. So prominent is the reality that those who preserved a knowledge concerning Isaiah have done so with a sole interest in his message surely stresses its importance to the contemporary reader. Due to its geographical location between the strong nations of the Egyptians, Persians, Babylonians, Greeks, Romans and Assyrians it was rare to have a time when Canaan was not under attack. What is more, after the death of Solomon the kingdom was divided in two, with Israel to the North and Judah to the south remaining under the rule of David. In 721 BC Assyria invaded from the north and conquered the northern capital Samaria. Therefore when Isaiah undertook his ministry in 736 BC, the year that Uzziah died, the north and south were divided, and soon after, the â€Å"northern kingdom was in turmoil† (Charpentier, 1982:20). It has been contested by many scholars (Clements Heaton)that the book of Isaiah has in fact been written by more than one person. This is due to the variations in writing style, tone throughout the book. Furthermore, at different parts of the book, the political situation Isaiah refers to seems to change, some information coming from a time after he was thought to have ended his ministry. Some claim that the book is merely a collection of teachings from numerous writers, but it is generally accepted that there were three main authors, due to the trio of defined preaching styles evident in the book. The author of the first section is known as â€Å"Isaiah of Jerusalem† in which the prophet denounces Israels prejudice and foolish trust in rituals, and he calls the people to repent. The second section, by Deutero-Isaiah is thought to encompass chapters 40-55 and refers to the time Isaiah’s people spent in exile in the sixth century BC. This period is after Isaiah had allegedly finished his ministry. The final section of the book spans the entire period from Isaiah’s call to ministry, to the return to Jerusalem after exile. Whilst these differences provide substantial evidence against a sole author, it must be noted that there are similarities throughout the book. Phrases are repeated and certain prophecies refer to messages in other prophecies. Therefore, the existence of more than one author can be seen as an advantage as wider time-frame has been covered, and yet the teaching has remained constant; by listening to God’s message you will receive his saving mercy. Judgement and redemption† (Clements, 1980: 17) are the core themes of Isaiah, but the manner in which this message is conveyed varies throughout. The chapters below outline the key focuses of Isaiah’s teachings and their relevance for today. The opening chapter serves to introduce Isaiah’s prophecies in an open and direct manner. From the very outset the tone is one of disappointment and anger as he presents the message from God, â€Å"I have nourished and brought up my children and they have rebelled against meâ⠂¬  (Isaiah 1:2). Isaiah, who was a strong supporter in the Davidic dynasty, used the term â€Å"Yahweh† (meaning â€Å"God of Israel†) throughout his writing, to convey the strength of his belief that Israel as a whole nation was God’s chosen people and so should not be divided. In this chapter he expresses his disgust at the division between North and South, and at King Ahaz’s acceptance of allegiance with Assyria at the expense of the Northern kingdom; â€Å"Your country is desolate, your cities are burned with fire: your land, strangers devour it in your presence. † (Isaiah 1:7). To him this signified movement away from their duty as the chosen people and thus deserted God. He condemns the people’s hedonistic acts such as corruption, excessive amounts of festivals and, â€Å"vain oblations† (Isaiah 1:13). What is more he warned that if the people did not change their ways, God would turn away from them and, â€Å"when ye make your prayers I will not hear them† (Isaiah 1:15). However, Isaiah made clear that not all was lost, and stressed that if they did repent, the people would receive forgiveness and though their â€Å"sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow. (Isaiah 1:18). In short this chapter allows Isaiah to show the people the error of their ways and explain their need to repent. Just as the people of Judah and strayed from God’s message and become preoccupied with worldly ventures, today’s society is full of materialistic desires that can consume one’s attentions. Isaiah’s message is relevant to the contemporary reader in the sense that attending Church and participating in religious festivals is often viewed by today’s society as adequate in affirming one’s faith. However, it is the living out of God’s message daily that pleases God, such as helping others without the expectation of thanks, having an open mind and keeping true to your Christian values, especially when it is most difficult. In Chapter 6 Isaiah reveals how he was called to his ministry through a vivid vision of God. As this is the point when Isaiah is sent by God, his mission is clearly stated; that he must go to the people and make them understand God’s message so that they could â€Å"convert and be healed† (Isaiah 6:10). What is significant about this chapter is the tone of awe and wonder with which Isaiah speaks of God. This vision was sufficient to sustain him through the rest of his ministry, even when the people repeatedly refused to listen, as God knew they would. The strength of Isaiah’s faith should provide inspiration to any reader, contemporary or otherwise. Indeed this passage has inspired the prayer â€Å"Holy, Holy, Holy Lord† and hymn â€Å"Here I am Lord† for this very reason. As in chapter one, this chapter re-iterates the warning that judgement day will come and those who have not repented shall be punished. This passage further prophesises that there will be â€Å"a great forsaking in the midst of the land† but that â€Å"it [the people] shall return† (Isaiah 6:12-13). This refers to half a century the people would spend in exile before returning to Jerusalem late into the 5th Century BC. Today, due to technological and scientific advancements it has become more and more difficult to impress us as a society, but here Isaiah’s awe at the presence of God should remind us of the awesome power that one can barely begin to fathom. This teaching reminds one that it is not necessary to see to believe but that one should keep an open mind and heart to receive God’s message. What is more, just as when Isaiah was called he answered by taking action, today’s society is called too and each individuals actions can contribute to the attainment of a common goal, whether that be ending world poverty, caring for the environment or achieving world peace. Chapter 41, whilst allegedly from a different author continues Isaiah’s message with a noticeable change in tone. This can largely be attributed to the fact that at the time, the people of Jerusalem were in exile and thus the tone is one of comfort and reassurance. The God portrayed in this passage one of compassion and mercy, as the people are assured that â€Å"I have chosen thee and not cast thee away† (Isaiah 41:9). The people are given hope as Isaiah tells them that God knows the future will bode well for the Israelites; â€Å"Fear thy not†¦ for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee. † (Isaiah 41:10) This chapter also foretells the coming of the hero Cyrus who would free the Israelites by defeating Babylon. Today the contemporary reader can gain a sense of reassurance from this text that it is never too late to turn back to God and that regardless of past sins; true repentance will allow one to experience the saving mercy of God. What is more it teaches us that God knows what is to come and we must have faith to trust in him, even if sometimes it is difficult to understand how his mercy works. Regardless of arguments over the contributions of authors other than Isaiah to the writing of this book, I believe the message of Isaiah’s teachings (which are constant throughout the book) can be of value to contemporary readers. In fact the large time-span covered by the writings can only serve as advantageous as it allows us to see a people who in a time of relative peace had strayed from God’s message distracted by materialistic desires, then a people punished and in despair, but in the end a people with a hopeful future. This range of situations allows us to see God’s work from various angles, whilst the message of his saving mercy remains ever-prevailing. Such a message will remain of value to Christians throughout the centuries.

Principles of Management - Microsoft Essay Example for Free

Principles of Management Microsoft Essay Planning involves defining goals, establishing strategies for achieving those goals, and developing plans to integrate and coordinate activities; Organizing involves arranging and structuring work to accomplish the organization’s goals; Leading involves working with and through people to accomplish organizational goals; Controlling involves monitoring, comparing, and correcting work performance. Background of Company Microsoft Corporation, incorporated in 1981, is engaged in developing, licensing and supporting a range of software products and services. The Company also designs and sells hardware, and delivers online advertising to the customers. The Company operates in eight segments: Windows amp; Windows Live Division (Windows Division), Server and Tools Business, Online Services Division (OSD), Microsoft Business Solutions, Microsoft Office Division, Microsoft Phone Division, Skype and Interactive Entertainment Business. The Company’s products include operating systems for personal computers, servers, phones, and other intelligent devices, server applications for distributed computing environments, productivity applications, business solution applications, desktop and server management tools, software development tools, video games, and online advertising. Microsoft Corporation is more than the largest software company in the world: it is a cultural phenomenon. Microsoft is led by Bill Gates, the worlds wealthiest individual and most famous businessman, Microsoft has succeeded in placing at least one of its products on virtually every personal computer in the world, setting industry standards and defining markets in the process. Problem Statement Even the giant software company could be at risk of losing its dominance. Its faces a challenges in search, web browsing, mobile devices, web server software and even the desktop operating system market. Study Objective Microsoft will come out some new products in order to beat their competitors. Â  According to Jon Brodkin, Microsoft’s Online Services Division powered by Bing and MSN is the only one that consistently loses money, including $2. 6 billion lost over the past 2 years. Second is the web browser. Once upon a time, Microsofts Internet Explorer commanded greater than 90% market share, dominating the browser market as much as Windows dominates PCs today. The Microsoft monopoly earned itself antitrust penalties by beating Netscape into submission, but it wasnt until the rise of Mozilla Firefox and Google Chrome that the monopoly would be broken. The discrepancy between numbers of users and amount of usage suggests that the webs heaviest users are the ones who replace the default Internet Explorer with Firefox and Chrome. Â  For all its success as the world’s biggest maker of PC operating systems and office programs, Microsoft’s position as the dominant provider of software to consumers is at risk. While Windows still powers the vast majority of desktops and laptops, the emergence of mobile devices and increasing reliance on the Internet have shown consumers and businesses alike that much of what we call personal computing can be done without touching a single Microsoft product. Microsoft is still a giant, with $70 billion (? 43 billion) in annual revenue and an amazing 11 products that earn at least $1 billion a year. First of all, the first challenge is in search engine. Bing loses money over the past 2 years. Microsoft cares about search because of advertising revenue, and also because Google has become synonymous with the Internet in almost the same way Microsoft became synonymous with personal computers. Moreover, Microsofts Internet Explorer used to be a popular browser before Firefox and Chrome were launched to the market. According to the journal above, the issue of Microsoft Corporation facing is some of their software is not competitive enough to confront their competitors. Microsoft might improve or upgrade their software such as Bing and Internet Explorer regularly, always give consumers a fresh or new interface. In addition, they might make their software more function than others so that they are strong enough to beat their competitors. So as to improve the software, Microsoft has to make sure their employees’ skills are up to date. Microsoft should create a spirituality and organizational culture. Workplace spirituality recognizes that people have an inner life that nourishes and is nourished by meaningful work that takes place in the context of community. Benefits of spirituality are to improved employee productivity, increased creativity, stronger organizational performance and increased team performance. Furthermore, Microsoft might provide a proper training to their employees to make sure they can come out a new product for the company. DISCUSSION Employees are an organization’s greatest resource, and creativity is theirs. Creativity is the life force, the energy that leads to profitability. In globally competitive organizations, creativity occurs in every department at every level. Every employees uniqueness is recognized and celebrated. The goal of their leaders is bringing out the best in employees. They know that organizations are only as rich as the quality of their employees ideas.

Cloud Computing in Educational Institutions

Cloud Computing in Educational Institutions Education plays a crucial position in preserving the financial growth of a country. Now a days the lecture room coaching is changing and college students are turning into extra technology oriented and therefore in his changing surroundings, its critical that we assume approximately the modern technology to include in the teaching and getting to know manner. One of the brand new technology prevailing now days is Cloud Computing. by way of sharing IT offerings inside the cloud, academic organization can outsource non-core services and higher listen on offering students, instructors, college, and personnel the critical tools to assist them be triumphant. This paper focuses on the impact of cloud computing on the education device and how we will provide the first-class education by using the above generation. Keywords:Cloud Computing, IOT, Cloud Education Introduction: The internet of things (IoT) and its applicable technologies can seamlessly combine classical networks with networked units and devices. IoT has been playing a crucial function ever as it seemed, which covers from conventional device to favored family items and has been attracting the attention of researchers from academia, company, and authorities in latest years. There may be an awesome vision that each one things may be easily managed and monitored, can be diagnosed automatically with the aid of the use of different things, can speak with every exclusive via net, and may even make choices through themselves. In an effort to make IoT smarter, masses of evaluation generation are brought into IoT, one of the maximum treasured era is information Technology. In many countries government. Is encouraging the parents to send their wards to be part of schools and colleges and has been supplying diverse schemes to promote education. The various schemes makes college students reaches to the colleges and schools however lack of centers, right instructors, lack of new books and labs centers significantly influences their results and for that reason discourages them to keep their education. One of the biggest challenges that the authorities faces in offering education is the lack of infrastructure and if available then preservation of that infrastructure and other trouble is purchasing and keeping a huge range of hardware and software require ample, ongoing funding and the abilities to guide them. Cloud computing can help provide the ones answers. Its a community of computing assets-located pretty much everywhere- that can be shared. For this reason through implementing cloud computing era we can conquer all those quick comes and maintain a centr alized device in which all of the government can test the education system from each and every aspects and preserve monitor and guide the device. They now not most effective test the desires of the establishments but also make sure that fine education is offer to every pupil and additionally his attendance, magnificence performances etc may be efficiently maintained without annoying for the infrastructure problem. The cloud enables make sure that students, teachers, faculty, parents, and workforce have on-demand get entry to to important records the use of any tool from anywhere. Both public and private institutions can use the cloud to deliver better offerings, at the same time as they work with fewer sources. Background: Cloud computing predecessors had been around for some time now [1,2], however the time period became famous sometime in October 2007 while IBM and Google introduced a collaboration in that area [1,2].This was followed by IBMs announcement of the Blue Cloud attempt [1,2]. Due to the fact then, every person is talking about Cloud Computing. Of path, there is also the inevitable Wikipedia access [1]. its miles potential that August 24, 2006 will go down because the birthday of Cloud Computing, because it became in this day that Amazon made the check model of its Elastic Computing Cloud (EC2) public [Business Week 2006]. This offer, providing bendy IT assets (computing potential), marks a definitive milestone in dynamic commercial enterprise relations between IT users and vendors. The term first became famous in 2007, to which the first entry within the English Wikipedia from March 3, 2007 attests, which, again drastically, contained a reference to application computing. today, Cloud Com puting generates over 10.3 million matches on google Cloud computing predecessors had been around for some time now [1,2], however the time period became famous sometime in October 2007 when IBM and Google introduced a collaboration in that domain [3, 4].This turned into accompanied through IBMs assertion of the Blue Cloud effort [9]. Considering that then, all of us is speaking approximately Cloud Computing. Of direction, there is also the inevitable Wikipedia access [2]. it is practicable that August 24, 2006 will move down as the birthday of Cloud Computing, because it became on this day that Amazon made the check version of its Elastic Computing Cloud (EC2) public [Business Week 2006]. This provide, providing flexible IT sources (computing capability), marks a definitive milestone in dynamic enterprise members of the family between IT users and providers. The time period first have become famous in 2007, to which the first access within the English Wikipedia from March 3, 2007 a ttests, which, again substantially, contained a reference to application computing. These days, Cloud Computing generates over 10.three million Main Focus: Various Cloud Computing applications have been sent in the Education Department. In any case, most applications can be categorized as one of the accompanying three classes. Public Private and Hybrid School and college department use these different types of classes for own needs. Classification of Cloud There are three classification of cloud computing. Private Cloud Public Cloud: Hybrid Cloud Public Cloud: It is the IT infrastructure that is used by many companies and offerings at the same time. Records users of the clouds are not capable of manipulate and preserve this cloud, the entire responsibility for these matters rests with the proprietor of the cloud. Subscriber offerings can be supplied by means of any company and individual consumer. They offer an easy and inexpensive manner to set up web sites and enterprise systems, with high scalability, which in other answers would be available. Hybrid Cloud: Is the IT infrastructure the usage of the best traits of public and private clouds, with the task. frequently this type of cloud is used at the same time as an enterprise has seasonal periods of pastime, in different phrases, as quickly as the internal IT infrastructure cannot deal with current annoying situations, some centers are transferred to a public cloud (e.g. big portions of statistical statistics, its in its raw form or a few issue that does not constitute charge for the agency), similarly to provide user access to corporation assets (for private cloud) through a public cloud. Private Cloud: At ease IT infrastructure is managed and operated for the benefit of an unmarried enterprise. The organization can manage its very own private cloud or outsource this task from an outside contractor. Infrastructure can be placed either at the premises of the customer, or in an information center. Ideal non-public cloud is the cloud that is deployed in the business enterprise premises, served and controlled by means of its personnel. Future Movements: Conclusion: ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS: WE would like to thank our student class fellow who help us a lot when needed. Moreover, there were some confusions which were cleared by my colleagues. WE would also like to thank Dr Amjed Farooq, Professor at Superior University for preparing us for this much effort and we can say that without it would not be possible for me to write this paper. Fahad Zafar, IT Head at Zenith Chemical also helped us a lot with his knowledge and experience and Im thankful for his time and effort with us. References: [1] G.M. Muriithi,J.E.Kotze, Cloud computing in higher education: implications for South African public universities and FET colleges, Proceedings of the 14th Annual Conference on World Wide Web Applications Durban, 7-9 November 2012 (http://www.zaw3.co.za) ISBN: 978-0- 620-55590-6 [2] Sunita Manro,Jagmohan Singh,Rajan Maro ,Cloud Computing in Education: Make India Better with the Emerging Trends, High Performance Architecture and Grid Computing Communications in Computer and Information Science Volume 169, 2011, pp 131-139 [3] Gaurav Bhatia, Mohnish Anand, Priya Shrivastava, Cloud Computing Technology In Education System, International Journal of Advanced Technology Engineering Research (IJATER), ISSNNO:2250-3536 Volume2,Issue2,March2012. [4] Buyya, R. et al (2009). Cloud Computing and emerging IT platforms: Vision, Hype and reality for delivering computing as the 5th Utility. Future Generation Computer Systems. http://www.buyya.com/papers/Cloud-FGCS2009.pdf [5] Sultan, N. 2010. Cloud Computing for Education: a new dawn? http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0268401209001170. 6.

A View From Teh Bridge :: essays research papers

A View from the Bridge - Carbone family and community in scene 1 [-red-] Eddie is very protective of Catherine. Eddie seems very concerned as to the welfare of Catherine. "Where you goin' all dressed up?" "where you goin'?" "whats going on?" "I think its too short ain't it?" Eddie doesn't want Catherine to grow up "you're walking wavy!" He is concerned that she might get sexually assaulted or may be taken advantage of by men. Catherine disapproves of his protectiveness and nearly starts to cry "almost in tears because she disapproves". There seems to be a link between Catherine and B, Catherine wanted to wait until B was there before she broke her news. It is as if B understands Catherine but Eddie does not. This is shown by the fact the Catherine brakes the news to B. before she tells Eddie. Catherine feels that she can be more open with B than with Eddie. Eddie thinks that B. is too friendly, he is worried that they might end up sleeping on the floor and their guests might end up having the beds. Eddie wants Catherine to finish school and once again this shows concern for Catherine, but B sides with Catherine, once again it is as if they have an understanding with each other. B knows that Eddie is being too over protective and that they cannot keep Catherine in cotton wool all of her life. Eddie does want the best for Catherine but B realises that she may not get another well-paid job like this one. Eddie considers Catherine as a little project "I supported you this far I want to support you a little more". As a result Eddie finds it hard to let go of Catherine. This is shown by the fact that is takes Eddie a while to be persuaded by B. that the work is the best thing. Eddie is worried that once Catharine has her job she will get her own place and they will never see her again. "And then you will come visit on Sundays, then once a month, then Christmas and new years finally" I get the idea that B understands what Eddie is going through and that there is an understanding between them because of this. After reading the 1st scene that Catherine objects to being wrapped in cotton wool for all of her life, she wants to walk wavy and she want to go out with boys.

The Year that Changed My Perspective of School :: Expressive Essay

The Year that Changed My Perspective of School It all started a week before the new school year. The year of the sneezing, coughing and nonstop runny nose was preparing its over throw of summer. I wasn't too excited about it. In fact I dreaded it. Advertisements came flying through the mail. Every one of them had printed boldly "Back To School" and "Back to School" again. It made me sick to my stomach. I threw every ad in the garbage. I never knew it but this school year was to change my view of school and the people in it completely. The first hour of school was a disaster. Mainly because of Mrs. Laurel my new history teacher. At the sound of the bell she carried a pile (2ft. high it seemed) of papers from her desk to all the students. "Welcome to the wonderful world of history," she announced, "My name is Mrs. Laurel and these here few papers are the requirements and rules of my class." She passed out what amounted to be forty papers for each student. Then she smiled and said, "We will start with you." She pointed directly at me. "You start reading for us and then we'll circle all around the room so everyone can get their chance." My face flushed red, my heart pounded through my chest. I was sitting way in the back but some how or another she picked me. She noticed me. This was the worst first day of school in my life. Well, I read. I read and I read and I read. I read the whole entire thirty minutes because Mrs. Laurel never stopped me and I was too afraid to stop. So I jumbled and mumbled over words. My face turned oven red and my voice sounded hoarser and hoarser. Some of the students began to giggle. I felt terrible. It was the bell that saved me. "Young lady!" Mrs. Laurel called to me as the class shuffled out the door. "You will start on the 'Student Expectations' paragraph tomorrow okay!" "Yes Mrs. Laurel," I said quietly. Then I ran quickly out the door. The next morning I didn't go to class. I hid in the bathroom stall.

The Divine Secrets Of The Ya Ya Sisterhood Essay examples -- essays re

Rebecca Wells paints a picture of the various roles that women often must encounter in their lives: mother, daughter, friend. As said by Charlotte Observer "She [Wells] speaks eloquently to what it means to be a mother, a daughter, a wife-and somehow, at last, a person." Wells uses a captivating style to create a simple plot, memorable symbolism and a reoccurring theme of friendship. The Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood teaches about the importance of giving and receiving love and finding joy in everyday life. The simplistic plot of the novel and the overall theme of love allows the author to span the lives of the main characters. The reader sees the span of the life of two of the main characters, Sidda and her mother Vivi, as they struggle to love each other based on their own childhood experiences. The reader also sees our two main characters in parallel encountering love and affairs of the heart; yet the most powerful love throughout the book is the love of four friends who stick together through the good and the bad. Vivi loves the Ya-Ya’s; as adolescents they are looking for love and someone to look up to. Vivi didn’t know how to love Sidda because Vivi’s mother didn’t know how to love her; therefore, Sidda doesn’t know how to love Connor because she has never experienced love and is now afraid to be in love. The simplicity of the novel is that everyone is always looking to be loved. The simplicity is that in real life people are always searching to be loved, or finding love. Near the beginning of the novel when the ya-ya’s are in their adolescence as young girls, going through the normal obstacles of childhood- fighting with their parents, getting into mischief, smoking and breaking curfew- they realize that by sticking together they can get through anything. They formalize this bond with a ceremony early on, "I am a member of the royal and true tribe of the Ya-Ya’s†¦I do solemnly swear to be loyal sister Ya-Ya’s, and to love and look out for them, and never forsake them through thick and thin, until I take my last human breath" (Wells 71). Wells shows the reader that the inability to show love can be passed down through generations: Sidda expresses to Connor why she is afraid to marry him, "She [Vivi] didn’t know how to love me, so I don’t know how to love you" (Wells 284). Sidda is saying that her mother couldn’t ... ...and that it really was their friendship that guided them through their whole life. And that together they really were all one. "I see lightness and ease. I see suffering somewhere in my mother’s [Vivi] eyes, but also I feel the camaraderie, laughter, friendship" (Wells 313). The Ya-Ya’s are very much at ease giving love to each other. That is what helped them to sustain their friendship for so long and helped them throughout their lives to love each other. Through the lives of five extraordinary women: Sidda, Vivi, Caro, Necie and Teensy, Wells uses a captivating style to create a simple plot. Memorable symbolism and the reoccurring themes of friendship and love in the novel The Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood. Wells shows the reader that love and friendship, even in the smallest form, can sustain through tragedy and triumph-the bonds of the Ya-Ya’s. Works Cited Primary Source: Wells, Rebecca. The Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood. New York New York: Harper Collins Publishers, 1996. Secondary Source: Wells, Rebecca. The Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood. New York New York: Harper Collins Publishers, 1996.

Johann Sebastian Bach

The Baroque period happened right after the Renaissance, an era best defined by the emergence of unique styles. Baroque literally means â€Å"bizarre†, and this is used to describe architectural designs during that time. Buildings of this design were observed to be highly ornamented and decorated. Later, the term has also been applied to music.This style differs greatly from the Renaissance and the Classical style of music by means of instruments used, amount of experimentation, and techniques utilized in composing and in performing the musical pieces.Musicians of this time experimented greatly on music genres, used different playing styles, evolved and changed a lot of traditional musical notations, improved on the complexity of instruments, and highlighted a point in history where music has changed dramatically. This era was indeed a turning point for music, giving birth to composers destined to be remembered until now. One of these geniuses is Johann Sebastian Bach. Bach wa s born on the 21st of March, 1685 to a well renowned family of musicians.His father was Ambrocious, the court trumpeter for the Duke of Eisenach and a musical director for the town and his mother was Maria Elisabetha Lammerhirt. Many of the Bachs were known for being instrumentalists, church organists, and singers all through out the town. Johann Sebastian Bach, as early as eight years old, begun singing in a choir they and his friends have founded at their school. Prior to this, he has been taught on how to play the violin and the harpsichord by his father and the organ by his uncle. He immediately became proficient with these instruments, particularly the organ.But fate has not been very kind to him, and at an early age, he lost his mother, father, a brother and a sister (Boyd, 1983). These early tragedies did not slow Bach down, and at a young age of 18, Bach started to be known all through out his village and other neighboring towns. He became a regular singer at choirs and a mu ch praised organist at congregations. He traveled to different places, and was hired by different courts as their chief musician and composer. He was able to start a family by marrying Maria Barbara, who gave birth to four children.His wife then died shortly after while Bach was out on a traveling performance. Bach then remarried, this time with Anna Magdalena, who remained faithful in taking care of their children and in copying Bach’s manuscripts. He lived his life well, created a family, and composed hundreds of pieces before lying to rest on July 28, 1750 (Boyd, 1983). The life of Bach can be seen as a flow of history told by his compositions. His famous pieces, usually short scores collected in a book, are manifestations of his life at the current time the music was composed.Take for example his work â€Å"Mass at B Minor†, started at about 1724 and completed at 1749, just a year before his death (Smith, 1996). This is a 4-part piece which depicts Bach’s li fetime devotion to religion. As a student years back, he studied Theology, and even topped his class at a very young age. Another piece Bach is known for is the lengthy â€Å"Brandenburg Concertos† which he completed at around 1721 or earlier. These 6 concertos are dedicated to Christian Ludwig, Margrave of Brandenburg-Schwedt, who was pleasured by Bach’s innate talent for music. Bach used this piece to apply for a position on the Margrave’s court as a musician (Chee).Finally, his work entitled â€Å"The Musical Offering† marks the timeline in his life when he played for the King of Prussia, Frederick II at around 1747. This King’s theme started as an improvised piece by Bach, and later became a full length book used by many of his successors (Rasmussen, 2001). Bach is a very accomplished musician. His life was not always that perfect, in fact he had a lot of pitfalls and severe tragedies such as death of a loved one. But he showed the world that b y having a passion for something like music, one can surpass all trials presented to him.And by dedicating his life to his work, he became a composer-legend the world will never forget. References: Boyd, M. (1983). Bach. Timeline retrieved from http://www. jsbach. org/timeline. html Chee, B. The Brandenburg Concertos. Inkpot Issue 95. Retrieved from http://inkpot. com/classical/bachbrandenburg. html Rasmussen, M. (2001). Bach, Mozart, and the ‘Musical Midwife', The New Federalist, Retrieved from http://www. schillerinstitut. dk/bach. html Smith, A. (1996). Bach’s Mass in B Minor as a Musical Icon. Lecture retrieved from http://jan. ucc. nau. edu/~tas3/musicon. html

Deception Point Page 71

Despite the late hour, Gabrielle was not at all surprised to see the building's foyer filling with people, an apparent convergence of excited media crews and even more excited NASA personnel. Gabrielle hurried inside. The entryway resembled a museum, dominated dramatically by full-size replicas of famous mission capsules and satellites suspended overhead. Television crews were staking claims on the expansive marble floor, seizing wide-eyed NASA employees who came through the door. Gabrielle scanned the crowd, but did not see anyone who looked like PODS mission director Chris Harper. Half the people in the lobby had press passes and half had NASA photo IDs around their necks. Gabrielle had neither. She spotted a young woman with a NASA ID and hurried over to her. â€Å"Hi. I'm looking for Chris Harper?† The woman eyed Gabrielle strangely, as if she recognized her from somewhere and couldn't quite place it. â€Å"I saw Dr. Harper go through a while ago. I think he headed upstairs. Do I know you?† â€Å"I don't think so,† Gabrielle said, turning away. â€Å"How do I get upstairs?† â€Å"Do you work for NASA?† â€Å"No, I don't.† â€Å"Then you can't get upstairs.† â€Å"Oh. Is there a phone I might use to-â€Å" â€Å"Hey,† the woman said, looking suddenly angry. â€Å"I know who you are. I've seen you on television with Senator Sexton. I can't believe you would have the nerve-â€Å" Gabrielle was already gone, disappearing into the crowd. Behind her, she could hear the woman angrily telling others Gabrielle was here. Terrific. Two seconds through the door, and I'm already on the Most Wanted List. Gabrielle kept her head down as she hurried to the far side of the lobby. A building directory was mounted on the wall. She scanned the listings, looking for Chris Harper. Nothing. The directory showed no names at all. It was arranged by department. PODS? she wondered, scanning the list for anything that had to do with the Polar Orbiting Density Scanner. She saw nothing. She was afraid to glance over her shoulder, half expecting to see a crew of angry NASA employees coming to stone her. All she saw on the list that looked even remotely promising was on the fourth floor: EARTH SCIENCE ENTERPRISE, PHASE II Earth Observing System (EOS) Keeping her head turned away from the crowd, Gabrielle made her way toward an alcove that housed a bank of elevators and a water fountain. She searched for the elevator call buttons, but saw only slits. Damn. The elevators were security controlled-key card ID access for employees only. A group of young men came hurrying toward the elevators, talking exuberantly. They wore NASA photo IDs around their necks. Gabrielle quickly bent over the fountain, watching behind her. A pimple-faced man inserted his ID into the slot and opened the elevator. He was laughing, shaking his head in amazement. â€Å"The guys in SETI must be going nuts!† he said as everyone boarded the elevator. â€Å"Their horn carts traced drift fields under two hundred milliJanskys for twenty years, and the physical proof was buried in the ice here on earth the whole time!† The elevator doors closed, and the men disappeared. Gabrielle stood up, wiping her mouth, wondering what to do. She looked around for an interoffice phone. Nothing. She wondered if she could somehow steal a key card, but something told her that was probably unwise. Whatever she did, she knew she had to do it fast. She could now see the woman she'd first spoken to out in the lobby, moving through the crowd with a NASA security officer. A trim, bald man came around the corner, hustling toward the elevators. Gabrielle again bent over the fountain. The man did not seem to notice her. Gabrielle watched in silence as the man leaned forward and inserted his ID card into the slit. Another set of elevator doors slid open, and the man stepped on. Screw it, Gabrielle thought, making up her mind. Now or never. As the elevator slid closed, Gabrielle spun from the fountain and ran over, sticking her hand out and catching the door. The doors bounced back open, and she stepped in, her face bright with excitement. â€Å"You ever seen it like this?† she gushed to the startled bald man. â€Å"My God. It's crazy!† The man gave her an odd look. â€Å"The guys at SETI must be going nuts!† Gabrielle said. â€Å"Their horn carts traced drift fields under two hundred milliJanskys for twenty years, and the physical proof was buried in the ice here on earth the whole time!† The man looked surprised. â€Å"Well†¦ yes, it's quite†¦ † He glanced at her neck, apparently troubled not to see an ID. â€Å"I'm sorry, do you-â€Å" â€Å"Fourth floor please. Came in such a hurry I barely remembered to put on my underwear!† She laughed, stealing a quick look at the guy's ID: JAMES THEISEN, Finance Administration. â€Å"Do you work here?† The man looked uncomfortable. â€Å"Miss†¦?† Gabrielle let her mouth fall slack. â€Å"Jim! I'm hurt! Nothing like making a woman feel unmemorable!† The man went pale for a moment, looking uneasy, and running an embarrassed hand across his head. â€Å"I'm sorry. All this excitement, you know. I admit, you do look very familiar. What program are you working on?† Shit. Gabrielle flashed a confident smile. â€Å"EOS.† The man pointed to the illuminated fourth floor button. â€Å"Obviously. I mean specifically, which project?† Gabrielle felt her pulse quicken. She could only think of one. â€Å"PODS.† The man looked surprised. â€Å"Really? I thought I'd met everyone on Dr. Harper's team.† She gave an embarrassed nod. â€Å"Chris keeps me hidden away. I'm the idiot programmer who screwed up voxel index on the anomaly software.† Now it was the bald man whose jaw dropped. â€Å"That was you?† Gabrielle frowned. â€Å"I haven't slept in weeks.† â€Å"But Dr. Harper took all the heat for that!† â€Å"I know. Chris is that kind of guy. At least he got it straightened out. What an announcement tonight, though, isn't it? This meteorite. I'm just in shock!† The elevator stopped on the fourth floor. Gabrielle jumped out. â€Å"Great seeing you, Jim. Give my best to the boys in budgeting!† â€Å"Sure,† the man stammered as the doors slid shut. â€Å"Nice seeing you again.† 84 Zach Herney, like most presidents before him, survived on four or five hours of sleep a night. Over the last few weeks, however, he had survived on far less. As the excitement of the evening's events slowly began to ebb, Herney felt the late hour settling in his limbs. He and some of his upper level staff were in the Roosevelt Room enjoying celebratory champagne and watching the endless loop of press conference replays, Tolland documentary excerpts, and pundit recaps on network television. On-screen at the moment, an exuberant network correspondent stood in front of the White House gripping her microphone. â€Å"Beyond the mind-numbing repercussions for mankind as a species,† she announced, â€Å"this NASA discovery has some harsh political repercussions here in Washington. The unearthing of these meteoric fossils could not have come at a better time for the embattled President.† Her voice grew somber. â€Å"Nor at a worse time for Senator Sexton.† The broadcast cut to a replay of the now infamous CNN debate from earlier in the day. â€Å"After thirty-five years,† Sexton declared, â€Å"I think it's pretty obvious we're not going to find extraterrestrial life!† â€Å"And if you're wrong?† Marjorie Tench replied. Sexton rolled his eyes. â€Å"Oh, for heavens sake, Ms. Tench, if I'm wrong I'll eat my hat.† Everyone in the Roosevelt Room laughed. Tench's cornering of the senator could have played as cruel and heavy-handed in retrospect, and yet viewers didn't seem to notice; the haughty tone of the senator's response was so smug that Sexton appeared to be getting exactly what he deserved.

Early Childhood Education Essay

I used my experience and expertise got as a Preschool Teacher and handled the responsibilities of Program Manager-Preschool with efficiency. I took the task of making plans for lessons each week. I also managed and coordinated the team of teachers and recorded my observation about children and teachers which would be presented to director in meeting. I also monitored and presented the needs of children and teachers namely childcare facilities, facilities needed for teachers to the management. Preschool Teacher, Playschool Center, Atlanta, May 2001-Jan 2002 Responsibilities: As Preschool Teacher I took the responsibility of teaching theoretical lessons, practical sessions of lessons taught, coordinating games and fun activities among children. I took the responsibility of teaching and executing children’s projects from conception to completion. I took care and educated of age from 1-6. I was responsible for not only making lesson plans abut also for managing the whole class allotted to me. I planned and organized variety of activities both for individuals and group activities namely play, dance, singing, games, arts and crafts which helped children to bring out their talents and improve their skills. Preschool Teacher, Jan 1999 – May 2001 Play Kids School, Atlanta Responsibilities: I used various fun activities, play and interactive activities to develop language and vocabulary among children. This approach of combining play and interactive activities made children to learn with ease, increased their interest and attention on academic learning, helped them to learn letter recognition, helped children to learn numbers, science and nature with ease and interest. Preschool Teacher, Dec 1996 – Jan 1999 Daycare Center, Atlanta Responsibilities: I took the responsibility of taking story telling sessions for children and there by helped the children to increase their vocabulary and creative thinking. I was also trained and made use of audio visual aid in my teaching to children and by this children could learn lessons interestingly with ease. I took care of each child individually and attended their problems in lessons and also coordinated with their parents to communicate about their children. Responsibilities: I worked as a Assistant Preschool Teacher with children of ages 2-7 years old. I assisted the team of Preschool Teachers with various teaching activities of children. I prepared the lessons given by Preschool Teachers for teaching. I also underwent training from Preschool Teachers to use various teaching methodologies and learnt the techniques of handlings different age group children effectively and efficiently. Education, as we all know is a lifelong process of learning. This important process starts in childhood. The first eight years of a child’s life greatly shape up rest of his life. More so, in the field of education, what a child learns in his first eight years has lifelong influence on his career and more importantly, his personality. Though, a number of new career avenues have opened up but to compete and to compete well, one needs to have good education background. In that context, role of preschool education is very crucial. The importance of early childhood education is manifested in the development of child’s emotional, physical, intelligence and social learning. The major roles in the development of these aspects are played by teachers and parents. The learning process begins when a child is born. But getting into a preschool opens up new vistas of learning. To get the maximum benefits from an early child development program offered by nursery schools or kindergartens, parents need to be involved in the process. According to psychological researches, a child learns at the fastest pace when he is between the age ranges of 0-6 years. Based on this premise, preschools design their course curriculums so that the process of child’s natural learning becomes more effective. But point to ponder here is, just following a scientific methodology of teaching will not serve the purpose. A child also needs soft touch, proper nutrition, care and love from everybody involved. In order to make an early child development program a success, schools need to devise well defined courses along with affection, proper treatment and due attention from the caregivers. Absence of these factors will make child lag behind in the course of life. In reality, different preschools have different types of course curriculum, each one based upon a certain theory. However, despite the presence of different theories in the course curriculum, one essential element is always present in all kindergartens and that is of catering to the individual needs of a child. It is very important to build the self-esteem of a child in best possible way. The role of play in early childhood education cannot be neglected. In fact, play helps in fostering so many wonderful qualities in the child. Team spirit, social behavior, understanding other children etc are some of the common benefits of a child education program. Preschools incorporate different types of interesting games in the course that helps in the personality development of a child. Childcare institutes prove extremely beneficial in the development of a child’s social skills and emotional intelligence. He learns to interact with others. He also discovers how best to interpret his emotions and that of others. The incorporation of these skills in a child’s personality plays a major role in the later stages of his life. Education programs offered by preschools are essential for the overall growth and development of children. They facilitate the learning process and help in building up bright new future of an entire generation. The Benefits of Early Childhood Education The writer of Proverbs 22:6 wrote: â€Å"Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it†. Early Education has benefits that can follow well into adult hood. Early childhood education is the organized practice of educating those who are in early childhood. According to the NAEYC (National Association for the Education of Young Children), early childhood spans the human life from birth to age eight (Early Childhood Education, para. 1). Before 1960, educating young children was primarily dealt with in the home. Today most children spend a large part of their day away from their parents. Most attend a center based program until kindergarten. Attendance at a center-based program is becoming the norm at ages three and four. In 1999, center-based program participation was 70% at age four and 45% at age three. This paper will focus on the importance of early education on children from infancy to age 4. Early education has been shown to increase benefits in academic achievement, delinquency, career success and economic growth. Early education has been shown to positively effect academic achievement. Most studies have resulted in a lifetime lasting increase in IQ by 5 IQ points. Multiple meta- analyses have been conducted and found that preschool education can raise acheivment test scores from the 30th percentile to the 50th percentile. A recent study proved that early education has significant lasting benefits on school progress (ie. Grade repetition, placement in special education and high school graduation rate). The Abecedarian study evaluated the effects of full day year round educational programs on children around four months to kindergarten entry. The study followed 111 children from the time they started the program through age 21. The program had a great effect on grade repetition and placement in special education, decreasing both by 23%. Both high school graduation rates and†¦ Outline for Writing an Expository Essay I. Introduction (Note: A-C are in one paragraph) A. Attention Getter: 1) a quotation 2) a fact or statistic 3) a rhetorical question that cannot be answered with a simple yes or no 4) a general observation about the topic at hand) B. Context (background information—name of the work, the author, and a very brief summary of the work) C. Thesis Sentence II. Body: Paragraph One Note: The transition and topic sentence may be in the same sentence, A. Transition:__________________________ B. Topic Sentence______________________ C. Concrete Detail D. Commentary (2-3 comments per CD)_ E. Concrete Detail F. Commentary (2-3 comments per CD)_ 111. Body: Paragraph Two Note: The transition and topic sentence may be in the same sentence. A. Transition:__________________________ B. Topic Sentence______________________ C. Concrete Detail D. Commentary (2-3 comments per CD)_ E. Concrete Detail F. Commentary (2-3 comments per CD)_ IV. Body: Paragraph Three Note: The transition and topic sentence may be in the same sentence. A. Transition: __________________________ B. Topic Sentence. __________________________ C. Concrete Detail__________________________ D. Commentary (2-3 comments per CD)__________________________ E. Concrete Detail__________________________ F. Commentary (2-3 comments per CD)__________________________ V. Conclusion Note: The transition and thesis may be in one sentence. A. Transition word or phrase:__________________ B. Restate thesis sentence __________________________ C. Summarize arguments/points (should only be one sentence) 1)___________________________________ 2)__________________________ 3)__________________________. D. Call to action/†So what? â€Å" Do any of the following things: 1) Explain why the topic is universal in its nature—how it affects the reader 2) Expand on the narrow topic to a more universal observation about life, history, literature, etc. 3) Motivate the reader to take a certain action or think in a certain manner. ____________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________

Marketing Strategy of Nokia Essay

INTRODUCTION The company I have chosen to analyze in my project is the Finnish mobile phone giant NOKIA. This project tells us briefly what Nokia actually is, it’s company structure and overall view on the size and sales of the company & also the Various Marketing Strategies followed by them. Nokia is a telecommunication company with headquarters in Espoo (Finland). It is best known as the world’s most famous mobile phone manufacturer, and it is, furthermore, the provider of consumer products such as set-top boxes, equipment for broadband Internet and IP and mobile networks. Nokia is also a supplier of the automotive industry and offers things like speakers for various car brands. 1.1 Purpose of the study Understanding the company as a whole. To know the facilities provided by the Company to its Customers. To know the Strategies adopted by NOKIA to re-establish itself in the cell-phones market after simultaneous decline of the company’s market share over the past few years due to competition from companies like APPLE and SAMSUNG. 1.2 Research Objectives of the Study:- To gather information about the company and its products. To study the threat, weaknesses, opportunities and strengths of the company. To make comparative analysis between top 5 phone vendors. To get the better view of Various Marketing Strategies adopted by NOKIA to reposition itself in the Smartphones’ market. 1.3 Research Methodology It is a way to systematically solve the research problem. It may be understood as a science of studying how research is done scientifically. In it we study the various steps that our generally adopted by a researcher in studying his problem along with the logic behind them. It is necessary for the researcher to know not only the research methods or techniques but also the methodology. 1.3.1 Data Source The data can be collected from two sources i.e. Primary and Secondary .I have collected most of the data for this project on NOKIA from the secondary sources like websites, search engines, books and magazines. 1.3.2 Limitations of Study The data of the research was secondary in nature and access to primary data was limited. There was also a time constraint as much more time was required in order to research more deeply about the topic. The project restricted to only telecommunication sector of the company. ABOUT NOKIA HISTORY 1865 to 1967 The predecessors of the modern Nokia were the Nokia Company (Nokia Aktiebolag), Finnish Rubber Works Ltd (Suomen Gummitehdas Oy) and Finnish Cable Works Ltd (Suomen Kaapelitehdas Oy). Nokia’s history started in 1865 when mining engineer Fredrik Idestam established aground wood pulp mill on the banks of the Tammerkoski rapids in the town of Tampere, in southwestern Finland in the Russian Empire and started manufacturing paper. In 1868, Idestam built a second mill near the town of Nokia, fifteen kilometers (nine miles) west of Tampere by the Nokianvirta river, which had better resources for hydropower production. In 1871, Idestam, with the help of his close friend statesman Leo Mechelin, renamed and transformed his firm into a share company, thereby founding the Nokia Company, the name it is still known by today. Toward the end of the 19th century, Mechelin’s wishes to expand into the electricity business were at first thwarted by Idestam’s opposition. However, Idestam’s retirement from the management of the company in 1896 allowed Mechelin to become the company’s chairman (from 1898 until 1914) and sell most shareholders on his plans, thus realizing his vision. In 1902, Nokia added electricity generation to its business activities. Industrial conglomerate In 1898, Eduard Polà ³n founded Finnish Rubber Works, manufacturer of galoshes and other rubber products, which later became Nokia’s rubber business. At the beginning of the 20th century, Finnish Rubber Works established its factories near the town of Nokia and they began using Nokia as its product brand. In 1912, Arvid Wickstrà ¶m founded Finnish Cable Works, producer of telephone, telegraph and electrical cables and the foundation of Nokia’s cable and electronics businesses. At the end of the 1910s, shortly after World War I, the Nokia Company was nearing bankruptcy. To ensure the continuation of electricity supply from Nokia’s generators, Finnish Rubber Works acquired the business of the insolvent company. In 1922, Finnish Rubber Works acquired Finnish Cable Works. In 1937, Verner Weckman, a sport wrestler and Finland’s first Olympic Gold medalist, became president of Finnish Cable Works, after 16 years as its technical director. After World War II, F innish Cable Works supplied cables to the Soviet Union as part of Finland’s war reparations. This gave the company a good foothold for later trade. The three companies, which had been jointly owned since 1922, were merged to form a new industrial conglomerate, Nokia Corporation in 1967 and paved the way for Nokia’s future as a global corporation. The new company was involved in many industries, producing at one time or another paper products, car and bicycle tires, footwear (including rubber boots), communications cables, televisions and other consumer electronics, personal  computers, electricity generation machinery, robotics, capacitors, military communications and equipment (such as the SANLA M/90 device and the M61 gas mask for the Finnish Army), plastics, aluminium and chemicals. Each business unit had its own director who reported to the first Nokia Corporation President, Bjà ¶rn Westerlund. As the president of the Finnish Cable Works, he had been responsible for setting up the company’s first electronics department in 1960, sowing the seeds of Nokia’s future in telecommunications. Eventually, the company decided to leave consumer electronics behind in the 1990s and focused solely on the fastest growing segments in telecommunications. Nokian Tyres, manufacturer of tires, split from Nokia Corporation to form its own company in 1988 and two years later Nokian Footwear, manufacturer of rubber boots, was founded. During the rest of the 1990s, Nokia divested itself of all of its non-telecommunications businesses. 1967 to 2000 The seeds of the current incarnation of Nokia were planted with the founding of the electronics section of the cable division in 1960 and the production of its first electronic device in 1962: a pulse analyzer designed for use in nuclear power plants. In the 1967 fusion, that section was separated into its own division, and began manufacturing telecommunications equipment. A key CEO and subsequent Chairman of the Board was vuorineuvos Bjà ¶rn â€Å"Nalle† Westerlund (1912–2009), who founded the electronics department and let it run at a loss for 15 years. First mobile phones The Mobira Cityman 150, Nokia’s NMT-900 mobile phone from 1989 (left), compared to the Nokia 1100 from 2003. The Mobira Cityman line was launched in 1987. The technologies that preceded modern cellular mobile telephony systems were the various â€Å"0G† pre-cellular mobile radio telephony standards. Nokia had been producing commercial and some military mobile radio communications technology since the 1960s, although this part of the company was sold some time before the later company rationalization. Since 1964, Nokia had developed VHF radio simultaneously with SaloraOy. In 1966, Nokia  and Salora started developing the ARP standard (which stands for Autoradiopuhelin, or car radio phone in English), a car-based mobile radio telephony system and the first commercially operated public mobile phone network in Finland. It went online in 1971 and offered 100% coverage in 1978. In 1979, the merger of Nokia and Salora resulted in the establishment of Mobira Oy. Mobira began developing mobile phones for the NMT (Nordic Mobile Telephony) network standard, the first-generation, first fully automatic cellular phone system that went online in 1981. In 1982, Mobira introduced its first car phone, the Mobira Senator for NMT-450 networks. Nokia bought Salora Oy in 1984 and now owning 100% of the company, changed the company’s telecommunications branch name to Nokia-MobiraOy. The Mobira Talkman, launched in 1984, was one of the world’s first transportable phones. In 1987, Nokia introduced one of the world’s first handheld phones, the Mobira Cityman 900 for NMT-900 networks (which, compared to NMT-450, offered a better signal, yet a shorter roam). While the Mobira Senator of 1982 had weighed 9.8 kg (22 lb) and the Talkman just under 5 kg (11 lb), the Mobira Cityman weighed only 800 g (28 oz) with the battery and had a price tag of 24,000 Finnish marks (approximately â‚ ¬4,560). Despite the high price, the first phones were almost snatched from the sales assistants’ hands. Initially, the mobile phone was a â€Å"yuppie† product and a status symbol. Nokia’s mobile phones got a big publicity boost in 1987, when Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev was pictured using a Mobira Cityman to make a call from Helsinki to his communications minister in Moscow. This led to the phone’s nickname of the â€Å"Gorba†. In 1988, Jorma Nieminen, resigning from the post of CEO of the mobile phone unit, along with two other employees from the unit, started a notable mobile phone company of their own, Benefon Oy (since renamed to GeoSentric). One year later, Nokia-Mobira Oy became Nokia Mobile Phones. Involvement in GSM Nokia was one of the key developers of GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications), the second-generation mobile technology which could carry data as well as voice traffic. NMT (Nordic Mobile Telephony), the world’s first mobile telephony standard that enabled international roaming, provided valuable experience for Nokia for its close participation in developing GSM,  which was adopted in 1987 as the new European standard for digital mobile technology. Nokia delivered its first GSM network to the Finnish operator Radiolinja in 1989. The world’s first commercial GSM call was made on 1 July 1991 in Helsinki, Finland over a Nokia-supplied network, by then Prime Minister of Finland HarriHolkeri, using a prototype Nokia GSM phone. In 1992, the first GSM phone, the Nokia 1011, was launched. The model number refers to its launch date, 10 November. The Nokia 1011 did not yet employ Nokia’s characteristic ringtone, the Nokia tune. It was introduced as a ringtone in 19 94 with the Nokia 2100 series. GSM’s high-quality voice calls, easy international roaming and support for new services like text messaging (SMS) laid the foundations for a worldwide boom in mobile phone use. GSM came to dominate the world of mobile telephony in the 1990s, in mid-2008 accounting for about three billion mobile telephone subscribers in the world, with more than 700 mobile operators across 218 countries and territories. New connections are added at the rate of 15 per second, or 1.3 million per day. Challenges of growth The Nokia House, Nokia’s head office located by the Gulf of Finland in Keilaniemi,Espoo, was constructed between 1995 and 1997. It is the workplace of more than 1,000 Nokia employees. In the 1980s, during the era of its CEO Kari Kairamo, Nokia expanded into new fields, mostly by acquisitions. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, the corporation ran into serious financial problems, a major reason being its heavy losses by the television manufacturing division and businesses that were just too diverse. These problems, and a suspected totalburnout, probably contributed to Kairamo taking his own life in 1988. After Kairamo’s death, SimoVuorilehto became Nokia’s Chairman and CEO. In 1990–1993, Finland underwent severe economic depression, which also struck Nokia. Under Vuorilehto’s management, Nokia was severely overhauled. The company responded by streamlining its telecommunications divisions, and by divesting itself of the television and PC divisions. Pr obably the most important strategic change in Nokia’s history was made in 1992, however, when the new CEO JormaOllila made a crucial strategic decision to concentrate solely on  telecommunications. Thus, during the rest of the 1990s, the rubber, cable and consumer electronics divisions were gradually sold as Nokia continued to divest itself of all of its non-telecommunications businesses. As late as 1991, more than a quarter of Nokia’s turnover still came from sales in Finland. However, after the strategic change of 1992, Nokia saw a huge increase in sales to North America, South America and Asia. The exploding worldwide popularity of mobile telephones, beyond even Nokia’s most optimistic predictions, caused a logistics crisis in the mid-1990s. This prompted Nokia to overhaul its entire logistics operation. By 1998, Nokia’s focus on telecommunications and its early investment in GSM technologies had made the company the world’s largest mobile pho ne manufacturer, a position it would hold for the next 14 consecutive years until 2012. Between 1996 and 2001, Nokia’s turnover increased almost fivefold from 6.5 billion euros to 31 billion euros. Logistics continues to be one of Nokia’s major advantages over its rivals, along with greater economies of scale. 2000 to 2012 (October) Product releases Reduction in size of Nokia mobile phones Evolution of the Nokia Communicator. Models 9000, 9110, 9210, 9300 and 9500 shown. Nokia launched its Nokia 1100 handset in 2003, with over 200 million units shipped, was the best-selling mobile phone of all time and the world’s top-sellingconsumer electronics product.Nokia was one of the first players in the mobile space to recognize that there was a market opportunity in combining a game console and a mobile phone (both of which many gamers were carrying in 2003) into the N-Gage. The N-Gage was a mobile phone and game console meant to lure gamers away from the Game Boy Advance, though it cost twice as much. In May 2007, Nokia released its first touch screen phone, the Nokia 7710, which was also a huge success. In November 2007, Nokia announced and released the Nokia N82, its first Nseries phone withXenon flash. At the Nokia World conference in December 2007, Nokia announced their â€Å"Comes With Music† program: Nokia device buyers are to receive a year of complimenta ry access to music downloads. The service became commercially available in the  second half of 2008. Nokia Productions was the first ever mobile filmmaking project directed by Spike Lee. Work began in April 2008, and the film premiered in October 2008. In 2008, Nokia released the Nokia E71 which was marketed to directly compete with the other BlackBerry-type devices offering a full â€Å"qwerty† keyboard and cheaper prices. Nokia announced in August 2009 that they will be selling a high-end Windows-based mini laptop called the Nokia Booklet 3G. On 2 September 2009, Nokia launched two new music and social networking phones, the X6 and X3. The Nokia X6 features 32GB of on-board memory with a 3.2†³ finger touch interface and comes with a music playback time of 35 hours. The Nokia X3 is a first series 40 Ovi Store-enabled device. The X3 is a music device that comes with stereo speakers, built-in FM radio, and a 3.2 megapixel camera. On 10 September 2009, Nokia unveiled the 7705 Twist, a phone sporting a square shape that swivels open to reveal a full QWERTY keypad, featuring a 3 megapixel camera, web browsing, voice commands and weighting around 3.44 ounces (98 g). On 9 August 2012, Nokia launched for the Indian market two new Asha range of handsets equipped with cloud accelerated Nokia browser, helping users browse the Internet faster and lower their spend on data charges. Symbian The Nokia N8 smartphone is the worlds first Symbian^3device, and the first Nokia smartphone to feature a 12megapixel autofocus lens. Originally Nokia phones had a custom Nokia OS operating system developed specifically for Nokia mobile phones. The first Nseries device, the N90, utilised the older Symbian OS8.1 mobile operating system, as did the N70. Subsequently Nokia switched to using SymbianOS 9 for all later Nseries devices (except the N72, which was based on the N70). Newer Nseries devices incorporate newer revisions of Symbian OS 9 that include Feature Packs. The N800, N810, N900, N9 and N950 are as of April 2012 the only Nseries devices (therefore excluding Lumia devices) to not use Symbian OS. They use the Linux-based Maemo. Nokia stated that Maemo would be developed alongside Symbian. Maemo had since (Maemo â€Å"6† and beyond) merged with Intel’s Moblin, and became MeeGo. MeeGo was later canceled and a development is now continued under nameTizen. The Nokia N8 is the first device to function on the Symbian^3mobile operating system. Nokia revealed that the N8 will be the last device in its flagship N-series devices to ship with Symbian OS.  Instead, Nokia will use Microsoft Windows Phone for its high-end flagship Lumia devices, and revealed the Nokia N9 will function on the MeeGo mobile operating system. Alliance with Microsoft Market share of Symbian, Windows Mobile and Windows Phone 7 among US smartphone owners from Q1 2011 to Q2 2012 according to Nielsen Company. On 11 February 2011, Nokia’s CEO Stephen Elop, a former head of Microsoft business division, unveiled a new strategic alliance with Microsoft, and announced it would replace Symbian and MeeGo with Microsoft’s Windows Phone operating system except for mid-to-low-end devices, which would continue to run under Symbian. Nokia was also to invest into the Series 40 platform and release a single MeeGo product in 2011. As part of the restructuring plan, Nokia planned to reduce spending on research and development, instead customising and enhancing the software line for Windows Phone 7. Nokia’s â€Å"applications and content store† (Ovi) becomes integrated into the Windows Phone Store, and Nokia Maps is at the heart of Microsoft’s Bing and AdCenter. Microsoft provides developer tools to Nokia to replace the Qtframework, which is not supported by Windows Phone 7 devices. Symbian became described by Elop as a â€Å"franchise platform† with Nokia planning to sell 150 million Symbian devices after the alliance was set up. MeeGo emphasis was on longer-term exploration, with plans to ship â€Å"a MeeGo-related product† later in 2012. Microsoft’s search engine, Bing was to become the search engine for all Nokia phones. Nokia also intended to get some level of customization on WP7. After this announcement, Nokia’s share price fell about 14%, its biggest drop since July 2009. As Nokia was the largest mobile phone and smartphone manufacturer worldwide at the time, it was suggested the alliance would make Microsoft’s Windows Phone 7 a stronger contender against Android and iOS. Because previously increasing sales of Symbian smartphones began to fall rapidly in the beginning of 2011, Nokia was overtaken by Apple as the world’s biggest smartphone maker by volume in Jun e 2011. In August 2011 Chris Weber, head of Nokia’s subsidiary in the U.S., stated â€Å"The reality is if we are not successful with Windows Phone, it doesn’t matter what we do (elsewhere).† He further added â€Å"North America is a  priority for Nokia (†¦) because it is a key market for Microsoft.† Nokia reported â€Å"well above 1 million† sales for its Lumia line up to 26 January 2012, 2 million sales for the first quarter of 2012, and 4 million for the second quarter of 2012. In this quarter, Nokia only sold 600000 smartphones (Symbian and Windows Phone 7) in North America. For comparison, Nokia sold more than 30 million Symbian devices world-wide still in Q4 2010 and the Nokia N8 alone sold almost 4 million in its first quarter of sale. In Q2 2012, 26 million iPhonesand 105 million Android phones have been shipped, but only 6.8 million devices with Symbian and 5.4 million with Windows Phone. While announcing an alliance with Groupon, E lop declared â€Å"The competition†¦ is not with other device manufacturers, it’s with Google.† European carriers have stated that Nokia Windows phones are not good enough to compete with Apple iPhone or Samsung Galaxy phones, that â€Å"they are overpriced for what is not an innovative product† and that â€Å"No one comes into the store and asks for a Windows phone†. In June 2012, Nokia chairman Risto Siilasmaa told journalists that Nokia had a back-up plan in the eventuality that Windows Phone failed to be sufficiently successful in the market. On October 29, 2012, Nokia said its high-end Lumia 820 and 920 phones, which will run on Microsoft’s Windows Phone 8 software, will reach first operators and retail outlets in some European markets including France and Britain and later in Russia and Germany as well as other select markets. Reorganizations Nokia opened its Komà ¡rom, Hungary mobile phone factory on 5 May 2000. In March 2007, Nokia signed a memorandum with Cluj County Council, Romania to open a new plant near the city in Jucu commune. Moving the production from the Bochum, Germany factory to a low wage country created an uproar in Germany. Nokia recently moved its North American Headquarters to Sunnyvale. In April 2003, the troubles of the networks equipment division caused the corporation to resort to similar streamlining practices on that side, including layoffs and organizational restructuring. This diminished Nokia’s public image in Finland, and produced a number of court cases and an episode of a documentary television show critical of Nokia. On February 2006, Nokia and Sanyo announced a memorandum of understanding to create a joint venture  addressing the CDMA handset business. But in June, they announced ending negotiations without agreement. Nokia also stated its decision to pull out of CDMA research a nd development, to continue CDMA business in selected markets. In June 2006, Jorma Ollila left his position as CEO to become the chairman of Royal Dutch Shell and to give way for Olli-PekkaKallasvuo. In May 2008, Nokia announced on their annual stockholder meeting that they want to shift to the Internet business as a whole. Nokia no longer wants to be seen as the telephone company. Google, Apple and Microsoft are not seen as natural competition for their new image but they are considered as major important players to deal with. In November 2008, Nokia announced it was ceasing mobile phone distribution in Japan. Following early December, distribution of Nokia E71 is cancelled, both from NTT docomo and Soft Bank Mobile. Nokia Japan retains global research & development programs, sourcing business, and an MVNO venture of Vertu luxury phones, using docomo’s telecommunications network. In February 2012, Nokia announced it was laying off 4000 employees to move manufacturing from Eu rope and Mexico to Asia. In March 2012, Nokia announced it was laying off 1000 employs from its Salo, Finland factory to focus on software. Acquisitions The Nokia E55 from the business segment of the Eseries range On 22 September 2003, Nokia acquired Sega.com, a branch of Sega which became the major basis to develop the Nokia N-Gage device. On 8 August 2006, Nokia and Loudeye Corp. announced that they had signed an agreement for Nokia to acquire online music distributor Loudeye Corporation for approximately US $60 million. The company has been developing this into an online music service in the hope of using it to generate handset sales. The service, launched on 29 August 2007, is aimed to rival iTunes. Nokia completed the acquisition on 16 October 2006. In July 2007, Nokia acquired all assets of Twango, the comprehensive media sharing solution for organizing and sharing photos, videos and other personal media. In September 2007, Nokia announced its intention to acquire Enpocket, a supplier of mobile advertising technology and services. In October 2007, pending shareholder and regulatory approval, Nokia bought Navteq, a U.S.-based su pplier of digital mapping data, for a  price of $8.1 billion. Nokia finalized the acquisition on 10 July 2008. In September 2008, Nokia acquired OZ Communications, a privately held company with approximately 220 employees headquartered in Montreal, Canada. On 24 July 2009, Nokia announced that it will acquire certain assets of cellity, a privately owned mobile software company which employs 14 people in Hamburg, Germany. The acquisition of cellity was completed on 5 August 2009. On 11 September 2009, Nokia announced the acquisition of â€Å"certain assets of Plum Ventures, Inc, a privately held company which employed approximately 10 people with main offices in Boston, Massachusetts. Plum will complement Nokia’s Social Location services†. On 28 March 2010, Nokia announced the acquisition of Novarra, the mobile web browser firm from Chicago. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Novarra is a privately held company based in Chicago, IL and provider of a mobile browser and service platform and has more than 100 employees. On 10 April 2010, Nokia announced its acquisition of MetaCarta, whose technology was planned to be used in the area of local search, particularly involving location and other services. Financial details of acquisition were not disclosed. Nokia has acquired Smarterphone in 2012. Also Nokia acquired Scalado in 2012. Financial difficulties and restructuring LAmid falling sales, Nokia posted a loss of 368 million euros for Q2 2011, while in Q2 2010 had still a profit of 227 million euros. On September 2011, Nokia has announced it will lose another 3,500 jobs worldwide, including the closure of its Cluj factory in Romania. On 8 February 2012 Nokia Corp. said to cut around 4,000 jobs at smartphone manufacturing plants in Europe by the end of 2012 to move assembly closer to component supplier in Asia. It plans to cut 2,300 of the 4,400 jobs in Hungary, 700 out of 1,000 jobs in Mexico, and 1,000 out of 1,700 factory jobs in Finland. On 14 June 2012, Nokia announced to cut 10,000 jobs globally by the end of 2013 and shut production and research sites in Finland, Germany and Canada inline with continues loss and the stock fell to the lowest since 1996. Today, Nokia’s market value is below $10 billion. In total, according to actualized and planned laid-offs Nokia will have laid off 24,500 employees by the end of 2013. Nokia has already l aid off 7,000 employees in the first stage: 4,000 staff and transferred also 3,000 to services firm Accenture. Nokia also closed its  factory in Cluj, Romania that decreased the workforce by 2,000 employees, and restructured the Location & Commerce business unit that decreased the workforce by 1,200 employees. In February 2012, Nokia unveiled a plan to cut 4,000 more jobs at its plants in Finland, Hungary and Mexico as it moves smartphone assembly work to Asia. The most recent plan is to cut further 10,000 jobs globally by the end of 2013. Nokia had 66,267 personnel in its Devices & Services, NAVTEQ and Corporate Common Functions units combined, this has been calculated by subtracting the personnel of Nokia Siemens Networks from the total personnel of Nokia Group based on the full year report of 2010. Therefore, the personnel would decrease by approximately 36 percent by the end of 2013 when compared to the end of 2010 that best depicts the lay-offs that have resulted from the str ategy change in February 2011 and competition in the central mobile phone business units recently. On 18 June 2012 Moody’s downgraded Nokia rating to junk. Nokia CEO admitted on 28 June 2012 that company’s inability to foresee rapid changes in mobile phone industry was one of the major reasons for the problems company was facing. On 4 May 2012, a group of Nokia investors filled a class action against the company as a result of disappointing sales of Nokia phones running on the Windows Phone platform. On 22 August 2012, it was reported that a group of Finnish Nokia investors were considering gathering signatures for the removal of Elop as CEO. Operations Nokia House, Nokia’s headquarters in Keilaniemi, Espoo, Finland In 2011 Nokia had 130,000 employees in 120 countries, sales in more than 150 countries, global annual revenue of over â‚ ¬38 billion, and operating loss of â‚ ¬1 billion.[1] It was the world’s largest manufacturer of mobile phones in 2011, with global device market share of 23% in the second quarter. The Nokia Research Center, founded in 1986, is Nokia’s industrial research unit consisting of about 500 researchers, engineers and scientists; it has sites in seven countries: Finland, China, India, Kenya,Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the United States. Besides its research centers, in 2001 Nokia founded (and owns) INdT – Nokia Institute of Technology, a R&D institute located in Brazil. Nokia operates a total of 9 manufacturing  facilities located at Salo, Finland; Manaus, Brazil; Cluj, Romania; Beijing and Dongguan, China;Komà ¡rom, Hungary; Chennai, India; Reynosa, Mexico; and Cha ngwon, South Korea. Nokia’s industrial design department is headquartered in Soho in London, UK with significant satellite offices in Helsinki, Finland and Calabasas, California in the US. Nokia is a public limited-liability company listed on the Helsinki, Frankfurt, and New York stock exchanges. Nokia plays a very large role in the economy of Finland. It is an important employer in Finland and several small companies have grown into large ones as its partners and subcontractors. In 2009 Nokia contributed 1.6% to Finland’s GDP, and accounted for about 16% of Finland’s exports in 2006. Divisions Since 1 July 2010, Nokia comprises three business groups: Mobile Solutions, Mobile Phones and Markets. The three units receive operational support from the Corporate Development Office, led by Kai Ãâ€"istà ¤mà ¶, which is also responsible for exploring corporate strategic and future growth opportunities. On 1 April 2007, Nokia’s Networks business group was combined with Siemens’s carrier-related operations for fixed and mobile networks to form Nokia Siemens Networks, jointly owned by Nokia and Siemens and consolidated by Nokia. Mobile Solutions The Nokia N900, a Maemo 5 Linux based mobile Internet device and touchscreen smartphone from Nokia’s Nseries portfolio. Mobile Solutions is responsible for Nokia’s portfolio ofsmartphones and mobile computers, including the more expensive multimedia and enterprise-class devices. The team is also responsible for a suite of internet services under the Ovi brand, with a strong focus on maps and navigation, music, messaging andmedia. This unit is led by AnssiVanjoki, along with TeroOjanperà ¤ (for Services) and Alberto Torres (forMeeGo Computers). Mobile Phones Mobile Phones is responsible for Nokia’s portfolio of affordable mobile phones, as well as a range of services that people can access with them, headed by Mary T. McDowell. This unit provides the general public with  mobile voice and data products across a range of devices, including high-volume, consumer oriented mobile phones. The devices are based on GSM/EDGE, 3G/W-CDMA andCDMA cellular technologies. At the end of the year 2007, Nokia managed to sell almost 440 million mobile phones which accounted for 40% of all global mobile phones sales. In 2011, Nokia’s market share in the mobile phone market had dropped to 27% (417 million phones). Anssi Vanjoki resigned a few days before Nokia World 2010 and under new leadership team Jo Harlow will look into the affairs of Smartphones portfolio. On 27 April 2011, The Register reported that Nokia was secretly developing a new operating system called Meltemi aiming at the low-end market. It was believed it would be replacing th e S30 and S40 operating systems. Due to low-end market customers’ demand of having smartphone features in their feature phone, the OS would have included some features exclusive to high-end smartphones. On 26 July 2012, it was announced that Nokia had abandoned the Meltemi project as a cost-cutting measure. Markets The flagship Nokia store in Sao Paulo, Brazil Markets is responsible for Nokia’s supply chains, sales channels, brand and marketing functions of the company, and is responsible for delivering mobile solutions and mobile phones to the market. The unit is headed by NiklasSavander. Subsidiaries Nokia has numerous subsidiaries. The largest in terms of revenues is Navteq, a Chicago, Illinois-based provider of digital map data and location-based content and services for automotive navigation systems, mobile navigation devices, Internet-based mapping applications, and government and business solutions. Navteq was acquired by Nokia on 1 October 2007. Navteq’s map data is part of the Nokia Maps online service where users can download maps, use voice-guided navigation and other context-aware web services. Nokia Maps is part of the Ovi brand of Nokia’s Internet based online services. Other notable subsidiaries include, but are not limited to Vertu, a British-based manufacturer and retailer of luxury mobile phones; Qt Software, a Norwegian-based software company, and OZ Communications, a consumer e-mail and instant messaging provider. Until 2008 Nokia was the major shareholder  in Symbian Limited, a software development and licensing company that produced Symbian OS, a smartphone operating system used by Nokia and other manufacturers. In 2008 Nokia acquired Symbian Ltd and, along with a number of other companies, created the Symbian Foundation to distribute the Symbian platform royalty free and asopen source. Nokia Siemens Networks B.V. is a multinational data networking and telecommunications equipment company headquartered in Espoo, Finland and a joint venture between Nokia (50.1%) and Siemens (49.9%). It is the world’s fourth-largest telecoms equipment manufacturer measured by 2011 revenues (after Ericsson, Huawei and Alcatel-Lucent). Nokia Siemens Networks has operations in around 150 countries. The creation of Nokia Siemens Networks was announced on 19 June 2006, when Nokia and Siemens announced that they would merge their mobile and fixed-line phone network equipment businesses. The Nokia Siemens Networks brand identity was subsequently launched at the 3GSM World Congress in Barcelona in February 2007. Nokia Siemens Networks provid es wireless and fixed network infrastructure, communications and networks service platforms, as well as professional services to operators and service providers. Nokia Siemens Networks focuses in GSM, EDGE, 3G/W-CDMA and WiMAX radio access networks; core networks with increasing IP and multiaccess capabilities; and services. Corporate affairs Corporate governance The control and management of Nokia is divided among the shareholders at a general meeting and the Nokia Leadership Team, under the direction of the Board of Directors. The Chairman and the rest of the Nokia Leadership Team members are appointed by the Board of Directors. Only the Chairman of the Nokia Leadership Team can belong to both, the Board of Directors and the Nokia Leadership Team. The Board of Directors’ committees consist of the Audit Committee, the Personnel Committee and the Corporate Governance and Nomination Committee. The operations of the company are managed within the framework set by the Finnish Companies Act, Nokia’s Articles of Association and Corporate Governance Guidelines, and related Board of Directors adopted charters. Stock Nokia is a public limited liability company and is the oldest company listed under the same name on the Helsinki Stock Exchange, having been listed since 1915. Nokia has had a secondary listing on the New York Stock Exchange since 1994. Nokia shares were delisted from the London Stock Exchange in 2003, the Paris Stock Exchange in 2004, the Stockholm Stock Exchange in 2007 and the Frankfurt Stock Exchange in 2012. In 2007, Nokia had a market capitalisation of â‚ ¬110 billion; by May 2012 this had fallen to â‚ ¬14.8 billion. Financial results For fiscal Q2 2011 ending in June 2011, Nokia reported a net loss of â‚ ¬492 million, despite a â‚ ¬430 million payment from Apple. Nokia cited decline in its mobile phone business as the primary cause of the loss. In Q1 2012 results were bleak. Nokia lost â‚ ¬1.34 billion. Revenue is down almost a third from a year ago. By May 2012, Nokia share price had fallen 37.5 percent since the beginning of the year, and was down 61 percent in the last year. Corporate culture Nokia’s official corporate culture manifesto, The Nokia Way, emphasises the speed and flexibility of decision-making in a flat, networked organization, although the corporation’s size necessarily imposes a certain amount of bureaucracy. The official business language of Nokia is English. All documentation is written in English, and is used in official intra-company spoken communication and e-mail. Until May 2007, the Nokia Values were Customer Satisfaction, Respect, Achievement, and Renewal. In May 2007, Nokia redefined its values after initiating a series of discussions worldwide as to what the new values of the company should be. Based on the employee suggestions, the new values were defined as: Engaging You, Achieving Together, Passion for Innovation and Very Human. Online services 1) .mobi and the Mobile Web Nokia was the first proponent of a Top Level Domain (TLD) specifically for the Mobile Web and, as a result, was instrumental in the launch of the .mobi domain name extension in September 2006 as an official  backer. Since then, Nokia has launched the largest mobile portal, Nokia.mobi, which receives over 100 million visits a month. It followed that with the launch of a mobile Ad Service to cater to the growing demand for mobile advertisement. 2) Ovi Nokia Ovi logo. Ovi, announced on 29 August 2007, is the name for Nokia’s â€Å"umbrella concept† Internet services. Centered on Ovi.com, it is marketed as a â€Å"personal dashboard† where users can share photos with friends, download music, maps and games directly to their phones and access third-party services like Yahoo’sFlickr photo site. It has some significance in that Nokia is moving deeper into the world of Internet services, where head-on competition with Microsoft, Google andApple is inevitable. The services offered through Ovi include the Ovi Store (Nokia’s application store), the Nokia Music Store, Nokia Maps, Ovi Mail, the N-Gage mobile gaming platform available for several S60smartphones, Ovi Share, Ovi Files, and Contacts and Calendar. The Ovi Store, the Ovi application store was launched in May 2009. Prior to opening the Ovi Store, Nokia integrated its software Download! store, the stripped-down MOSH repository and the widget service WidSets into i t. On 23 March 2010, Nokia announced launch of its online magazine called the Nokia Ovi. The 44-page magazine contains articles on products by Nokia, what Ovi stands for, tips and tricks on the usage of Nokia mini laptop Booklet 3G, latest reviews of mobile applications, news about the mobile maker’s services and apps such as Ovi maps, files and mail. Users can download the magazine as a PDF or view it online from the Nokia website. 3) My Nokia Nokia offers a free personalized service to Nokia owners called My Nokia (located at my.nokia.com). Registered My Nokia users can get free services as follows: Tips & tricks alerts through web, e-mail and also mobile text message. My Nokia Backup: A free online backup service for mobile contacts, calendar logs and also various other files. This service needs GPRS connection. Ringtones, wallpapers, screensavers, games and other things can be downloaded free of cost. 4) Comes With Music In 2007 Nokia set up their â€Å"Nokia Comes With Music† service, in partnership with Universal Music Group International, Sony BMG, Warner Music Group, EMI, and hundreds of independent labels and music aggregators, to allow 12, 18, or 24 months of unlimited free-of-charge music downloads with the purchase of a Nokia Comes With Music edition phone. Files could be downloaded on mobile devices or personal computers, and kept permanently. In January 2011 Nokia withdrew this program in 27 countries, due to its failure to gain traction with customers or mobile network operators; existing subscribers could continue to download until their contracts ended. The service continued to be offered in China, India, Indonesia, Brazil, Turkey and South Africa where take-up had been better. 5) Nokia Messaging On 13 August 2008 Nokia launched a beta release of â€Å"Nokia Email service†, a push e-mail service, since incorporated into Nokia Messaging. Nokia Messaging operates as a centralised, hosted service that acts as a proxy between the Nokia Messaging client and the user’s e-mail server. The phone does not connect directly to the e-mail server, but instead sends e-mail credentials to Nokia’s servers. IMAP is used as the protocol to transfer emails between the client and the server. Logos Nokia Company logo. Founded in Tampere in 1865, incorporated in Nokia in 1871. The brand logo of Finnish Rubber Works, founded in Helsinki in 1898. Logo from 1965 to 1966. The Nokia Corporation â€Å"arrows† logo, used before the â€Å"Connecting People†logo. Used since 1967 until 1991. Nokia introduced its â€Å"Connecting People† advertising slogan, coined by Ove Strandberg and used since 1992. This earlier version of the slogan used Times Roman SC (Small Caps) font. Nokia’s current logo used since 2006, with the redesigned â€Å"Connecting People† slogan. This slogan originally used Nokia’s proprietary ‘Nokia Sans’  font, designed by Erik Spiekermann. This was replaced in 2011 with the ‘Nokia Pure’ font designed by Dalton Maag. Environmental record Electronic products such as cell phones impact the environment both during production and after their useful life when they are discarded and turned into electronic waste. Nokia is listed in Greenpeace’s Guide to Greener Electronics that scores leading electronics manufacturers according to their policies on sustainability, climate and energy and how green their products are. In November 2011 Nokia ranked 3rd out of 15 listed electronics companies, falling two places due to its weaker performance on the Energy criteria and scoring 4.9/10. All of Nokia’s mobile phones are free of toxic polyvinyl chloride (PVC) since the end of 2005 and all new models of mobile phones and accessories launched in 2010 are on track to be free of brominated compounds, chlorinated flame retardants and antimony trioxide. Nokia’s voluntary take-back programme to recycle old mobile phones spans 84 countries with almost 5,000 collection points. However, the recycling rate of Nokia phones w as only 3–5% in 2008, according to a global consumer survey released by Nokia. The majority of old mobile phones are simply lying in drawers at home and very few old devices, about 4%, are being thrown into landfill and not recycled. All of Nokia’s new models of chargers meet or exceed the Energy Star requirements. Nokia aims to reduce its carbon dioxide emissions by at least 18 percent in 2010 from a baseline year of 2006 and cover 50 percent of its energy needs through renewable energy sources. Greenpeace is challenging the company to use its influence at the political level as number 85 on the Fortune 500 to advocate for climate legislation and call for global greenhouse gas emissions to peak by 2015. Nokia is researching the use of recycled plastics in its products, which are currently used only in packaging but not yet in mobile phones. Since 2001, Nokia has provided eco declarations of all its products and since May 2010 provides Eco profiles for all its new prod ucts. In an effort to further reduce their environmental impact in the future, Nokia released a new phone concept, Remade, in February 2008. The phone has been constructed of solely recyclable materials. The outer part of the phone is made from recycled materials such as aluminium cans, plastic bottles, and used car tires. The  screen is constructed of recycled glass, and the hinges have been created from rubber tires. The interior of the phone is entirely constructed with refurbished phone parts, and there is a feature that encourages energy saving habits by reducing the backlight to the ideal level, which then allows the battery to last longer without frequent charges. Controversies NSN’s provision of intercept capability to Iran In 2008, Nokia Siemens Networks, a joint venture between Nokia and Siemens AG, reportedly provided Iran’s monopoly telecom company with technology that allowed it to intercept the Internet communications of its citizens to an unprecedented degree. The technology reportedly allowed it to use deep packet inspection to read and even change the content of everything from â€Å"e-mails and Internet phone calls to images and messages on social-networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter†. The technology â€Å"enables authorities to not only block communication but to monitor it to gather information about individuals, as well as alter it for disinformation purposes,† expert insiders told The Wall Street Journal. During the post-election protests in Iran in June 2009, Iran’s Internet access was reported to have slowed to less than a tenth of its normal speeds, and experts suspected this was due to the use of the interception technology. The joint venture compan y, Nokia Siemens Networks, asserted in a press release that it provided Iran only with a ‘lawful intercept capability’ â€Å"solely for monitoring of local voice calls†. â€Å"Nokia Siemens Networks has not provided any deep packet inspection, web censorship or Internet filtering capability to Iran,† it said. In July 2009, Nokia began to experience a boycott of their products and services in Iran. The boycott was led by consumers sympathetic to the post-election protest movement and targeted at those companies deemed to be collaborating with the Islamic regime. Demand for handsets fell and users began shunning SMS messaging. Lex Nokia In 2009, Nokia heavily supported the passing of a law in Finland that allows companies to monitor their employees’ electronic communications in cases of suspected information leaking. Contrary to rumors, Nokia denied that the  company would have considered moving its head office out of Finland if laws on electronic surveillance were not changed. The law was enacted, but with strict requirements for implementation of its provisions. As of 2010, the law has become a dead letter; no corporation has implemented it. The Finnish media dubbed the name Lex Nokia for this law, named after the Finnish copyright law (the so-called Lex Karpela) a few years back. Nokia–Apple patent dispute In October 2009, Nokia filed a lawsuit against Apple Inc. in the U.S. District Court of Delaware citing Apple infringed on 10 of its patents related to wireless communication including data transfer. Apple was quick to respond with a countersuit filed in December 2009 accusing Nokia of 11 patent infringements. Apple’s General Counsel, Bruce Sewell went a step further by stating, â€Å"Other companies must compete with us by inventing their own technologies, not just by stealing ours.† This resulted in an ugly spat between the two telecom majors with Nokia filing another suit, this time with the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC), alleging Apple of infringing its patents in â€Å"virtually all of its mobile phones, portable music players, and computers.† Nokia went on to ask the court to bar all U.S. imports of the Apple products including the iPhone, Mac and the iPod. Apple countersued by filing a complaint with the ITC in January 2010, the details of whic h are yet to be confirmed. In June 2011, Apple settled with Nokia and agreed to an estimated one time payment of $600 million and royalties to Nokia. The two companies also agreed on a cross-licensing patents for some of their patented technologies. Research cooperation with universities Nokia is actively exploring and engaging in open innovation through selective research collaborations with major universities and institutions by sharing resources and leveraging ideas. Major research collaboration is with Tampere University of Technology based in Finland. Current collaborations include: Aalto University School of Science and Technology, Finland ÉcolePolytechniqueFà ©dà ©rale de Lausanne, Switzerland ETH Zurich, Switzerland Massachusetts Institute of Technology, United States Stanford University, United States Tampere University of Technology, Finland Tsinghua University, China University of California, Berkeley, United States University of Cambridge, United Kingdom University of Southern California, United States Awards and recognition The Brand Trust Report published by Trust Research Advisory has ranked Nokia in the 1st position among the brands in India. FINDINGS AND ANALYSIS SWOT Analysis SWOT Analysis, is a Strategic planning tool used to evaluate the Strengths, weaknesses, Opportunities, and threats involved in a project or in a Business venture. It involves specifying the objective of the business venture or project and identifying the internal and external factors that are favorable and unfavorable to achieving that objective. SWOT analysis conducts an external and internal scan of nokia’s business environment; it is an important part of the strategic planning process. Environmental factors internal to the firm usually can be classified as strengths (S), or weaknesses (W), and those external to the firm can be classified as opportunities (O) or threats (T). Such ananalysis of the strategic environment is referred to as a SWOT analysis. The SWOT analysis provides information that is helpful in matching the firm’s resources and capabilities to the competitive environment in which it operates. As such, it is instrumental in strategy formulation and sele ction. Strengths of Nokia: Great phone designing capability (Shining example N9 and lumia series) and great product quality reputation. Great price point coverage (Very low to Very High) Supply chain and distribution experience. Two very competitive in-house software platforms in Belle and Meego along with an alliance with Microsoft. Weaknesses of Nokia: Poor marketing skills (excluding few markets like India) Could not use its global presence to create a viable ecosystem. Not able to leverage production and software knowledge to create other product families (Camera and Tablets could have a natural choice) Windows operating system has marginally less number of applications as compared to that of Apple’s IOS and Google’s Android. Threats: Android ecosystem covers all the bases from low to high-end price points and has a booming ecosystem. Apple’s iphone is still a big threat in high-end market Very bad press coverage and poor image projection by tech media. Huge portion of market share already captured by Google’s Android (72.4 percent) and Apple’s IOS (13.9 percent). Opportunities: Nokia has a great market disruption with N9; Lumia and Asha series and it has a great chance of creating a unique winning product category. (Example is iphone’s own small but disruptive start). Symbian belle and upcoming versions of the OS. If nokia keeps the new product introduction fast paced, chances are that Symbian can make a turnaround. QT can help to create a unique app ecosystem for Nokia for Meego, Symbian, Meltemi (upcoming). Windows phone platform has already got all the ingredients for a powerful ecosystem. Major competitors The following cell phone companies holding major market share give tight competition to Nokia: 1. APPLE Inc. 2. Samsung 3. Sony 4. HTC 5. Research in Motion Black Berry 6. ZTE 7. LG According to IDC, July 26, 2012 – The worldwide mobile phone market grew 1%  year over year in the second quarter of 2012 (2Q12), as Samsung and Apple shipped almost half of the world’s smartphones. According to the International Data Corporation (IDC) Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker, vendors shipped 406.0 million units in 2Q12 compared to 401.8 million units in the second quarter of 2011. Samsung and Apple have more than doubled their combined market share over the past two years, which has created more distance between the companies and the competition. â€Å"Samsung and Apple have quickly become the global smartphone heavyweights though both employ somewhat different approaches to the market,† said Kevin Restivo, senior research analyst with IDC’s Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker. â€Å"Samsung employs a ‘shotgun’ strategy wherein many models are created that cover a wide range of market segments. Apple, in contrast, off ers a small number of high-profile models. While both companies have expanded their geographic presence in pursuit of market share, the two companies will inevitably come into greater conflict as both try to generate additional gains.† Market share gains will be harder to generate, however, if the worldwide smartphone market grows at rates similar to the 42.1% year-over-year rate at which the market increased in 2Q12. This was the lowest growth rate since the fourth quarter of 2009. Vendors shipped 153.9 million smartphones in 2Q12 compared to 108.3 million units in 2Q11. The 42.1% year-over-year growth was one percentage point lower than IDC’s forecast of 43.1% for the quarter. The spectre of further economic woes puts growth prospects for the mobile phone market at risk. â€Å"With half of 2012 behind us, vendors are looking ahead to 2013 and how key markets – particularly Europe and emerging markets – will play out,† said Ramon Llamas, senior res earch analyst with IDC’s Mobile Phone Technology and Trends team. â€Å"Despite recent maneuvers to shore up several countries within the Eurozone, the effectiveness of these efforts remains to be seen. Meanwhile, emerging markets will continue to be strong contributors due to their sheer size and growth trajectory, but how much they can offset potential declines in other countries is unclear.† Nonetheless, IDC expects long-term mobile phone and smartphone shipment demand to grow steadily in 2012 and through the years ahead due to the central role mobile phones play in people’s lives. â€Å"For many users, the mobile phone has become the essential communications link to others and to the world,† noted Llamas. Smartphone Vendor Highlights Samsung extended its lead over Apple during the second quarter, taking advantage of Apple’s release schedule and launching its flagship Galaxy S III. In addition, Samsung experienced continued success of its smartphone/tablet hybrid device, the Galaxy Note. As a result, Samsung topped the 50 million unit mark and reached a new quarterly smartphone shipment record in a single quarter. What remains to be seen is how the company’s smartphones will fare against Apple’s next-generation iPhone expected later this year. Apple posted an expected sequential decline last quarter, similar to years past. The quarter-over-quarter shipment decline came six months after it unveiled its latest iPhone. The decline is not unusual as iPhone shipment volume is highest in the first two quarters after its release. The company’s once-a-year release cycle usually results in two quarters of lower volumes leading up to the next-generation model introduction. Nonetheless, Apple made significant inroads into new markets and segments, including smaller regional carriers and prepaid service providers. Nokia smartphone business underwent another quarter of transition. Demand for Symbian and MeeGo units declined, reaching levels not seen since 2005 though the company almost doubled its Windows Phone shipments from the previous quarter. Nokia’s Lumia sales were not terribly affected by Microsoft’s Windows Phone 8 announcement, which will prevent current Lumia owners from upgrading to the new mobile operating system. However, Lumia sales have remained steady and key enhancements available on the new platform will eventually become available to current Lumia owners. Nokia, however, has a long path to travel before it can reclaim previous volume levels and challenge Apple and Samsung for smartphone supremacy. HTC rebounded from its struggles in the two previous quarters to reclaim the number 4 spot in the smartphone vendor rankings. Its relatively strong performance in the Asia/Pacific region allowed it to climb back up the rank order as did the correction of its channel inventory issues. The company’s streamlined portfolio means future share gains will be predicated upon the success of its One products. ZTE climbed into the smartphone Top 5 for the first time thanks primarily to shipments of its lower-cost entry-level smartphones in China, where it’s based. However, the vendor has also grown  its international smartphone sales, particularly in the U.S. where its smartphones can be found under other brands. Latin America is another source of significant smartphone growth for the vendor. Despite impressive gains last quarter, brand equity may prove to be an issue for ZTE in future. Strong brand recognition is a necessity if high-growth smartphone sales abroad are a priority for the company. Top Five Smartphone Vendors, Shipments, and Market Share, Q2 2012 (Units in Millions) Vendor 2Q12 Unit Shipments 2Q12 Market Share 2Q11 Unit Shipments 2Q11 Market Share Year-over-year Change Samsung 50.2 32.6% 18.4 17.0% 172.8% Apple 26.0 16.9% 20.4 18.8% 27.5% Nokia 10.2 6.6% 16.7 15.4% -38.9% HTC 8.8 5.7% 11.6 10.7% -24.1% ZTE 8.0 5.2% 2.0 1.8% 300.0% Others 50.7 32.9% 39.2 36.2% 29.3% Total 153.9 100.0% 108.3 100.0% 42.1% Source: IDC Worldwide Mobile Phone Tracker, July 26, 2012 Note: Vendor shipments are branded shipments and exclude OEM sales for all vendors. Top Five Total Mobile Phone Vendors, Shipments, and Market Share, Q2 2012 (Units in Millions) Vendor 2Q12 Unit Shipments 2Q12 Market Share 2Q11 Unit Shipments 2Q11 Market Share Year-over-year Change Samsung 97.8 24.1% 75.4 18.8% 29.7% Nokia 83.7 20.6% 88.5 22.0% -5.4% Apple 26.0 6.4% 20.4 5.1% 27.5% ZTE 17.7 4.4% 16.3 4.1% 8.6% LG Electronics 13.1 3.2% 24.8 6.2% -47.2% Others 167.7 41.3% 176.4 43.9% -4.9% Total 406.0 100.0% 401.8 100.0% 1.0% Source: IDC Worldwide Mobile Phone Tracker, July 26, 2012 Note: Vendor shipments are branded shipments and exclude OEM sales for all vendors. Marketing strategy An organization’s strategy that combines all of its marketing goals into one comprehensive plan is known as marketing strategy. A good marketing strategy should be drawn from market research and focus on the right product mix in order to achieve the maximum profit potential and sustain the business. The marketing strategy is the foundation of a marketing plan. CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS In order to diversify its business in to mobile network market, Nokia needs to make use of its leading mobile phones manufacturer image. As Nokia has build loyalty among its mobile phone users, it can use this for attracting customers towards its SIM cards and thereby gain market share. Also with its world class R & D department, it can offer many services to its customers which will help them to differentiate in their service offering from its competitors. For instance, video calling, free roaming, outgoing call restriction, etc. By focusing more on rural market which is untap to a certain extent, Nokia can satisfy its customers in rural areas which most of the existing players are not successful. Also by offering customize service plans to its customers such as offering SmS package, unlimited internet package, Free Hello tune, and so on with minimum price. Nokia can also make tie-ups with existing players such as Airtel, Vodafone, Aircel in order to gain larger market share. It can also offer better deals to customers who are buying Nokia handsets on its SIM cards which will increase its sales as well as customer base. This will help them to develop loyalty among its  customers. In order to diversify in to SIM cards segment, Nokia needs to use mass marketing by implementing various promotion strategies such as Advertisements, Hoardings, Sponsoring events, canopies outside colleges and so on. Nokia also needs to plan its distribution strategy in order to reach to maximum people. They can also use their ‘Connecting People’ tagline in its SIM card, thereby giving additional meaning to it. Thus, to diversify in to SIM card market is a better option for Nokia to increase its market share and revenue. Also this will help them to build larger customer base which will ultimately result in one of the leading brands in the telecommunications industry. http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/marketing-strategy.html http://www.123helpme.com/view.asp?id=120850 http://mktg-plan.blogspot.in/ http://money.cnn.com/2011/02/11/technology/nokia_microsoft/index.htm http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/11/08/nokias-comeback-strategy-in-smartphones/ http://www.marketingweek.co.uk/brands/nokia/ http://iimtmarketing.blogspot.in/2012/03/marketing-mix-nokia.html