Computer background

The booming industry of technology, one would naturally assume that computer literacy is not a problem. However, it is the case that not all of the people have the opportunity to learn the new technological advancement. It has been an issue that computer literacy has a big impact on a person’s capacity to find sufficient jobs. It has been a necessary requirement that one should have a certain background on computer works. It would seem then that being literate with computers had been a forgone issue for a person living in this era. Nonetheless, the issue of computer literacy has always been present. The essential knowledge that a dichotomy of generations is still present should not have been neglected. The problem that could be seen here then is that not all of the previous generations have the sufficient information about computers and other technological advancements. Other people might have the opportunity to learn but others could not cope with the advancement. Main reason for this is the issue of the socioeconomic status that a person might have. Learning to use computers would necessitate the need for computers in the home. Not all of the people though have the same opportunity financially though. At the rate of the fast advancement of computers, it would have been hard to be able to keep up with what ought to be learned. The main issue here then is the socioeconomic status that a person has. Learning could be done through computer classes but having the means to learn is the problem. It would seem that the major hindrance for learning is the monetary issue. But what is socioeconomic status? It is known that this refers to the status or background of person. It is here that a person’s background that includes his/her â€Å"occupation, education, income wealth, and place on residence (â€Å"Socioeconomic Status†)† is scrutinized. In this aspect, there could be those who are deemed to be unfortunate. They are the ones who are usually subjected to the harsh realities in this life. Those who could be considered poor then would have a deprived background. Those who could be considered well-off would have a privileged background. It could be seen here that not all of us has the privilege to have a relatively better socioeconomic status. The benefits of having a better status are countless especially when a person is determined. But determination could not always take us somewhere if we have not had the chances or opportunities in the first place. I was one of the fortunate ones. Growing up in a family whose socioeconomic status is relatively better than others I had the benefit of going to a good school. I had learned to use the computer through school and had the opportune time to practice at home. As a child, I did not think that computers would have to be relevant in my life since all I cared about was fun and games. Computer class was not considered to be fun and games in my book then so I just went to class and tried my best to pass. As I grew older and childishness had deserted me, I have learned the real value of computer classes. I took it seriously and realized that fun and games could also be found in computers. My teachers were drilling in me the basics of computer programs had given me the benefit of being called computer literate. It is not an uncommon knowledge that computer literacy is highly favored nowadays. When I filled out my resume, computer skills or literacy was an important factor. Offices now had long dispatched type writers and replaced it with the more convenient computers. In this time, it is believed that modernization would require the usage of technological aspects and computers are one of them. Computers have been a given necessity that computer illiteracy was a forgotten issue. However, this issue is still in circulation but some would usually shrug at the thought of computer illiteracy. The main culprit here is the presumptuous thinking of the people. They have seemed to have conveniently forgotten those who are down the social triangle. I have come across with other people who did not have the opportunity to learn the ropes of computers let alone had the chance in ever using or touching one. This is not an exaggerated case but this situation usually happens to those who did not have the blessings that I had. This person had to stop going to school so she did not have the opportunity to learn the usage of computers. It was later when she had a family that she realized that her children might suffer the same plight. Although, it would not have been a problem for her since she had managed to send her children to a school that had computer classes. But her frustration came when she would observe her children in front of the computer. Her frustration stemmed out from the fact that she had to learn through her children plus she found computers to be complicated. Generally, a person trying to learn would think it to be complicated but one could not blame him/her. In this case, the woman did not have the opportunity and means to learn since she was busying earning a living. Going back to what I have said earlier, computers had been a prerequisite when it comes to job hunting. The importance that the people had found in computers was due to the dependency that they have about it. My father told me that they did not have to use computers before nor was there a need to use other gadgets before. He usually frowns upon the great importance that people put on computers but in the end he had to learn. The company that he was working for made technological upgrades so he had to learn how to use a computer. Fortunately for my father he had the means to learn and he had his children to teach him. Others would not have been lucky though. Some had a hard time coping with it that soon new employees were easily promoted than them. The company would not always hesitate to do so not because they were not grateful for the loyalty and service but they had to do it for the progress of the company. It was a sad situation but it was inevitable. I think that the booming technologies would not be stopped especially when man thirst for a more unproblematic way of life. It could not be helped and maybe someday soon that what I know about computers would be rustic compared to the younger generations. The best way for me to avoid this is to accommodate the change and change as well. This change would have to be for the betterment of my status in life, work related or not. Work Cited â€Å"Socioeconomic Status.† The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy. Ed. Jr. E.D. Hirsch, Joseph F. Kett, James Trefil. Third Ed: Houghton Mifflin Company, 2002.      

Marketing Strategy of Innocent Drinks Essay

1: Introduction Every organization needs to have a marketing strategy so that they know who are their competitors, which market they need to target, do they have resources to compete in that market and what strategies they need to adopt to gain competitive position in the industry. The most important thing is with the help of marketing, company is able to make people aware of its product. This report focuses on how the company innocent drinks developed their marketing strategy in terms of brand positioning and marketing mix and with the help of SWOT analysis, what further actions they can take to maintain their market share. 2: Innocent Drinks 2.1: Profile After starting the business in 1998 in a friendly way, innocent drinks have become a very established brand now. Innocent has become ten years old this year. It is now the largest smoothie brand in UK and the fourth largest overall. The company has achieved a sale of over 100m pounds within a span of ten years and it has now around 250 employees. The company has won many awards from the year they have started. Its main competitors are Tropicana and own label brands which are still quite behind in terms of market share. 2.2: Company products Innocent drinks has a long range of products which they claim to be made up of pure and fresh fruit and which are free from any kind of preservatives. Their products include smoothies, yogurt drinks, thickies, kids smoothies (taking account of those fruits which children like the most), pure fruit squeezes. Their products are available in different sizes and shapes. The  company developed their logo required for a brand in an unconventional manner and now it is famous as dude. 3: Marketing strategy and analysis 3.1: Marketing objectives The company has highlighted the importance of their smoothie by injecting in peoples mind that drinking smoothie is part of their healthy lifestyle. The company’s objectives are that their product should be delicious, healthy and sustainable and their vision is to make world healthy by providing their products. 3.2: Analysis People are becoming more health conscious and that is what the Innocent highlighted among its consumers to increase its customer base and loyalty. â€Å"95% of our marketing strategy is what goes in the bottle,† as said by Reed. The company is not using latest marketing strategies, they are upbeat with the fact that their customers are happy. The company has restricted its marketing and branding to its packaging. The company didn’t involve in heavy advertisements in the beginning, instead they use their product as a mean to communicate with their consumers. The owners were in favor of print to advertise their product so they had it on the bus sides which will move everywhere in the UK. Innocent has a mixture of both market orientation and product orientation. Developing a user friendly website, publishing a book, inviting people to visit the company’s headquarter, banana telephone where customers can give suggestions and view are clear signs of market oriented co mpany. Secondly, they are quality conscious. They consider their product a fruit and not made of fruits and that is what they want to see in the eyes of their customer. The prices of their product are high but they justify it on the basis of quality by saying that preservatives and concentration reduces the cost and they want the best thing for their consumers. But the company’s over confidence regarding its product being the best and healthy one may divert its attention from customer needs and demands. Because the competitors may come with same nutritional values but better taste, it can then be a threat to a company. The company has a marketing team which is  involved in analysing competition and come up with new ideas regarding the products and strategies. And there is a communication team also which make an effective communication link with its consumers by website, news and feedback. 3.2.1: Brand strategy and positioning Branding creates value for the product and it influences everyone directly or indirectly. Innocent made their brand stand out from the crowd by adopting innovative ways of marketing and that was their beginning in differentiating their product from their competitors Brand name is very critical and it should be consistent with what the company is trying to deliver and how it wants to be perceived by customers. By establishing brand name as â€Å"innocent†, the company is trying to convey the message of being pure. Branding has been effectively used as a strategic tool for marketing by innocent smoothies and that helps the company to maintain its share in the market or in keeping its competitive position. Innocent has developed its brand image by providing excellent satisfaction, by being genuine, healthy and socially responsible in the eyes of their consumers and once the image is developed, they were able to attract the customers. It is because of brand and its perceived value that consumers are loyal and committed to the Innocent products and they do not look for any substitutes (Ginden, 1993). Customers also perceive it less risky in buying a brand product with which they are emotionally attached. It is more important for products like innocent drinks which the customers have to consume and which has direct impact on their health and body. For keeping a brand alive, it is very important to go for heavy promotions and advertisements and innocent drinks have used their resources very affectively in promotion (O’Malley, 1991). Innocent drinks have also taken a move to stay in touch with its consumers by making a family section. It is a method of communication and reminding the consumers about the products and also to get feedback from customers. The company is using family branding policy as all of its products use the company name. This reduces the cost of having different brand policies for different products. The key to positioning is to make it important in the eyes of consumer that you are incomplete without the product and on the  basis of this, innocent smoothies has kept their customers intact with them. Innocent smoothie is considered a premium brand by its consumers as they relate high cost and high quality with the product as compared to its competitors. The following figure is as perception of customers about Innocent drinks. 3.2.2: Marketing mix To make the product successful, company needs not only the products but a mixture of elements which is called marketing mix. The marketing mix is usually designed with the help of marketing research and it is also based on judgment. Every element of marketing mix compliment each other so efficient integration is required to make it successful. Innocent company has used the marketing mix quite efficiently and effectively. Product: Innocent produces fresh and healthy drinks for its customers. The company has a lot of product range including juices, smoothies, thickies, veg. pots and some of their drinks target specific customers as drinks for the kids. The drinks are available in different sizes and in different packings. Their main focus is to keep things natural and they are also very much conscious about the fruits and the farms from where it comes. Innocent smoothies distinguish themselves from other brands on the basis of purity and being 100% natural without preservatives, concentrates and colorings. The company has also described the negative consequences of concentration and that a product loses its quality, taste and nutritional value and it is done just to reduce cost and making more money. The company makes its drinks with little carbon impact. Same is the case with the recycling. Most of their packing is 100% recyclable and they are making efforts to use minimum material and that too with little carbon footprint. Some people are also fascinated from the product just because of the labeling and packaging. Labeling helps in promoting a brand and provides useful information about the product. So innocent drinks made their labeling very different and the kind of which can amuse and make people to give a second look at it. Innocent drinks is enjoying product width from smoothies to veg. pots as well as product length in terms of different flavors which are available to  consumers and that has really helped the company to maintain its market share and a protection against the current uncertainty occurred in the economic environment. Price: There are number of factors that can have an impact on the price. The company is charging high prices as compared to its competitors and still has the largest market share. It has been possible only because of the brand name and positioning. Since the company justifies its high cost with the high quality they are providing to its consumers, so their prices are also at premium level. People paying a premium price because now they have an emotional attachment developed with the brand But since the economic crunch has affected everyone so people are becoming more price sensitive and that is the reason that innocent drinks has lost some market share this year. The company emphasized that it is less expensive to purchase innocent smoothie than to buy fruit and make it at your own. Promotion: Innocent is carrying out various activities to create awareness about the product among the new or potential consumers and to remind and convince the current purchasers to go for the product. The company uses different methods of promotion from advertisement to personnel selling. They have done advertising and sales promotion very effectively. Innocent has used different approach for its marketing by targeting consumers of different products with different advertisements and campaigns. Website is always an effective method to communicate, promote and making relationship with the consumers. Banana phone is used to get feedback from the customers. Customers are allowed to visit their offices. This strategy is used to develop strong relationship with them. Innocent has also taken support from television commercials and they are using it since 2005. Moreover, to make people aware about their products, the company once made a very big compaign on the television and it regularly arranges festivals as well. Innocent used all the leading newspapers for their advertisement. Online advertising such as on facebook has also been used by innocent as a strategy for promotion. Innocent has also developed public relations. The company has been engaged in certain social projects such as giving money to charity, providing drink for homeless etc which are important for long term sustainability of business and to have a good image in the eyes of your consumers. Place: In the beginning, Innocent used the local shop for its products but as the popularity of products multiplied, the company gradually gained a great market share. The company has found a unique method of selling and distributing their products using cow vans. Innocent drinks use intensive distribution strategy by placing their product in as many places and outlet as possible. The company strategy has been shifted from push to pull as being the largest seller in UK and successful brand name, consumers demand the product. It is now available in more than 7000 retail outlets including the big names as Sainsbury, Tesco, Asda and coffee shops like Starbucks. Export has already been started by the company in Europe and Ireland. Children also got greater access to smoothies after the company made a contract with the company offering catering services to school. After the investment by the coke in the company, innocent will now have more distribution channels and will have access to new places as well. 3.2.3: SWOT analysis SWOT analysis has been carried out to evaluate where the innocent smoothies is standing with respect to the market position. It also helps innocent to analyze how strength can be used to exploit opportunities and how weaknesses can be overcome to avoid possible threats. Strengths * brand name / value already developed * company image * customer loyalty * market leader * distribution channels * investment by coca cola * wide product range and substitutes for breakfast / fruits| Weaknesses * high prices as compared to competitors * lower take up among old people * not popular in evening times * can be made at home and even in cafes and shops| Opportunities * new products for evening which enhances night sleep * emerging markets showing increase every year in market growth * global expansion| Threats * competitors (Tropicana) and products by supermarkets as Tesco * new entrants because of market potential * price sensitive people * credit  crunch can affect demand | Why are concentrates so rubbish? We believe that food companies should do everything they can to get food to people in its natural state. A concentrated orange juice is OJ that has been boiled, then evaporated in a vacuum and then homogenised, resulting in a thick tar. This is then frozen and shipped to countries where it is defrosted, reconstituted with water and has ‘add backs’ added (to enhance flavour and aroma). The concentration process not only affects the nutritional value of the juice but also the taste. All the good stuff gets boiled away and you’re left with a sugary syrup which then has to have lots of horrid stuff added back afterwards to make it taste like fruit again. Basically, concentrated juice tastes cooked, has virtually no nutritional value and that’s why we won’t ever use concentrates. It has to be pure fruit for us. How should I look after and store your drinks? Please please please keep our drinks cold. We can’t stress that enough. Because we don’t use any preservatives or other artificial stuff that might make them last a bit longer, they need to be well cared for. They should be stored between 0-5 ° C, which, luckily enough, is the temperature of your average fridge. So stick them in the chiller as soon as you get home from the shops, or if you’re saving a bit for later, don’t leave it on your desk – pop it back in the fridge for a while. Once opened, we reckon our drinks are best drunk on the same day, although as previously mentioned you should refrigerate them between sips. If you leave them out of the fridge, they will eventually start to ferment. This is a completely safe, natural process but it means the smoothie goes fizzy. It normally causes tiny bubbles in the drink. Click here to find out more about fermentation. If you suspect a drink to be fermented, please dispose of the contents of the bo ttle and contact us at hello@innocentdrinks.co.uk or call the banana phone on 020 8600 3939 with details about the bottle or carton and its enjoy by date. So, please do keep our smoothies nice and cold. ^ back to top How long do they last? Our drinks are made from 100% pure fruit and nothing else. Because we don’t use preservatives, stabilisers or additives they generally last about as long as a pint of milk. Please always keep them chilled and drink them on the same day you open them. Can I freeze your smoothies? Our smoothies are made of nothing but whole crushed fruit and pure juices, so it’s completely safe to freeze them. However, we don’t really recommend it because they taste much better fresh. To be more specific, bananas don’t freeze well; when they defrost they go brown and a bit slimy. Check out this picture of a fresh banana and one that’s defrosted. We know which we would rather drink. If you do decide to freeze one of our smoothies, please make sure you defrost it in the fridge so it stays chilled at all times and note that this might take as long as 3 days. You should also drink it on the day of defrosting. What is love? Baby don’t hurt me, don’t hurt me, no more. Do you have any drinks that don’t contain banana? Our kiwis, apples & limes smoothie (also available in 1 litre cartons) and yoghurt, vanilla bean & honey thickie are both completely banana free. Are your products organic? No they’re not organic. We want to minimise pesticide and other agrochemical usage on our fruit, and this is one of the requirements of both the Rainforest Alliance and also the innocent minimum standards for our fruit growers. Both sets of standards also ban the use of any of the ‘dirty dozen’ pesticides as listed by the Pesticide Action Network. To ensure the safety of our drinks we conduct independent tests on our ingredients, at an  accredited laboratory, throughout the harvest calender. Of the test results with anything being detected at all, these detections fall well within the Maximum Residue Limit (MRL) that you are allowed. Each year our policy will be reviewed and testing procedures will be updated. And what about all of those plastic bottles? Since January 2008, all our smoothie recipes are in 100% recycled PET* plastic. We’ve been working on this project for quite a while. In 2003 we started using bottles made from 25% recycled plastic and in 2006 improved it to 50% recycled. All the time, people told us that it would be impossible to get to 100%, but we tried and tried and tried again. And now we’re here. 100%. It means a 20% reduction in materials (we’ve made the bottle lighter) and a 55% carbon reduction in terms of the bottle’s manufacture. It’s a big step for a little company. We’re very proud. *PET stands for ‘polyethylene terephthalate’. Clear plastic, in other words, said our Stu, who knows about these things. So can I recycle your plastic bottles and tetra pak cartons? We’ve got a whole section on our website dedicated to this. You can check it out here. ^ back to top Are your products suitable for vegans? Smoothies – We’re afraid as we can’t guarantee that our drinks are shellac free, due to the small chance that tiny amounts of shellac do make it into our drinks, we can’t class our drinks as being suitable for vegans. Thickies – no (they contain dairy produce and honey). Are your products suitable for pregnant women? Yes. Although we’ve heard that some of them prefer coal. Can infants and children drink your products? Infants under 12 months shouldn’t drink our vanilla and honey bean thickies. The Food Standards Agency says that honey should not be given to infants under 12 months old because of the small risk of botulism. Infantile  botulism occurs when honey contains Clostridium Botulinum spores, which infect the infant gut that then produces the toxin. This is not a problem for anyone aged more than 12 months. Regarding children in general, our smoothies, thickies and juices are OK – they contain nothing but crushed and juiced fruit (and low-fat bio yoghurt in the thickies), so the health properties should be welcome for kids who quite like sweets and crisps too. But it should be noted that our smoothies and juices contain a large amount of naturally occurring fruit sugars. For this reason you can add water to dilute them if you like. The FSA also recommends that for children, you should try to keep fruit juice to mealtimes. In general, look on the ingredients panel and check the amount of fruit in each bottle. If it seems like a reasonable amount of fruit, then it will be OK. If you don’t usually give your child this much fruit, then adjust the amount accordingly. We make a range of drinks specifically for children which you can find out about here. They’ve got less bits in them, as children seem to prefer their smoothies that way. Do you think I should dye my hair? No. I’ve always thought that blonde suited you. Why do you always use apples, oranges and bananas in your smoothies? These three fruits are a bit like the salt and pepper of the fruit world, except there are three of them. We use them for natural sweetness (apples), natural sharpness (oranges) and natural thickness (bananas). It beats using artificial stuff. So why don’t you call your mangoes and passion fruits smoothie â€Å"apples, mangoes and passion fruits†? We name our smoothies according to whichever flavours you can taste the most. So we feel if we were to start calling the smoothies â€Å"apples, mangoes and passion fruits,† it would be a bit misleading, as what you really taste when you take a mouthful are the mangoes and passion fruits. All of the ingredients are printed in full on the label, so it’s not like we’re trying to be sneaky or anything. Do your products contain nuts? Our veg pots may contain traces of nuts but our smoothies and juices contain no nuts whatsoever (which keeps the squirrels happy). Are your drinks GM-free? Yes they are. How do you make sure your fruit is from ethical sources? Our ultimate aim is that we are proud of every piece of fruit that we use. We want to buy our fruit from farms that look after both their workers and the environment. To achieve this we have created our own set of minimum standards, that detail our expectations for all the relevant social and environmental issues. We are in the process of rolling out these standards with our suppliers, and will work together with them to implement the agreed action plans. We feel that it is really important to understand the issues relevant to each country, and the pressures faced by our farmers, so we are meeting with more and more of our growers. As our fruit comes from all over the world this is a huge task, but one to which we are passionately committed. We know that there is no point recreating the wheel – so we also work with established international accreditation organizations such as the Rainforest Alliance. We first met them at a banana plantation in Costa Rica, and were so impressed with the work they do, that we now only buy banana from Rainforest Alliance approved plantations. The Rainforest Alliance works to conserve biodiversity and ensure sustainable livelihoods by transforming land-use practices, business practices and consumer behaviour. It not only looks at farm workers rights and wellbeing, but also protects ecosystems on the farms, which encourages bio diversity. We believe this sustainable approach is the best one. A well run farm with motivated workers means better quality fruit and better productivity, which means we get nicer fruit and the farms are more profitable. Are you going to move all your fruit to Rainforest Alliance approved sources? No, it just isn’t applicable for certain countries and certain fruits, like those that we source from the UK. But as the Rainforest Alliance expands into new certification territory, like pineapple, we’ll be keen to keep on building our relationship with them. As they develop new standards for new  fruits, we will assess their suitability for our growers. Whilst we don’t like to boast, it turns out they quite appreciate the work we do and they showed their gratitude last year with this rather fetching trophy. Outside of the world of fruit they certify all sort of things including coffee, cocoa and forestry. Find out more here: www.rainforest-alliance.org ^ back to top Why don’t you buy fairtrade fruit? We take the ethics of our supply chain incredibly seriously and took great care to find the best independent certification scheme that matched our values, and suited our needs the best. Fairtrade’s primary focus is on the prices paid to the farmers and social issues for small farms and cooperatives. It’s a great scheme but we felt that Rainforest Alliance looked at a broader spectrum of issues (both social and environmental), which we thought was a better fit with our own ethos. Also, the Fair Trade scheme predominantly certifies cooperative and and family run small holdings – not all of our fruit is available from these types of farms, so Fairtrade isn’t always applicable to our growers. Articles like this one from The Observer Food Monthly debate the key differences between Rainforest Alliance and Fairtrade (this one’s about coffee). What is the innocent foundation? The innocent foundation is a grant giving charity that was set up in July 2004 with the idea of bringing nature and communities closer together for mutual benefit. innocent donate 10% of our profits each year to charity, primarily to the innocent foundation, which funds rural development projects in the countries where our fruit comes from. Find out more here. Do your drinks actually contain shiny trumpets/pebbles/cricket pavilions/small churches? No. Can I have some free drinks for my event please? We get lots and lots of requests for our drinks and as much as we’d love to help everyone out, it would just be impossible. Instead, we give any excess drinks we have to the homeless through the charity, Fareshare. You can find out a bit more about the good work they do here. Okay. But it’s for charity. Does that make any difference? Generally, we feel it’s better to be able to offer a significant amount of support to one cause rather than a little backing to lots of different ones. With that in mind, every year we donate 10% of our annual profits to the innocent foundation. Its remit is to fund Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) that work to bring nature and communities closer together. You can see a bit more about the projects we support at www.innocentfoundation.org. Hope that all makes sense. I’m running a marathon/ climbing Everest/ shaving off all my chin hair for charity. Can you sponsor me please? Again, whilst we applaud anyone who gives up their time to sit in a bath of baked beans or run further than the corner shop to raise money for charity but if we sponsored everyone who wrote to us, we’d be living off beans and no toast. Instead, we make sure that we give something back to the countries where we buy our fruit, via the innocent foundation. Can I borrow your car? The clutch has gone funny, the fan belt’s shot and there are no windows. Plus I’ve forgotten where I’ve parked it. Lend us a fiver. No. 4: Conclusions and Recommendations 4.1: Conclusion Innocent’s success has been made possible just because of effective and innovative way of marketing which they adopted. Innocent used every kind of channel, big or small in carrying out its promotion. They used every kind of that marketing strategy in which low cost was involved but its impact was high. The company updates the website and labels regularly. Innocent changed the label quite frequently to maintain the attention of its consumers Innocent made the customers loyal by doing little things but they made huge difference for them. Innocent was of the view that making their drinks easily accessible to customers is very crucial and success of the company depends on it. The innocent also arranged a free event for its customers as a means of giving thanks to its customers for using their products. Innocent always remained active in interacting with its customers. The owners of the company didn’t have much idea about how things should be done and no strategic plan was involved in making the brand name, its packaging and process of launching it but surprisingly their idea was welcomed by the consumers as it was different and something they can amuse or laugh at. Innocent dominance has been affected in 2008 after the introduction of Tropicana in the market. In April 2009, investment by Coca-Cola is seen as a wise step because as a result of decrease in sales, it was necessary to maintain the brand value. Since the company is facing severe competition from rivals such as Tropicana so funding was required to be in the competition. Coke will increase the distribution channels and give access to more markets by making customer aware of the product. Innocent’s premium positioning is a key advantage and it also has developed a strong connection with its consumers over the passage of time. Brand loyalty is good but they have to look at their prices if they want to sustain their position as people are becoming more price conscious. It is more difficult to retain the customers than to attract new customers 4.2: Recommendations Innocent drinks should closely monitor the environment and conduct market research to identify issues as consumer behaviour, competitors’ strategies which can have an impact on their brand or positioning (O’Malley, 1991). This will help the company to be proactive in their approach rather than reactive. As the market is becoming more global, there will always arise new opportunities but also threats as consumers also have access to variety of products from different countries with different tastes and nutritional values so innocent drinks must consider what their consumers want, their preferences if they want to survive and be successful in the long term. SWOT analysis has identified the threats and weaknesses which innocent should  consider and the opportunities which they should exploit by using their strengths. There are some strategies which can be adopted by innocent smoothies as market leaders. They should try to expand the market either by market penetration or by exploring new potential markets. Innocent can also try to protect their current market share which has fallen because of Tropicana by introducing new products into its line. More aggressively, they should try to increase their market share by reducing their prices which are quite high currently and by further increasing promotion. Innocent should also make good use of collaboration with the Coke as it can provide the company with lot of distribution channels. Innocent must focus on strategies which help them to attract new consumers and in retaining the existing customers. Different promotional strategies can be adopted. The company can offer discounts, free samples for new customers to try, free gifts, coupons for customer loyalty, tickets for different events etc. innocent should also ensure that its product is available in as many places as possible. They can increase the availability of products on train/bus stations, petrol pumps and a lot more health clubs. Customer satisfaction is very important because that will encourage them to buy the products of the company again and they will also become a source of advertisement by referring the companys’ product to others as well (Gilson, 1986). It is the least expensive method of advertisement and promotion. Innocent can adopt some defensive strategies against Tropicana as well. Innocent can reduce the prices in the market in which the rivals have greatest share. Secondly, it is good to have information about competitors’ move in advance so that appropriate actions can be taken. Diversification can also be done if the markets are becoming more vulnerable. The research has also shown that smoothies are not consumed in later part of the day so the company can make some drinks which are light, easy on stomach and which help the consumers in getting better sleep at night. Innocent should make use of its brand name by launching new products like ice cream. Sometimes, new products help in compensating the loss of failed products but the company must remain conscious in launching a new product because it is difficult to develop, have to carry out rigorous market research and there are also long lead time involved and if it fails, it will bring bad image to the brand and will affect the brand equity so the company must use all the processes of product development from idea generation to commercialization in order to mitigate the risks associated with new products. References Baines P., Fill C., Page K.,(2008). â€Å"Marketing†. New York: Oxford University Press, Pg 374-382 Ginden, R. (1993), â€Å"The name game†, Cheers, pp.59-62. Innocent drinks. http://www.innocentdrinks.co.uk (accessed 02/12/2009) Mintel. http://academic.mintel.com/sinatra/oxygen academic/my reports/display (accessed 03/12/2009) O’Malley, D. (1991), â€Å"Brand means business†, Accountancy, 107, pp.107-8.

Human motivation Essay

SCENARIO: The scenario developed for the purpose of this paper is that a person has gone through the bitter experience of losing a loved one. In this case, the other person moved away and long distance relationship was not possible due to inevitable circumstances. Now the person who has been left behind has to recover from the sorrow of their loved one moving away, conclusion of a relationship that was a couple of years old, as well as move on with his/her own life. He/she has support from family and friends; however, they prefer to be on their own for now to recover from the close attachment that was developed over the course of two years. Moving away of a loved one has left a gap in the life of the subject. For a while, they were low on self esteem considering the move as his/her own fault. To recover from this depressive state they need to motivated and lured back to life and routine. COMPONENTS OF MOTIVATION: In the given scenario the biological component would be an individual’s need to mate with a partner. While momentarily, the subject is associating this need with their loved one, however, once they are able to move then situation shall be different. The learned component is that the subject now realizes that they have been loved and experienced that emotion. In future, while establishing bonds and relationships, duplicating that emotion can be one important motivational factor or component. Finally, the cognitive component in this case is that subject is to realize that moving on is must. They have given their best to the relationship and that is all they could do. Their self-esteem suffered and getting it back is important motivational component. APPLICATION OF THEORIES: Now, viewing the scenario in light of the motivational theories and possible ways to motivate the subject to move on and get back to life. 1. Instinct theories: Instinct theory in this case points out to the elementary aspect of human relationships. That is, a person’s need to find a mate. The subject is going through a low period. However, this is expected to end as soon as they realize that they need to fill the void in their life with someone special and are willing to give anyone else a chance. This instinctive need to mate is a great motivator in itself (AllPsych, 2003). 2. Personality theories: Personality theories of motivation describe each personality and person on different dimensions. While their focus is on finding similar traits in personalities of different people, categorizing an individual makes it simpler for psychologist to approach the subjects (Boeree, 2007). In this case, the subject can be analyzed on their personality traits such as if they are optimist or pessimist, free will or determinist, has had early or late personality development etc. Once that is determined, it will be easier to understand that what motivates the individual, what amount of effort does their personality require to overcome a trauma and so on. 3. Drive/learning theories: Drive theory is also somewhat similar to the instinct theories. These theories propose that each person is driven towards a certain kind of behavior due to internal biological demand. Their actions are to reduce that drive. In this case it is applicable such that a healthy individual has to fulfill their sexual needs. Reduction of this drive is again a motivator or an incentive for the person to move on with their life (AllPsych, 2003). 4. Growth and mastery motivation theories: The growth and goal mastery theories of motivation suggest that after a person has had an unpleasant experience, they learn from that and make a conscious effort as to not to repeat the behavior in future (East Lothian Council, n.d). In this case it would be that perhaps the subject might be hesitant to commit or fully give himself to a relationship unless they have over came insecurity. It motivates them to carefully choose who they want to be with 5. Humanistic theories: Most applied Humanistic theory; Maslow’s Need Hierarchy is a good example of application of humanistic approach. The subject in this scenario will be at the level of ‘Love and Belonging Needs’. Unless needs of that level are not fulfilled, he wont be able to reach a higher level of self esteem. The subject needs help and support of family and friends or perhaps even a therapist to realize that they need to move on and let themselves go in order to move further over pyramid. Not dwelling on past is the key here (AllPsych, 2003). 6. Cognitive theories: Cognitive theories purpose that an individual’s behavior is dependant on not just their personality and needs but also on dynamic environment that they live in, the external factors acting upon them and so on (Psychological Solutions, n. d). If the subject is able to evaluate and understand the present situation from this view point, they shall come to realize that there is little role for them to play and the dynamics of the environment were unfavorable. However, if they are seeking professional help then a therapist should be able to point out that this might not be true for each experience in their life and motivate them to move on. BIBLIOGRAPHY AllPsych. (2003). Motivation In Psychology. Retrieved June 1, 2007 from: http://allpsych. com/psychology101/motivation. html East Lothian Council.(n. d). Goal Theory Of Motivation. Retrieved June 1, 2007 from: http://www. exc-el. org. uk/content/index. php/main/teaching_and_learning/everything_you_wanted_to_know_about_teaching_and_learning_but_were_afraid_to_ask/motivation/motivational_theories/goal_orientation_theory Boeree, G. (2006). Personality Theories. Retrieved June 1, 2007 from: http://webspace. ship. edu/cgboer/persintro. html Psychological Solution. (n. d). Cognitive Theories of Motivation. Retrieved June 1, 2007 from: http://www. psychsol. com/html/word_docs/Motiv%202%20-%20ohp. doc.

Agora film review Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Agora film review - Research Paper Example The film Agora follows the philosopher Hypatia, a historical person portrayed in the film, through the process of the decline and fall of the Roman Empire near the end of the fourth century AD. It also follows a central cast of character who surround Hypatia, and her school in Alexandria, through this tumultuous time period.The film consciously inverts the understanding of religion that we have in Western society today, where the Christians are dominant and other religions are more in the minority. In this film, Christians are the minority religion, though growing quickly and set to replace Pagans as the most powerful religion in the Roman Empire, but much of the state is still in the control of the Pagans. Hypatia and those around her get into frequent conflict with the Christians, including at one point being mobbed by a group of them during conflict over the teaching and interpretation of science. The Christians then go on to vandalize a library, one of the first assaults on scien ce in the film. Hypatia frequently refuses to bow to demands that she stops studying sciences, which end up in her getting persecuted, and eventually stoned (though she is mercifully killed before the stoning by a good friend of hers, who strangles her). Hypatia was a scientist who taught at a platonic school that taught the most powerful people in the Empire. She had a love of science that rivaled almost anything else. She began the film as a highly respected person of a relatively high cast of society – her father was an important person and a slave owner, and she had a small cadre of very loyal follows and students in her school. Hypatia has several admirable qualities that are important to her. Firstly, she is a vastly intelligent person, as demonstrated by her qualification as one of the most important teachers in one of the most important schools in the most scientific city in the Ancient world. Beyond this alone, Hypatia is also a brave, and to be quite frank, an incre dibly stubborn person. When put on by a mob of Christians who begin burning down the most important library in the world, Hypatia risks her life to save many of the scrolls of science that might be completely irreplaceable if they end up destroyed. Furthermore, she continues studying subjects that are forbidden by the newly powerful Christian religion, such as the theory of heliocentrism, which says that the sun is at the center of the universe instead of the earth, despite the fact that her life is threatened again and again because of her refusal of studying. Even when her former students, such as Orestes, give up and on several occasions review to answer questions regarding what they believe and do not believe because of their fear of consequences (or possibly because they have genuinely changed their minds because of conversions to Christianity), Hypatia stands firm with her beliefs in science over religion, despite the threats to her life. Finally, she is a good person, which i s shown by the incredible loyalties that she develops, with her friends willing to stand firm with her through thick and thin, and even kill her mercifully when there is no other option. This film displays the decline and fall of the Roman Empire as centering around one issue and almost entirely one issue: the rise of Christianity and its replacing traditional Paganism. This represented a fundamental shift in the Roman Empire for several reasons. Firstly, the traditional Pagan religion allowed for the worship of a wide variety of gods and a great deal of different cultures and backgrounds. It would allow for other traditional religions to also exist in addition to the Roman one, it allowed for a great deal of cultural plurality. Christianity, on the other

Strategic Management Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words - 1

Strategic Management - Assignment Example king from both internal and external influences, explains strategies used by Davies in launching this new line, and proposes recommendations about whether this new launch can provide a return on the investment. The PEST Analysis, as part of environmental scanning, provides an opportunity to witness the different external conditions that influence decision-making. This model recognises political, economic, social and technological forces that will determine a firm’s adaptability to external trends. From the political view, Davies’ new business intends to launch 25 stores. Success domestically will determine whether to take this brand international and strategy could be impacted by different taxation or tariffs on imported products, cutting into the profit margin. Depending on the country where Davies might export his goods, political forces can determine speed of new market entry or regulate volume being delivered. The economic environment plays a considerable role in how a business develops strategy. Where this new line will be introduced, the UK, there is a current recession that impacts consumers at all different levels and market segments. In response to consumers slowing their purchases, especially in retail, high-end companies like Versace have stopped production on five different product lines in lower-priced ranges since they were not showing signs of profitability (Choi, 2009). Further, Tiffany closed its business focusing on Iridesse pearl jewelry to focus on diamonds due to sales slumps (Choi). This illustrates how the economic environment drives companies to streamline their product lines or enhance their sales focus on higher-profiting products. Spending patterns in consumer groups can strongly impact strategic direction, especially at the operational level like at Versace. Social trends, also external, impact how a company conducts business in a certain environment. A recent survey of citizens in Asia identified that Asians tend to worry about

Research paper on the book A River Lost by Blaine Harden

On the book A River Lost by Blaine Harden - Research Paper Example The Columbia River plays host to great variety of anadromous species of fish, which always make a migration cycle from the freshwater habitats of the river to the saline water habitat found in the Pacific Ocean (England, Mazur, Penha and Robbins). The vast majority of these fish species are the salmons, and this was a mare economic substance for the natives who settled around the river. In fact, traders around the region, especially from Western North America, traded for fish at the Columbia River. In addition to being a good source of food, and income for the locals, the river also has heavy flows and steep gradient, which provide massive potential for electricity generation. As such, the river hosts over fourteen hydroelectric dams, which produce enough electricity to cater for the needs of the surrounding communities and businesses. However, the benefits of this river were short-lived owing to the economic investments made on it by the federal government of the United States, an investment that claimed all the tributes and environmental serenity provided by the river. Blaine Hardens writes about the Columbia River in his intriguing excerpt of how external interference led to the destruction of a good river. He names it â€Å"A River Lost†, showing the level of damages done on the river to an extent that it is no longer resourceful to the locals but rather poses great danger to them and their continued survival around the river. The Columbia River, which was initially the â€Å"Great River of the West† fulfilled the dreams of its neighborhood by providing them with cheap electricity, and water used for irrigation and farming purposes, hence flourishing gardens found in the desert. However, these fantasies in the memories of the natives were short-lived, as all this goodness vanished, once the natives suffered exploitation from invaders and inhabitants, as well as, the federal government (Harden 65). This book covers the exploitation

Analysis of Professional Development Plan Research Paper

Analysis of Professional Development Plan - Research Paper Example This paper entails a critical analysis of professional development plan being followed by Jamestown Public School and its detailed comparison with plans developed by other few district schools. Critical evaluation This plan is intended to generate certain planned outcomes such as assisting students in making radical progress in yearly academic curriculums and triggering improvements in students’ reading and mathematical abilities. This in turn shall be influenced by enhancing skills and knowledge of teachers and nurturing them personally and professionally. Thus, the district uses extensive amount of data, collected from several assessment tests taken by students, to evaluate achievements of students, and utilizes information pertaining to teachers, collected through different surveying tools, to identify their needs for professional training and continuing education. These collection methods are very effective as this vital information is helpful in shaping objectives of the plan. One of the essential achievements of this plan is the participation of the entire faculty members in training sessions that enable them to develop coaching and mentoring tactics. This plan is also fruitful as it lays great emphasis on integrating technology into teaching methods so that the tutors stay updated with the latest technologies being globally adopted in educational fields. This plan covers a timeline of one complete year and schedules various constructive activities for teachers’ continuous development including training sessions on instructional techniques and workshops on best global practices. It is mandatory for all teachers to establish atleast one professional goal per annum that they shall achieve during the year. The district has allocated 5 days per year per certified teacher for professional development sessions, which seems inadequate for covering all aspects of development including reading, mathematics and technology. Financial aid for the plan s tems from three different sources including Federal Title IA, Title IIA and general funding. District hires various mentors and specialists to conduct workshops sessions and train teachers on modern teaching methodologies. A very useful scheme has been recently launched by the district whereby teachers have opportunities to spend one complete year with the specialized mentors to grow professionally. The plan, on the whole, is highly effective as it presents some valuable goals and strategies (North Dakota Professional Development Plan, 2013). Comparative analysis We also consider another development prepared by Maryland State Board of Education which primarily focuses on enhancing students’ learning, fulfilling teachers’ needs and complying with Maryland Teacher Professional Development Standards. Although, the objectives are similar to Jamestown’s, this plan highlights a pivotal point that the trainings must be tailored according to differing needs and intellec tual levels of teachers. A generalized training session becomes source of demoralization, frustration and wastage of resources as in the case of Jamestown. This plan emphasizes on developing analytical skills of teachers rather than instructional and communication proficiencies. While North Dakota has to offer a highly effective mentoring program for its teachers, Maryland only has generally accepted standards to follow and a state-approved curriculum that could be voluntarily

Investigating Disease Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Investigating Disease - Essay Example This global resurgence of TB, according to Volmink and Murphy (2005) can be attributed to, " neglect of tuberculosis control programmes, HIV infection and immigration from high-prevalence countries" (p. 321). In 1993, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared TB a global emergency. It was the scientist Robert Koch who isolated Mycobacterium tuberculosis, a species of bacteria as the causal factor. The disease may be latent or active. In the former stage individuals are infected with the bacterium, but the immune system fights off the bacteria, preventing the manifestation of symptoms. Here the individual is usually not contagious. In the active stage, individuals show symptoms and are contagious. A deficient immune system exacerbates the condition; therefore organs besides the lungs are susceptible to infection. According to Heinsohn (2004), "Extrapulmonary TB may affect any organ or tissue but is much less common than pulmonary TB" (p. 7). Pulmonary tuberculosis is contagious with increased risk of infection. With the discovery of streptomycin by Selman Waksman, antibiotics have repeatedly proved their efficacy in the treatment of TB. However the US Congress, Office of Technology Assessment warns that "When a patient takes TB medication erratically or when an inadequate combination of drugs is prescribed, active, infectious TB can recur in a form resistant to one or more of the drugs used in the original treatment" (The Continuing Challenge of Tuberculosis, 1993,p. 6). Thus Multidrug- Resistant tuberculosis poses a threat in controlling and preventing the spread of the disease. Cystic fibrosis (CF) is a hereditary, genetic disorder that results in the secretion of abnormally thick mucous that damages organs, leading to respiratory and digestive problems that ultimately cause death. While primarily associated with the lungs, this disease also attacks the pancreas, small intestine, and all glands where cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) plays a vital role in efficient functioning. Thus Kolbe (2005), calls it " a multisystem disease affecting children and increasingly so, adults" (p. 361). It is an incurable and fatal disorder. Branscomb (1994) found that, "In spite of treatment, most patients die during infancy or childhood. Rarely, patients survive past the age of 20" (p. 318). However with improved diagnosis and treatment measures, more patients are surviving to reach adulthood. Tuberculosis and cystic fibrosis are usually seen as diseases of the lungs or pulmonary disorders, as it is here that they do the most damage. But both have debilitating effects on other organs as well. TB is a contagious disease as inhaling infectious particles can transmit it. Contact with infectious droplets may occur via coughing, sneezing or laughing. Preventive strategies play an important role in curbing the disease. Meanwhile CF is a genetic disorder that is brought about by defective genes. Therefore treatment is difficult as these disorders are very complex and scientists and researchers have a long way to go in cracking the genetic code, pertaining to these disorders. Both diseases call for early diagnosis and treatment to stem the damage that is sure to result otherwise. Counselling for the individual and family is imperative in both cases, as it helps people come to terms with the devastating impact of the disease while promoting social

Should the N-word be removed from the version of the The Adventures of Essay

Should the N-word be removed from the version of the The Adventures of Hucklberry Finn - Essay Example There are two reasons why censorship of the book should not be allowed. First, it goes against the spirit and letter of the Freedom of Speech provisions in the constitution of the country. Second, there is nothing inherently sinister about the word ‘nigger’. In other words, the author, instead of reinforcing the negative stereotype of black people, is only showing the abusive usage of language by their white owners. Moreover, the language used in the American South during the antebellum years can only be truly captured if such words are included in the novel. The essence and literary style of the Realist genre, which the novel employs, would be lost if political correctness is given importance over real substance. Also, since the civil rights movement of 1960s, the usage of the word ‘nigger’ is substituted by the more acceptable ‘black Americans’. But the change in nomenclature has not translated into change in their social status. Despite the U nited States presently boasting a black President, the community lags behind white folks in many respects. In this sense, this token change was merely euphemistic. Terming the language in the novel as being abusive is to miss the point. Author Mark Twain is playing the twin roles of writer and historian in the book.

Frank Capra, Meet John Doe Movie Review Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Frank Capra, Meet John Doe - Movie Review Example Keeping in mind public reaction, power players got involved in realization of John Doe project, picking out a man ready to play the role for money and disappear at the right moment. However, the â€Å"actor† eventually realizes the scale of social manipulations and sets himself against his puppeteers. The movie vibrantly reflects the topic of social manipulation and power play, vesting it in the settings of contemporary New York and then the entire America. Here, I would like to mention Harry Cooper’s brilliant acting – to my thinking, Capra chose a perfect man to embody the image of John Doe, the symbol of protests against rotten social order. The topic that was most vividly illustrated in the Meet John Doe movie is definitely the role of mass media in public conscience and its ambiguous nature. No invention can be exclusively positive or negative by its nature – it only has potential. Mass media is an example of such invention depicted in the movie. On one hand, newspapers and radio plat and grow the idea in minds of thousands of people – good idea celebrating unity and mutual respect among â€Å"average† citizens. On the other hand, it is mass media that distort this idea, convert it to the use of political campaigns and make the adherents abandon John Doe’s ideas. Here, on the example of Ann Mitchel and others, a narrower topic of journalist ethics is raised. At the same time, the ideas professed by John Doe are rather close to biblical ones, reminding average people of general human morality – Mitchell encourages them via Willoughby’s voice on the radio to help and unite with their neighbors, implying that such average people are the nation, not the politicians. The movie is an absolute masterpiece despite the fact that it wasn’t fully appreciated after release in 1941. Classical work of the world’s cinema,

''It's complicated'' Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

''It's complicated'' - Essay Example It was the graduation of their son when they had to get together in a hotel; Jake, Jane, the three kids and the fiancà © of their eldest daughter. The two finally had their moment to talk to each other and discuss things around them casually when they got drunk one night and apparently, decided to sleep together. Jane hardly believes that he slept with his ex-husband who is now married. Hence, she now considers herself as the mistress. It just happened that Jake felt his feelings rekindled for Jane and is again asking for another chance. On the other hand, Jane is confused because she knows for a fact that there is still a room for Jake in her heart but she is afraid to get in trouble with Jake’s own family. In addition to the complications of Jane’s life is Adam, his architect, who is asking her out and started to get to know each other personally considering that Adam helps Jane to design her house for renovations. The scenarios throughout the affair and the love tri angle made the whole film to be defined by its title, ‘It’s complicated’. The movie ended up choosing between Jake and Adam and explaining to her kids what happened between the two of them. A sad part comes into the scene when the three kids discovered that their parents are having an affair and it gave them false hopes of getting back together as one family. Although Jane felt the happy with the affair, she still chose to be with Adam because that is what she thinks is right and what her heart tells her. The lighting in the movie did pretty well. The movie is not categorized for a family because there are adult scenes and languages that are not suitable for kids. The lighting director worked well because the shots are taken on various times and the audience could really distinguish the lights used such as the scenes in the hotel, outdoor shots, bedroom, parties and other. Generally, the lights are used according to the needs

Understanding Consumer Behavior Essay Example for Free

Understanding Consumer Behavior Essay Why is understanding consumer behavior of such importance to marketers? Give examples of how marketers apply their understanding of consumer behavior to their marketing strategies. The study of Consumer behavior plays an importance role to the marketers which need to study in how individuals, groups and organizations select, buy, use and dispose of goods, services, idea or experiences to satisfy their needs and wants. The marketers need to research and understand how the study of consumer behavior works and only can positioning their production in the particular groups of people. Marketers need to considered about the factors that affecting the consumer buying behavior before starting a business. Some of the factors that may influence consumer purchase decisions are the cultural influences, social influences, personal factors and psychological factors. Those of the factors are vital when using them to apply as the marketing strategies. For example the marketers are planning to launch a non-halal restaurant in a new shopping complex. Firstly, the marketers need to considered throughout the factors that affecting their consumer behavior. For the cultural influences, the marketers need to concern about the nationalities, religions and values norms or the lifestyle of their target consumer. So in this case the halal users are not be able to visit the restaurant since it touch the religions issue. Therefore the marketers have to change their strategies or set the restaurant in other places which accept with the constraints. Furthermore, the occupation, lifestyle and economic situation of consumer are affecting a people buying decision. When comes to the introduction of sports car, family group of people will rather consider to buy a family car whereas some upper social class of people will take it as consideration. For the people in working class are usually driving a normal car or take public transportation. In this case, the marketers should selling the sports car to the consumer who taking the high salary in upper class. Therefore, the marketers need to understand which group of consumer they are targeting and put on focus to target them.

A Study Of Anwar Ibrahim

A Study Of Anwar Ibrahim Introduction Anwar Ibrahim is without a doubt one of the most influential politician ever to emerge after our nation`s Independence Day in 1957.Without any sufficient political background he struggles through the political period during his University life. Although not famous at that time, his social, political and economical ideas gained a rapid support from the community when he became the Deputy Prime Minister in 1993. His involvement in politics was a success, with his ideology being accepted by the community in a great variety from the aspect of social to politics. Anwar Ibrahim was born on 10th August 1947 in a small village on the mainland in Sungai Bakap, Seberang Prai and was raised in Cherok ToKun.He received his early education in Sekolah Melayu Cherok ToKun and Sekolah Rendah Stowell, Bukit Mertajam, one of the renown primary school in Penang. Anwar Ibrahim was raised in a comfortable middle class family with his father, Ibrahim Abdul Rahman who was a porter in a hospital and his mom, Che Yan, a housewife. However, both his parent got involved in politics when, his father became a politician and retired as a Parliamentary Secretary for the Ministry of Health. Similarly his mother also joined the UMNO. After finishing his high school in 1967, he enrolled his secondary education in Malay College Kuala Kangsar (MCKK) till 1966.during his period MCKK, he actively involved himself in interschool debate competitions and was subsequently elected as the students` president prior to his achievements and reputations in MCKK. Anwar pursued Malay Studies in one of Malaysias top University, University Malaya. In University Malaya, Anwars potential as a politician leader became obvious. He became the President of Persatuan Kebangsaan Pelajar Islam Malaysia (PKPIM).At the same time he was also the President of Malay Language Society. In University Malaya, Anwar gained his reputation and support by involving himself fiercely in defending the Malay community and the Muslims during the black days, 13th May 1969. One of the most daring act he had done during the racial war was, joining forces with Dr.Mahathir Mohamad in critising Tunku Abdul Rahman ruling who was the Prime Minister at that time. Since then, Anwar was known as a leader who always fights for students and social rights in his university. In 1971, he graduated in University Malaya by receiving the Ijazah Sarjana Muda Sastera. At the end of the year, the Muslim Youth movement of Malaysia was founded and Anwar became the first president. The Muslim Youth movement by Anwar proved to be one of the most influential societies when Anwar successfully formed a group of potential leaders who implies the teaching of Islam in daily life as well in leadership. His quality as a leader for this society was even approved and appreciated by the President of Pakistan, Zia Ul-Haq. The 1970s period is well known for its economical crisis in Malaysia due to the decrease in rubber price. Anwar saw his opportunity to solve the problem and gain more support, therefore, he rushed to solve the poverty issue in Baling. He leaded the anti poverty riot in 1974 which has landed him a punishment in ISA without trial where he spent almost two years in Kamunting detention center. In the year 1982, the supporters were astonished by the news saying that Anwar was stepping into the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO). This is because he was a organisation which is also known as Angkatan Belia Islam Malaysia (ABIM) during that year too. It is known as the most organized force in Islamic revivalism in Malaysia. Meanwhile, United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) was lead by Tun Dr Mahathir bin Mohamad in the year 1981. Anwars involvement in defending the rights and justice of the society made the UMNO to set an eye on him. The UMNO sees him as a potential leader and soon, he was brought in the political party. In 1982, Anwar became the parliamentary speaker for Permatang Pauh. Later, he was designated as the Deputy Prime Minister. Anwar Ibrahim was a potential leader who has the ability and power to influence and affect human behaviour and accomplished mission. Due to his leadership qualities, he obtained a lot of support from the public. This was the main factor Anwar was elected as the president of the National Union of Malaysian Muslim Students from the year 1968 to 1971. In 1983, Anwar became the Minister of Culture, Youth and Sports. He also held the position of Minister of Agriculture, Minister of Education and finally as the Minister of Finance in 1991. In the 1990s, Anwars relationship with Prime Minister, Dr.Mahathir Mohammed had begun to deteriorate. 1990s witnessed the downfall of Anwar, Anwar was framed and claimed to be involved in many foul play in politics such as corruption. He was alleged under nepotism and cronyism in 1999 and was sentenced to prison for six years. In the year 2000, he was sentenced for another nine years for a sodomy case. After his release, Anwar won the Permatang Pauh by-election in 2008.This marks the rise of a politician after all the struggles he went through. Anwar Ibrahim is a very influential man. He is known to have numerous connections with various politicians in different countries. He too, took part in a lot of uprising political activities. Anwar Ibrahim : The Rise The first stage as we can see began during his years at the University of Malaya. He was the president in many societies. As we can see, he was the president of the Malay Language Society University (PBMUM). Persatuan Bahasa Melayu Universiti Malaya (Malay for University of Malaya Malay Language Society) (PBMUM) is a Malay language, literature and culture oriented student body that has played an active role in the development of the modern Malay language in Malaysia and Singapore. It is marked as one of the most influential bodies in history of language development in Malaysia. The mission of PBMUM is committed towards the development of the Malay culture and language. The core of PBMUMs principle in 1954 was to persuade the Malayan government to recognise the Malay language as its national language. So, by recognising PBMUMs voice and struggle, the Majlis Undangan Persekutuan Tanah Melayu (Malayan Council) finally agreed on to make the Malay language as Malayas national language on 31 march 1995. PBMUM believes that it represents the voice of the people. PBMUM stands strongly against racism and upholds the view that its primary principle is in the development of the nation. Anwar, as the president of PBUM, had championed the implementation of Malay as the national language of our nation. By the time he completed his university studies, Anwar was already a popular national figure actively pursuing the reform agenda. He formed the Muslim Youth Movement of Malaysia (ABIM) in 1971. It is to promote and uphold the principles of moderate Islam and to campaign for moral uplifting and social justice. After Anuar had been completed his study in university, he holds many ministerial post. He also had been married to Wan Azizah Wan Ismail. They also have 6 children, Nurul Izzah Anwar Ehsan Anwar Nurul Nuha Anwar and 3 others. In the year 1982, the supporters were astonished by the news saying that Anwar was stepping into the United Malays National Organization (UMNO). Anwar was invited to join the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) in 1982 by Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad. Anwar has also been highly engaged in the international arena. He has been a strong advocate for dialogue among civilizations and has worked tirelessly towards the ideals of the mutual coexistence of civilizations and the interplay of different social, cultural, and spiritual ideas. Between 1995 and 1998, he organized a series of conferences on the Asian Renaissance, aimed at crossing geo-political barriers between societies and nations and creating political structures to promote dialogue across cultures. His first posts in the government were as the Minister of Culture, Youth and Sports in 1983. After that, in 1984 he headed the agriculture ministry before becoming Minister of Education in 1986. By then, speculation was rife about Anwars ascent to the Deputy Prime Ministers position as it was a commonly-occurring phenomenon in Malaysia for the Education Minister to assume the position of Deputy PM in the near future. Anwar introduced numerous pro-Malay policies in the national school curriculum when he was in office as Education Minister. He wanted to make many changes in education system, for example one of the major changes that he did was to rename the national language from Bahasa Malaysia to Bahasa Melayu. However, the changes were criticized by Non-Malays. It was because, they had thought this move would cause the younger generation to be detached from the national language, since they would attribute it to being something that belongs to the Malays and not to Malaysians. Furthermore in 1991, he had been appointed as Minister of Finance. In 1993, he became Mahathirs Deputy Prime Minister after winning the Deputy Presidency of UMNO against Ghafar Baba. Because of that, Anwar had been accused at using large cash payments to win support. To secure his position as deputy president of UMNO, Anwar was alleged to have resorted to money politics. Anwars followers were seen by foreign journalists handing out packets of money to acquire support of UMNO division leaders. The followers, after a brief interview, are said to be working under Anwars instructions. Anwar was being groomed to succeed Tun Mahathir as Prime Minister, and frequently eluded in public to his son-father relationship with Tun Mahathir. So, Tun Mahathir appointed Anwar to be acting Prime Minister while he took a two-month holiday in early 1997. However, the relationship with Mahathir had begun to deteriorate, towards the end of the 1990s. It also triggered by their conflicting views on the governance of the country. In Mahathirs absence, Anwar had independently taken radical steps to improve the countrys governing mechanisms which were in direct conflict with Mahathirs capitalist policies. Issues such as how Malaysia would respond to a financial crisis were often at the forefront of this conflict. Mahathir angered when Anwars frontal attack against what he described as the widespread culture of nepotism and cronyism within UMNO. It shows that as did his attempts to dismantle the protectionist policies that Mahathir had set up. Cronyism was identified by Anwar as a major cause of corruption and misappropriation of funds in the country. The events of late 1998 marked the beginning of Anwars descent within UMNO and his subsequent ouster from the party and from Malaysian politics. Asian Financial Crisis occurred in 1997. During that period Anwar, in his capacity as finance minister, supported the International Monetary Fund (IMF) plan for recovery. An austerity package slashed government spending by 18%, cut ministerial salaries and deferred major investment projects were also instituted by him. Large-scale infrastructure development projects known as mega projects were set back as well, despite being a cornerstone of Tun Mahathirs plans for developing the nation. , Anwar declared: There is no question of any bailout although many Malaysian companies faced the threat of bankruptcy. The banks will be allowed to protect themselves and the government will not interfere. Anwar advocated a free market approach, sympathetic to foreign investment and trade liberalization, whereas Mahathir favored currency and foreign investment controls, blaming unchecked speculation by currency speculators like George Soros for the shrinking economy. There is disagreement among economists whether Anwars policies would have been more or less successful than Mahathirs. The Malaysian economy had plummeted to its lowest level yet since the recession of the early-1980s, so by the time Mahathir decided to impose currency controls and preventive measures to keep hedge funds in check Anwar had been named as the Asian of the Year. in 1998 Newsweek magazine. However, in that year, matters between Anwar Ibrahim and Tun Mahathir came to a head around the time of the quadrennial UMNO General Assembly. It would initiate a debate on cronyism and nepotism had been given noticed by The Youth wing of UMNO, headed by Anwars associate, Ahmad Zahid Hamidi. The response was swift, as Tun Mahathir issued lists of cronies who had benefited from government share allocations and privatizations. Anwar and Zahid, along with several of Anwars other allies also included in the lists. Anwars father and his two brothers are showed to have received shares allocated by the government for the bumiputra. The shares amounted to an amount of about more than 7.1 million units in three companies held by his father Datuk Ibrahim Abdul Rahman and his brothers, Farizan and Marzukhi. On 2 May 1998, Dato Ibrahim Abdul Rahman, owned 250,000 shares of Pengkalen Holdings Berhad and 3,790500 on Nissan Industrial Oxygen Incorporated. Farizon owned 250,000 shares of Pengkalen Holdings Berhad. Marzukhi owned 2,800,000 shares in Penas Corporation. In the list, Datuk Ibrahim Abdul Rahman owned 2,000,000 shares in Industrial Oxygen Incorporated Bhd on 1993. In 1998, Anwar was also chairman of the Development Committee of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund. During his tenure he strongly endorsed the initiatives of debt cancellation and reprieve for poor countries, particularly those in Africa. Anwar was awarded the Presidential Medal by Georgetown University, USA, and an honorary doctorate by the Ateneo de Manila University, Philippines because of his contributions, in 1996. In 1993, shortly after becoming finance minister, Euromoney named him as one of the top four finance ministers; in 1996, Asiamoney named him Finance Minister of the Year. Anwar has held lecturing positions at St. Anthonys College at Oxford and at the School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University since 2004. He was also a Distinguished Visiting Professor in the School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University. Anwar is a consultant to the World Bank in the areas of governance and accountability and was also appointed as honorary president of the London-based group, Accountability in March 2009. He is chairman of the board for the Foundation for the Future and also serves as an adviser to the Peoples Justice Party (Parti Keadilan Rakyat) in Malaysia. He is an internationally renowned speaker on the subjects of democracy, freedom, governance, Islam and democracy, and the need for accountability. In November 2006, Anwar made a public statement indicating that he would run for Parliament in 2008, after his disqualification is expired. Since he was released from the prison, Anwar has been critical about our government policies, which provides the affirmative action for the Bumiputeras. One of his quotes policies is units of housing and initial public offerings that must be met. In the year of 1997, Malaysia had to undergo an economic crisis which was known as the Asian Economic Crisis. During this turbulent period, Anwar Ibrahim was holding the post as Minister of Finance of Malaysia. As a capable leader, Anwar had taken an action by introducing a series of economic reforms and austerity measure in order to overcome the economic crisis. However, this action was intensified a great negative feedback because Anwar was nominated for the controversial amendments for the Anti Corruption Act. This act was being notorious to raise the power in Anti Corruption Agency. On the other hand, the Prime Minister Mahathir Mohammad sacked Anwar from all his post, due to the unsatisfactory towards these measurements. As a result, this incident had led to protest from the public and finally formed the Reformasi movement. At first, the Gerakan Reformasi or Reformation started when Anwar`s wife, Dr Wan Azizah formed Parti Keadilan Nasional (National Justice Party), on 4th April 1999. The party was then joined by the Democratic Action Party (DAP), the Malaysian Peoples Party (PRM) and the Malaysian Islamic Party (PAS) completing a fully fledged opposition coalition known as, Barisan Alternatif (Alternative Front) to take on the ruling Barisan Nasional (National Front) coalition in the 1999 general elections. For which, in the election held that year, he party entered the campaign with many of its key leaders under arrest and as a result saw it winning only five parliamentary seats in the elections despite gaining 11.67% of the total votes cast. The Barisan Alternatif as a whole gained 40.21% of the total votes cast with PAS gaining 27 seats and DAP gaining ten seats. After the elections, there were negotiations between Parti Keadilan and Parti Rakyat Malaysia (PRM) regarding a possible merger of force. Despite some opposition in both parties to the move, a 13 point Memorandum of Understanding was eventually signed by the two parties on 5 July 2002. On 3 August 2003, the new merged entity was officially launched and assumed its current name. (Current main/head advisor of PKR) Anwar Ibrahim controversial issues The first issues that that involve Dato Seri Anwar Ibrahim was in 1999 when he was charged under the corruption case. He was sentenced to six years in prison. At the time, Dato Seri Mahathir bin Mohammad was the Prime Minister of Malaysia. Dato Seri Mahathir bin Mohammad is the people who expose the Dato Seri Anwar Ibrahim activity and his colony. Then, Dato Seri Mahathir Mohammad was direct the Public Prosecutor to charged Dato Seri Anwar Ibrahim under the case of corruption. According to the special branch of the police, Dato Seri Anwar Ibrahim also involve in illegal activity. Dato Seri Anwar Ibrahim was arrested by the police on charged of receiving bribes from the other people using his power as the minister and also the deputy of prime minister at that time. Then the case was bring to the court and the case is the most controversional issues in Malaysia. Then, the case of Dato Seri Anwar Ibrahim was bring to the trial. The trial was held at the Federal Court. The chief judge at that time was Tun Haji Mohamed Salleh bin Abbas. Tun Salleh bin Abbas was the Lord President of the Federal Court of Malaya. Because of the constitutional crisis he was dismissed from his post during the 1988 Malaysian Constitutional crisis. At that time, the executive branch tried to interfere with the judicial branch system. Dato` Seri Anwar Ibrahim`s second controversial issues was the case of sodomy. At that particular time, the case is look very weird because it is impossible that he is the homosexual. In 1999, Anwar brought legal action against Prime Minister Mahathir for defamation for allegedly uttering accusations of immoral acts and calling Anwar a homosexual at a news conference in Malaysia. The police were instructed to investigate the veracity of the claims that Dato Seri Anwar Ibrahim was the people who make the sodomy. Then, the trial began and Dato Seri Anwar Ibrahim was charged with sodomy. He found guilty and was convicted to 15 years in prison sentence. This is because the person who was charged was the Deputy Prime Minister and Dato Seri Anwar Ibrahim also has his own followers. This started a crisis in the government. At this time also, a lot of riot was held. This is because the people were not satisfied with the government who tried to interfere with the judicial system at that time. (Anwar Ibrahim was released from jail in the year 2004, Federal court acquitted Anwar and Sukma of the sodomy charge. However one of the three judges, Abdul Hamid Mohamad said he was inclined to believe that the alleged incident at Tivoli Villa did take place) Other issues, that hit Dato` Seri Anwar Ibrahim was charged for a second sodomy trial. This time, Dato` Seri Anwar Ibrahim was charged because of the case sodomy his former private assistant who is Saiful Bukahri. This case was calamity the public because this is the second charged on the same person but different victim. This case also has many doubts about the evidence presented by the prosecute officer evidence presented by the prosecute officer evidence presented by the prosecute officer. In this case also, the people involved were mostly of the politically active individuals. So, it can be a political technique to not trust the people who involve in the case. If the person is involved this case, he or she would be a political person, his reputation in the politic will go down and the people will not trust anymore about him. This is maybe only the political propaganda. Besides that, the competitions between the political parties nowadays make the authority lose their power. This is maybe the reason why is this particular thing happening now days. The other issues that Involve Dato Seri Anwar Ibrahim is about the Malaysian Defence System. The government said that Dato` Seri Anwar Ibrahim was an America spy in Malaysia. Anwar Ibrahim`s Contributions In Umno Anwar Ibrahim joining the United Malays National Organization known as UMNO now days that lead by Dato Seri Mahathir Bin Mohammad, who had become the Prime Minister in 1981. Dato Seri Anwar Ibrahim moved up the political ranks very quickly and his first ministerial office was in charged by him is the Minister of Culture, Youth, and Sports in 1983. When he held the post, he administered the government well. At that time also, he had numerous supporters with him. After that, he was the person who headed the Ministry of Agriculture in 1984 and he moved his post to the Minister of Education on 1986. At that time, he made lots of changes in the Malaysian education system. He also made the education system more sophisticated and systematically advanced. During that period, he wanted to make sure that all citizens will be able to get and enjoy a proper education for the benefit of everyone. Then, we have heard about speculations regarding Dato Seri Anwar Ibrahim holding the post of the Deputy Prime Minister and it was commonly occurring phenomenon in Malaysia or Minister of Education to assume the position of Deputy Prime Minister in the near future. During his time as Education Minister, Anwar introduced numerous pro-Malay policies in the national school curriculum. One of the major changes that he did was to rename the national language from Bahasa Malaysia to Bahasa Melayu. Non-Malays criticized this move as it would cause the younger generation to be detached from the national language, since they would attribute it to being something that belongs to the Malays and not to Malaysians. In 1991, Dato` Seri Anwar Ibrahim was appointed Minister of Finance. When he became the Minister of Finance, the government people says that he takes o lat of the government money for his private usage. In 1993, he became Dato` Seri Mahathir Mohammad Deputy Prime Minister after winning the Deputy Presidency of UMNO against Ghafar Baba. There was a report on Dato Seri Anwar Ibrahim using large cash payments to win support. Dato Seri Anwar Ibrahim is alleged to have resorted to money politics to secure his position as deputy president of UMNO. Anwar followers were witnessed by even foreign journalists handing out packets of money to acquire support of UMNO division leaders. These followers are said to be working under Anwars instructions. Dato` Seri Anwar Ibrahim had a lot of followers and he could achieve many things. Dato` Seri Anwar Ibrahim at that time had a lot of influence. Towards the end of the 1990s, however, the relationship with Tun Mahathir had begun to deteriorate, triggered by their conflicting views on governance. In Mahathirs absence, Anwar had independently taken radical steps to improve the countrys governing mechanisms which were in direct conflict with Mahathirs capitalist policies. Issues such as how Malaysia would respond to a financial crisis were often at the forefront of this conflict. Anwars frontal attack against what he described as the widespread culture of nepotism and cronyism within UMNO (and the ruling coalition as a whole) angered Mahathir, as did his attempts to dismantle the protectionist policies that Mahathir had set up. Cronyism was identified by Anwar as a major cause of corruption and misappropriation of funds in the country. The events of late-1998 marked the beginning of Anwars descent within UMNO and his subsequent ouster from the party and from Malaysian politics. Dark period of Anwar Ibrahim Dark period of Anwar Ibrahim was started on 2 September, when Prime Minister Mahathir dismissed Anwar from the government. He was no longer a deputy prime minister and also finance minister. He was also expelled from UMNO. Before that, the Youth wing of UMNO, headed by Anwars associate Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, gave notice that it would initiate a debate on cronyism and nepotism. The response was swift, as Prime Minister Mahathir issued lists of cronies who had benefited from government share allocations and privatizations. The list included Anwar and Zahid, along with several of Anwars other allies. Anwars trial and subsequent conviction were widely discredited by the international community. Many world leaders called for his release from prison. On September 29, 1998 Anwar appeared in court and pleaded innocent to charges of corruption and sodomy. The black eye was explained by Mahathir Mohamad and Rahim Noor as being self-inflicted and caused by pressing a glass over his eyes. Only after a Royal Commission was convened did Rahim Noor admit that he had administered the beating to Anwar. Rahim apologized for the incident in August 2005. Rahim Noor was eventually charged for the assault and was given a two-month prison sentence and fined 2,000 ringgit. In 1999, he was sentenced to six years in prison for corruption, and in 2000, to another nine years for sodomy. The police were instructed to investigate the veracity of the claims that he was being a homosexual guy. Anwar was charged with sodomy, convicted and given a 15 year prison sentence. Anwars trial and subsequent conviction were widely discredited by the international community. Many world leaders called for his release from prison. In 1999, Anwar brought legal action against Prime Minister Mahathir for defamation for allegedly uttering accusations of immoral acts and calling Anwar a homosexual at a news conference in Malaysia. However, this verdict was partially overturned in 2004, resulting in Anwars release from prison. A panel of three judges of the Federal Court (Malaysias highest court) overturned the sodomy conviction by 2 to 1, finding contradictions in the prosecutions case on 2, September 2004. After Anwar released from prison, he was reportedly suffering from serious back problem. His family said was the result of the beating by the ex-police chief. the UMNO-owned newspaper, the New Straits Times, alleged that the injuries had actually been caused by a fall from a horse in 1993 during Anwars tenure as deputy prime minister. His wife had argued that during his imprisonment that he required treatment for his condition at a clinic in Germany. The government refused, claiming that such treatment was readily available in Malaysia, offering medical treatment if necessary. However, in September 2004, after the Federal Court quashed his conviction for sodomy, Anwar was free to travel to Munich for back surgery. On August 28, 2008, Tan Sri Pandikar Amin Mulia. formally declared Anwar, the leader of the 3-party opposition alliance. Anwar continued to attack Najib first day as prime minister, stating he found inconsistencies in the latters decision to release 13 Internal Security Act detainees. He said as long as the ISA existed, Barisan Nasional (National Front) could still detain citizens at will. Anwar has already missed several deadlines he himself set for the transfer of power, each of which came and went: the most recent was Tuesday 16 September 2008. Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak chose that day to initiate a broadband internet program Anwar opposes, saying that he had not doubted that the government would still be in office on 16 September. Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi too pointed out that Anwar had missed his own deadline, and dismissed his claim to have secured the defection of 30 MPs. On 24 October 2008, Anwar admitted problems with his stalled bid to topple UMNOs majority, saying that Pakatan Rakyat is running out of options to create a majority. His credibility among ordinary Malaysians has been somewhat dented after Sept 16 and the new promise of forming the Government has not generated the sort of anticipation or excitement as before. Media within the country have taken an increasingly hostile view towards Anwars protestations and failed threats to assemble a majority government. Anwar Ibrahim has voiced support to allow the former leader of the Communist Party of Malaya, Chin Peng to be allowed to return to Malaysia. However, his remarks have been slammed by UMNO leaders who called them regrettable to accusation as a plot to gain support of the Chinese community. On June 29, 2008, an online news portal Malaysia Kini, reported that an aide of Anwar Ibrahim had lodged a police report claiming that he had been sodomised by Anwar. The news has since been updated with reports that SMS messages are being distributed claiming that the person who made the report is Anwars aide, Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan, who was arrested and allegedly forced to make a false confession. The same text message also claimed the possibility of Anwar being arrested. Malaysian police issued an arrest warrant on July 15 for Anwar Ibrahim, and investigating Officer Jude Pereira signed and issued the letter requiring Anwar to appear at a police station for questioning before Wednesday at 2 p.m. local time. Anwar has said that the possibility of a prison sentence as a result of these allegations could be seen as an attempt to remove leadership and transference of power issues caused by his growing support and by-election victories. He also reaffirms his innocence and cites proof in the form of medical reports. Conspiracy to Bring Anwar Ibrahim down Financial Crisis: During the year of 1997 saw Malaysias economy being affected by the Asian Financial Crisis. Anwar Ibrahim, as the Finance Minister during that period, in his capacity as a Finance Minister, has taken action to support the International Monetary Fund (IMF) plan for recovery. He also instituted an austerity package that slashed the government spending by 18% by cutting down ministerial salaries and deferred major investment projects. Not only that, large-scale infrastructure development projects known as mega projects were set back as well. Anwar had advocated a free market approach, sympathetic to foreign investment and trade liberalization, whereas Mahathir favored currency and foreign investment control, blaming unchecked speculation by currency speculators for the shrinking economy. Anwar Ibrahim has also instituted a series of economic reforms and austerity measures in response. These actions were exacerbated when he tabled controversial amendments to the Anti Corrupt Act that sought to increase the powers of the Anti Corruption Agency. Dr. Mahathir, who was the Prime Minister at that time, disagreed with the measures taken by Anwar and had ultimately sacked Anwar from all of his posts and positions. In my own opinion, there is a great disagreement among economist whe

Oligopoly Structure Of Markets Beneficial To The Consumer

Oligopoly Structure Of Markets Beneficial To The Consumer (Tutor2U, 2007)An oligopoly market is a market structure which shares a large percentage of the market by a few firms. It results in a high degree of market concentration. An important characteristic of an oligopoly is interdependence between firms. Being interdependence means that each firm must be careful of the likely reaction of other firms in the market when making pricing and investment decision (Tutor2U, 2007). In addition, oligopoly market is barriers to entry and non price competition. It means by increasing market share without changing price, which can take the form of persuasive advertising, quality of service, loyalty schemes, free gift and packaging (The student room, 2005). According to the characteristic of oligopoly above, this is shown in the UK supermarket industry, as the diagram shown (Tutor2U, 2007); there are three main supermarkets which are Tesco, Sainsburys and Asda. The main supermarkets are now having more than three quarters which is 72% of the grocery ma rket. For the purpose of this essay, it will be a discussion about the market structure of the UK supermarket whether it provides some significant benefits for consumers. There are only few supermarkets with similar products in oligopoly market. Because most food manufacture will supply to the entire supermarket, such as Kelloggs and Heinz (Just food 2010). The supermarket produces its own generic or own-label goods for some products. They have produced their own-label product ranges from food to some basic cares. For example, Tesco planed to extend its Finest to include a range of homecare. Own-label sales generate 38% of Sainsburys total revenue, with its Taste The Difference premium range estimated to contribute between à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ¡200m and à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ¡300m. However, many of these generic products are made at the same factory, and are simply labelled differently for the different stores, so this is a false differentiation of products. This means that all of the products available for sale in the different supermarkets are the same, which is one of the features of an oligopoly (Tutor2U, 2007). Therefore, consumers do not have any choices because the re are only few big supermarkets in the market, which are selling the same product with different package. It is a negative side for consumers. In addition, the firms charge the same price in an oligopoly (PEOI, 2000). However, the UK supermarket suppliers have the same products are supplied to the firms. Therefore, the cost of all the supermarkets will be the same as each other. For example, the Cravendale Fresh Filtered Semi Skimmed Milk was priced as à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ¡1.05 in Sainsburys. However, Asda sold it as 86p (Mysupermarket Insights, 2000). All in all, this theory of oligopoly of supermarket structure can provide some benefits to consumers as they can have a more valuable price by comparing different price of the main supermarkets. However, the products which sole in the supermarkets are all very similar price. Firms compete on price in an oligopoly market. Therefore, they can become a price maker and making higher profit. This feature can result in the price wars where one supermarket has price cuts in its goods and other firm will follow this situation (Wisegeek, 2003). For instance, Morrisons has fallen to 57p/kg and 59p/kg of bananas. After Morrisons promotion, Tesco has also made some price cuts, worth à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ¡1.2bn. Lastly, Asde sells two million kilograms of bananas a week by charging 46p/kg, which is the lowest price in 14 years (Mailonline, 2000). The price competition can be shown in the Kinked Demand Curve (Economics help, 2003). If the price raise from (Economics help, 2003)P1 to P, then firms will lose a large share of the market because they become uncompetitive. If firms cut the price down, firms can gain a larger market share. However, other firms will cut price too. Therefore demand is inelastic for a price cut. In a price war, Tesco had a price cut which was between 3% and 25% discount promotion. This could result in increasing 12% market share in eight weeks. Therefore, consumers can cost less by having this price competition as there are many different promotion and price war which should provide benefit to consumers. Moreover, supermarkets need to compete other ways besides price. It means supermarkets should increase market share without changing prices. This can be shown in persuasive advertising, quality of service, loyalty schemes, free gifts, packaging and temporary price reductions, which are required to attract consumers (The student room, 2005). Therefore, these factors are aimed to bind consumers to particular supermarkets for reasons other than price. Firstly, according to research data from Nielsen media Research, Sainsburys spent some à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ¡9.97m compared to Tesco which spent à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ¡7,3m. However, with Asda spending some à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ¡4.23m, the two giants of the UK supermarkets still highly cost in advertising (CBI Interactive Inc, 2000). The more advertising is shown to consumers, the more possibility to attract and give information to the consumers. Secondly, research by Baruch Colleges business school in the US has found that, western consumers are more prefer to gifts th at reword loyalty and patronage than pure luck or blanket rewards. So, consumers may feel happy to spend money by getting discount. Also, the bigger the discount of the loyalty card, the better attractive of consumers. Consequently, as there are also some other factors that can influence consumers in an oligopoly market. It means consumers can gain different benefits from this non-price competition between firms. Consequently, although consumers do not have many choices as there are only few big supermarkets, and prices are identical in some ways, consumers still can have benefit which is provided by oligopoly market. As consumers can have lower price product by the price competition. In addition, the interdependent firms compete in other ways, for example, discounting, advertising, and quality of service, which are give consumers a more valuable consideration. In this case, the oligopoly market structure creates a situation that is beneficial to the consumers.