Strategic Management Essay Example for Free

Strategic Management Essay Nintendo was founded on September 23, 1889 by Fusajiro Yamauchi in Japan which started out by selling game cards. In 1974, Nintendo ventured into the video gaming industry and since then have been committed to creating innovative video games console and games like the Nintendo Entertainment System, Super Nintendo Entertainment System, Game boy, Nintendo 64, Game boy pocket, Game Boy Advance, Nintendo Game Cube, Nintendo DS, Nintendo DS lite, Wii, Nintendo DSi, Nintendo DSi XL, Nintendo 3DS, Super Mario Brothers game Series and Zelda Game Series. (Thompson, Strickland Gamble, 2010) Thompson, J. A., Strickland, I. A., Gamble, J. E. (2010). Crafting and Executing Strategy. New York, NY:McGraw-Hill Irwin. In 2006, Nintendo released the Nintendo Wii with the strategy of â€Å"fun for everyone† which captured majority of the video game market share. As of 2013, Nintendo is the longest running gaming company in the industry which operates in more than 35 countries such as Korea, USA, France and South Africa (Nintendo webbie). Nintendo is also the world’s largest video game company generating more than 6 billion USD in revenue, with more than 5,000 employees worldwide (financial statement 2013). The United States is the largest market for Nintendo which consist of more than one third of the sale in 2013. http://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/pdf/2013/130424e.pdf Nintendo’s mission is to continue to produce and market the best products of the highest quality and to treat every customer with respect, attention and consideration (http://www.nintendo.com/corp/mission.jsp). Nintendo will continue to pursue their basic strategy of expanding the gaming population by offering products that anyone regardless of age, gender or gaming experience can enjoy. (financial statement 2013). Porter Five forces Threat of new entry – Low. The entertainment market is currently in an oligopoly with competitors such as Sony (playstation 3), Microsoft (Xbox and Kinect) and the latest competitor Apple (Ipads). Any new company who wants to be in the gaming console industry will face high barriers of entry and face these 3 companies which have huge amount of resources and technology. Unless a company has huge amount of resource and experience to produce in a large scale to compete against Nintendo or their competitors, they will not experience economics of scale thus lowering their profit as compared to the rest. Threat of substitutes – Medium. Nintendo’s main source of revenue comes from their portable gaming device, the DS, the home entertainment system, the Wii and their games. Substitutes such as the Ipad or PS vista post a high threat against the Nintendo DS for the portable gaming devices and Xbox Kinect also posts a high level of substitution against Wii for the home entertainment system. Gaming applications in the past few years have been on the rise, showing a strong competition against games from Nintendo. People can download games from their Ipads and use it as a substitute against Nintendo’s products. Prices of competitors are also priced at a competitive rate as Nintendo. Technology of smartphones and social media such as facebook are also getting better where consumers can play games on their phones and on the internet. Power of Buyers Medium. The switching cost from Nintendo to its competitors are not high to the extend where one is unable to afford. Due t o technology advancements, Ipad users could download applications to play games from Nintendo. There are no concentrated buyers which make up a huge share of Nintendo’s revenue Power of suppliers – low. Electronic components are generally inexpensive unless being customized. With globalization, Nintendo could easier find suppliers which have a lower producing cost with the same quality. Nintendo suppliers would try to use all means and ways to keep Nintendo as their customers as Nintendo produces their consoles in a global scale. Competitive rivalry – Medium. Although Nintendo been introducing unique and cutting edge technology to have a competitive advantage over competitors such as the Nintendo 3DS where consumers are able to play 3D games without wearing 3D glasses, competitors such as Sony and Microsoft have been steadily improving on their technology to increase their competitiveness in the gaming industry. Nintendo is constantly trying to differentiate the ir products in the gaming industry however technology advancement have been trying to integrate the gaming industry where consumers can play the games using just one console such as computers or tablets. Value Rarity – Nintendo 3DS Inimitability Non-substitutability –

Dickens and his Stucture Of Hard Times Essay -- essays research papers

â€Å"On every page Hard Times manifests its identity as a polemical work, a critique of Mid-Victorian industrial society dominated by materialism, acquisitiveness, and ruthlessly competitive capitalist economics† (Lodge 86). The quotation above illustrates the basis for Hard Times. Charles Dickens presents in his novel a specific structure to expose the evils and abuses of the Victorian Era. Dickens’ use of plot and characterization relate directly to the structure on account that it shows his view of the mistreatments and evils of the Victorian Era, along with his effort to expose them through literary methods. A befitting display of structure is evident through his giving name to the three books contained in Hard Times. The titles of the three appropriately named books are an allusion to the Bible, and are also â€Å"given a further twist in Gradgrind’s recommendation to ‘Plant nothing else and root out everything else’ (except facts)† (Lodge 91). In the first book, titled â€Å"Sowing, † we are introduced to those that Dickens creates a firm character basis with. The opening chapter emphasizes on Thomas Gradgrind Sr., and his students fittingly referred to as â€Å"vessels before him ready to have imperial gallons of facts poured into them until they are filled to the brim† (Dickens 12). Gradgrind’s methods of education are employed to show Dickens’ view on the evil of the educational system. Among the â€Å"vessels† are Bitzter and Sissy Jupe. They exemplify two entirely d...

The Return: Midnight Chapter 23

In the car, Matt sat by the sleeping Meredith with Saber crammed in at their feet, listening in shock and horror as they recounted Meredith's story. When they were done, he was able to speak about his own experiences. â€Å"I'm going to have nightmares al my life about Cole Reece,†he admitted. â€Å"And even though I slapped an amulet on him, and he cried, Dr. Alpert said he was Stillinfected. How can we fight something this far out of control?† Elena knew he was looking at her. She dug her nails into her palms. â€Å"It isn't that I haven't tried to use Wings of Purification over the town. I've tried so hard that I feel as if I'l burst. But it's no good. I can't control any Wings Powers at all! I think – after what I've learned about Meredith – that I may need training. But how do I get it? Where? From who?† There was a long silence in the car. At last Matt said, â€Å"We're al in the dark. Look at that courtroom! How can they have so many werewolves in one town?† â€Å"Wolves are sociable,†Stefan said quietly. â€Å"It looks as if there is a whole community of werewolves in Ridgemont. Seeded among the various Bear and Moose and Lions Clubs of course. For spying on the only creatures they're scared of: humans.† At the boardinghouse Stefan carried Meredith to the first-floor bedroom and Elena pul ed the covers over her. Then she went to the kitchen, where the conversation was continuing. â€Å"What about those werewolves'families? Their wives?†she demanded as she rubbed Matt's shoulders where she knew the muscles must hurt fiercely from being handcuffed behind his back. Her soft fingers soothed bruises, but her hands were strong, and she kept kneading and kneading until her own shoulder muscles began to swear at her†¦and beyond. Stefan stopped her. â€Å"Move over, love, I've got evil vampire magic. This is necessary medical treatment,†he added sternly to Matt. â€Å"So you have to take it no matter how much it hurts.†Elena could Stillfeel him, if faintly, through their connection and she saw how he anesthetized Matt's mind and then dug into the knotted shoulders as if he was kneading stiff dough, meanwhile reaching out with his Powers of healing. Mrs. Flowers came by just then with mugs of hot, sweet cinnamon tea. Matt drained his mug and his head fel back slightly. His eyes were shut, his lips parted. Elena felt a huge wave of pain and tension flood away from him. And then she hugged both of her boys and cried. â€Å"They picked me up on my own driveway,†Matt admitted as Elena sniffled. â€Å"And they did it by the book, but they wouldn't even look at the – the chaos al around them.† Mrs. Flowers approached again, looking serious. â€Å"Dear Matt, you've had a terrible day. What you need is a long rest.†She glanced at Stefan, as if to see how this would impact him, with so few blood donors. Stefan smiled reassuringly at her. Matt, Stillbeing kneaded pliant, had just nodded. After that his color started coming back and a little smile curved his lips. â€Å"There's m'main man,†he said, when Saber butted his way through traffic to pant directly in Matt's face. â€Å"Buddy, I love your dog breath,†he declared. â€Å"You saved me. Can he have a treat, Mrs. Flowers?†he asked, turning slightly unfocused blue eyes on her. â€Å"I know just what he'd like. I have half a roast left in the refrigerator that just needs to be heated a bit.†She punched buttons and in a short while, said, â€Å"Matt, would you like to do the honors? Remember to take the bone out – he might choke on it.† Matt took the large pot roast, which, heated, smel ed so good it made him aware that he was starving. He felt his morals col apse. â€Å"Mrs. Flowers, do you think I could make a sandwich before I give it to him?† â€Å"Oh, you poor dear boy!†she cried. â€Å"And I never even thought – of course they wouldn't give you lunch or dinner.† Mrs. Flowers got bread and Matt was happy enough with that, bread and meat, the simplest sandwich imaginable – and so good it curled his toes. Elena wept just a little more. So easy to make two creatures happy with one simple thing. More than two – they were al happy to see Matt safe and to watch Saber get his proper reward. The enormous dog had fol owed every movement of that roast with his eyes, tail swishing back and forth on the floor. But when Matt, Stillchomping, offered him the large piece of meat that was left, Saber just cocked his head to one side, staring at it as if to say, â€Å"You have to be joking.† â€Å"Yes, it's for you. Go on and take it now,†Mrs. Flowers said firmly. Final y, Saber opened his enormous mouth to take hold of the end of the roast, tail twirling like a helicopter blade. His body language was so clear that Matt laughed out loud. â€Å"This once on the floor with us,†Mrs. Flowers added magnificently, spreading a large rug over the kitchen floorboards. Saber's joy was only surpassed by his good manners. He put the roast on the rug and then trotted up to each of the humans to push a wet nose into hand or waist or under a chin, and then he trotted back and attacked his prize. â€Å"I wonder if he misses Sage?†Elena murmured. â€Å"I miss Sage,†Matt said indistinctly. â€Å"We need al the magic help we can get.† Meanwhile Mrs. Flowers was hurrying around the kitchen making ham and cheese sandwiches and bagging them like school lunches. â€Å"Anybody who wakes up tonight hungry must have something to eat,†she said. â€Å"Ham and cheese, chicken salad, some nice crisp carrots, and a big hunk of apple pie.†Elena went to help her. She didn't know why, but she wanted to cry some more. Mrs. Flowers patted her. â€Å"We are al feeling – er, strung out, â€Å"she announced gravely. â€Å"Anyone who doesn't feel like going right to sleep is probably running on too much adrenaline. My sleeping aid wil help with that. And I think we can trust our animal friends and the wards on the roof to keep us safe tonight.† Matt was practical y asleep on his feet now. â€Å"Mrs. Flowers – someday I'l repay you†¦but for now, I can't keep my eyes open.† â€Å"In other words, bedtime, kiddies,†Stefan said. He closed Matt's fingers firmly around a packed lunch, then steered him toward the stairs. Elena gathered several more lunches, kissed Mrs. Flowers twice, and went up to Stefan's room. She had the attic bed straightened and was opening a plastic bag when Stefan came in from putting Matt to bed. â€Å"Is he okay?†she said anxiously. â€Å"I mean, wil he be okay tomorrow?† â€Å"He'l be okay in his body. I got most of the damage healed.† â€Å"And in his mind?† â€Å"It's a tough thing. He just ran smack into Real Life. Arrested, knowing they might lynch him, not knowing if anybody would be able to figure out what had happened to him. He thought that even if we tracked him it would come down to a fight, which would have been hard to win – with so few of us, and not much magic left.† â€Å"But Saber fixed 'em,†Elena said. She looked thoughtful y at the sandwiches she'd laid out on the bed. â€Å"Stefan, do you want chicken salad or ham?†she asked. There was a silence. But it was moments before Elena looked up at him in astonishment. â€Å"Oh, Stefan – I – I actual y forgot. I just – today has been so strange – I forgot – â€Å" â€Å"I'm flattered,†Stefan said. â€Å"And you're sleepy. Whatever Mrs. Flowers puts in her tea – â€Å" â€Å"I think the government would be interested in it,†Elena offered. â€Å"For spies and things. But for now†¦Ã¢â‚¬ She held her arms out, head bent back, neck exposed. â€Å"No, love. I remember this afternoon, if you don't. And I swore I was going to start hunting, and I am,†Stefan said firmly. â€Å"You're going to leave me?†Elena said, startled out of her warm satisfaction. They stared at each other. â€Å"Don't leave,†Elena said, combing her hair away from her neck. â€Å"I had it al planned out, how you'l drink, and how we'l sleep holding each other. Please don't leave, Stefan.† She knew how hard he found it to leave her. Even if she was grimy and worn out, even if she was wearing grungy jeans and had dirt under her fingernails. She was endlessly beautiful and endlessly powerful and mysterious to him. He longed for her. Elena could feel it through their bond, which was beginning to hum, beginning to warm up, beginning to draw him in close. â€Å"But, Elena,†he said. He was trying to be sensible! Didn't he know she didn't want sensible at this particular moment? â€Å"Right here.†Elena tapped the soft spot on her neck. Their bond was singing like an electric power line now. But Stefan was stubborn. â€Å"You need to eat, yourself. You have to keep your strength up.† Elena immediately picked up a chicken salad sandwich and bit into it. Mmm†¦yummy. Real y good. She would have to pick Mrs. Flowers a wildflower bouquet. They were al so well taken care of here. She had to think of more ways to help. Stefan was watching her eat. It made him hungry, but that was because he was used to being fed round the clock, and not used to exercise. Elena could hear everything through their connection and she heard him thinking that he was glad to see Elena renewing herself. That he had learned discipline now; that it wouldn't do him any harm to go to bed one night feeling hungry. He would hold his sleepy adorable Elena al night. No! Elena was horrified. Since he'd been imprisoned in the Dark Dimension, anything that hinted at Stefan going without fil ed her with appal ing terror. Suddenly she had trouble swal owing the bite she'd taken. â€Å"Right here, right here†¦please?†she begged him. She didn't want to have to seduce him into it, but she would if he forced her to. She would wash her hands into pristine cleanliness, and change into a long, clinging nightgown, and stroke his stubborn canines in between kisses, and touch them with her tongue tip gently, just at the base where they wouldn't cut her as they responded and grew. And by then he would be dizzy, he would be out of control, he would be hers completely. All right, All right! Stefan thought to her. Mercy! â€Å"I don't want to give you mercy. I don't want you to let me go,†she said, holding her arms out to him, and heard her own voice soft and tender and yearning. â€Å"I want you to hold me and keep me forever, and I want to hold you and keep you forever.† Stefan's face had changed. He looked at her with the look he'd worn in prison when she had come to visit him in an outfit – very unlike the grubby one she wore now – and he'd said, bewildered, â€Å"Al this†¦it's for me?† There had been razor wire between them then. Now there was nothing to separate them and Elena could see how much Stefan wanted to come to her. She reached a little farther and then Stefan came into the circle of her arms and held her tightly but with infinite care not to use enough strength to hurt her. When he relaxed and leaned his forehead against hers, Elena realized that she would never be tired or sad or frightened without being able to think of this feeling and that it would uphold her for the rest of her life. At last they sank down together on the sheets, comforting each other in equal measure; exchanging sweet, warm kisses. With each kiss, Elena felt the outside world and al its horrors drift farther and farther away. How could anything be wrong when she herself felt that heaven was near? Matt and Meredith, Damon and Bonnie would surely al be safe and happy too. Meanwhile, every kiss brought her closer to paradise, and she knew Stefan felt the same way. They were so happy together that Elena knew that soon the entire universe would echo with their own joy, which overflowed like pure light and transformed everything it touched. Bonnie woke and realized she had only been unconscious for a few minutes. She began to shiver, and once she started she couldn't seem to stop. She felt a wave of heat envelop her, and she knew that Damon was trying to warm her, but Stillthe trembling wouldn't go away. â€Å"What's wrong?†Damon asked, and his voice was different from usual. â€Å"I don't know,†Bonnie said. She didn't. â€Å"Maybe it's because they kept starting to throw me out the window. I wasn't going to scream about that,†she added hastily, in case he assumed she would. â€Å"But then when they talked about torturing me – â€Å" She felt a sort of spasm go through Damon. He was holding her too hard. â€Å"Torturing you! They threatened you with that?† â€Å"Yes, because, you know, Misao's star bal was gone. They knew that it had been poured out; I didn't tel them that. But I had to tel them that it was my fault that the last half got poured out, and then they got mad at me. Oh! Damon, you're hurting me!† â€Å"So it was your fault it got poured out, was it?† â€Å"Well, I figure it was. You couldn't have done it if I hadn't gotten drunk, and – wh-what's wrong, Damon? Are you mad too?†He real y was holding her so that she real y couldn't breathe. Slowly, she felt his arms loosen a little. â€Å"A word of advice, little redbird. When people are threatening to torture and kil you, it might be more – expedient – to tel them that it's someone else's fault. Especial y if that happens to be the truth.† â€Å"I know that!†Bonnie said indignantly. â€Å"But they were going to kil me anyway. If I'd told about you, they'd've hurt you, too.† Damon pul ed her roughly back now, so that she had to look him in the face. Bonnie could also feel the delicate touch of a telepathic mind probe. She didn't resist; she was too busy wondering why he had plum-colored shadows under his eyes. Then he shook her a little, and she stopped wondering. â€Å"Don't you understand even the basics of self-preservation?†he said, and she thought he looked angry again. He was certainly different from any other time that she'd seen him – except once, she thought, and that was when Elena had been â€Å"Disciplined†for saving Lady Ulma's life, back when Ulma had been a slave. He'd had the same expression then, so menacing that even Meredith had been frightened of him, and yet so fil ed with guilt that Bonnie had longed to comfort him. But there had to be some other reason, Bonnie's mind told her. Because you're not Elena, and he's never going to treat you the way he treats Elena. A vision of the brown room rose before her, and she felt certain that he would never have put Elena there. Elena wouldn't have let him, for one thing. â€Å"Do I have to go back?†she asked, realizing that she was being petty and sil y and that the brown room had seemed like a haven just a little while ago. â€Å"Go back?†Damon said, a little too quickly. She had the feeling that he'd seen the brown room too, now, through her eyes. â€Å"Why? The landlady gave me everything in the room. So I have your real clothes and a bunch of star bal s down there, in case you weren't through with one. But why would you think you might have to go back?† â€Å"Well, I know you were looking for a lady of quality, and I'm not one,†Bonnie said simply. â€Å"That was just so I could change back into a vampire,†Damon said. â€Å"And what do you think is holding you up in the air right now?†But this time Bonnie knew somehow that the sensations from the â€Å"Never Ever†star bal s were Stillin her mind and that Damon was seeing them too. He was a vampire again. And the contents of these star bal s were so abominable that Damon's stony exterior final y cracked. Bonnie could almost guess what he thought of them, and of her, left to shiver under her one blanket every night. And then, to her total astonishment, Damon, the ever-composed, brand-new vampire blurted, â€Å"I'm sorry. I didn't think about how that place would be for you. Is there anything that wil make you feel better?† Bonnie blinked. She wondered, seriously, if she were dreaming. Damon didn't apologize. Damon famously didn't apologize, or explain, or speak so nicely to people, unless he wanted something from them. But one thing seemed real. She didn't have to sleep in the brown room anymore. This was so exciting that she flushed a little, and dared say, â€Å"Could we go down to the ground? Slowly? Because the truth is that I'm just terrified of heights.† Damon blinked, but said, â€Å"Yes, I think I can manage that. Is there anything else you'd like?† â€Å"Well – there are a couple of girls who'd be donors – happily – if – well – if there's any money left – if you could save them†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Damon said a little sharply, â€Å"Of course there's some money left. I even wrung your share back out of that hag of a landlady.† â€Å"Well, then, there's that secret that I told you, but I don't know if you remember.† â€Å"How soon do you think you'l feel well enough to start?†asked Damon.

Death And The Afterlife Roman, Christianity And...

Death and the Afterlife Roman, Christianity and Epicureanism. Death in Ancient Rome In Ancient Rome diseases were quite common, and with little knowledge of medical practices, the average age of life expectancy was approximately thirty-five years old. However, a lot of babies died before they were even one-year-old. Roughly, about a quarter of all babies born died before they were a year old, this statistic being one out of every four babies born. This was generally from birth defects or inherited diseases, as well as being so small and weak that they were not able to fight anything off. A lot of children also died. About half of all the babies born died before they turned the age of ten, the reasoning behind this being the same for that of babies. From the ages of ten and forty, it is believed that hardly anybody died of disease since, at this age, people are generally healthy and strong. If death occurred during this age period, it was generally because men were killed in war or because women died in childbirth. It was very unusual for people to live into their ol der years of life. Despite this, diseases spread throughout Rome easily and since nobody had proper knowledge on medical practices, many people died this way. Ancient Rome Preparation of the Dead: The preparation of the deceased was a very important role in funerals for Romans. Certain guidelines were followed at this time of the process. If one was near the point of death, the closest relation who was presentShow MoreRelatedEarly Civilizations Matrix Essay examples2440 Words   |  10 Pagesadored Gods and their monarch they used marble, gold, Lapis and alabaster. They had a palace where it is known to be the resting place around the monarch. They created walls for protection and tombs for the dead as a way of respecting them for the afterlife. Philosophy was a very important part of the civilization in this era as it was the most important part for justice in the Hammurabi code; people had a way of dealing with life situations in a very strange but philosophical way, respecting the