Netflix: The Monster That’s Eating Hollywood

With Netflix branching out from their original content being mostly scripted dramas and sitcoms to adding comedy specials and children's fare, TV networks are getting nervous about how they will be able to compete with this new Netflix. Not only does their new extension of original content, consisting of 70 new titles this year, scare TV networks but so does their spending. According to the WSJ article, "Netflix's spending on original and acquired programming this year is expected to be more than $6 billion, up from the $5 billion last year...five times as much as 21st century Fox's FX" (Flint). 

TV networks are finding it hard not only to keep up with the spending of Netflix but also in finding talent that will work on their shows and employees that will help run the network and produce new shows. For example, the former Vice President of 21st Century Fox, Tara Flynn, left Fox to go work for the streaming service. Fox tried to sue Netflix because they felt like Netflix was "stealing" executives and this "ongoing legal battle is just one sign of the escalating tensions between Netflix and Hollywood" (Flint).

It will be interesting to see exactly what effects the new Netflix will end up having on televisions networks and regular broadcasting in general. This rivalry is a prime example of the marketing concept of the threat of new entrants because televisions networks used to only compete with each other and now a whole new way of "tv" has taken over the market. 

WSJ Article

A Response from the United CEO

A Response from the United CEO

            On April 9, 2013, airport police removed a passenger from a United Express Flight in Chicago in order to make room for off duty crew members who needed to stay on the plane in order to arrive to the destination the flight was originally supposed to fly to. The way the passenger was removed though was rather shocking and intense as the passenger had to be dragged down the aisle since he was refusing to step off the plane. Many passengers that witnessed the situation pulled out their video cameras on their phone and exposed United for the type of customer care treatment they were giving.  A video of a man being dragged off the plane with blood running down his lip isn’t exactly something customers look for when deciding which airline they should pay for when it comes to their travels.

            The video went viral in a matter of less than 24 hours. Oscar Munoz, CEO United Airlines, responded with “This is an upsetting event to all of us here at United. I apologize for having to re-accommodate these customers. Our team is moving with a sense of urgency to work with the authorities and conduct our own detailed review of what happened.” Along with these words he mentions that he is going to fix the issue so that it never happens again.

            Although this event already unfortunately occurred, the public has reacted negatively with the way the man was treated and there will be lots of lost trust and less customers heading towards United Airlines way.  The use of the viral video for sure is hurting the airlines reputation and isn’t something that can be unseen. This will be remembered for many, many years.

Natalie Torres

MKTG 3343

https://www.wsj.com/articles/united-ceo-under-fire-for-crisis-response-says-passenger-was-belligerent-1491921299

Amazon vs. Small Retailers

Amazon vs. Small Retailers

As of recently, Amazon Prime has been a go-to customer target with the intention that free shipping is included with the purchase. This has been leading other companies to come up with better shipping situations, where it means bringing down the price and speeding up the shipping process. Amazon Prime includes two days of shipping and handling, and on top of that, shipping is free.

To keep up with Amazons success, FedEx, a shipping competitor, has been developing a new process to help small retailers keep up with Amazons success by creating a goal to reach customer satisfaction and fulfillment. “Amazon handles less than 3% of client orders not placed on the site. Radial, ShipBob and others promise in marketing materials to help smaller retailers meet the higher expectations for shipping set by Amazon.”

Another competitor that has increased the pace of the shipping process is Walmart. They now promise two days of shipping and handling, with shipping fee covered if they spend more than thirty-five dollars. Amazon holds a lead in the e-commerce market, while influencing its customers to switch their regular in person shopping to sitting behind a computer and ordering something to be delivered to your home into your hands in a matter of two days with no cost.

Online shopping ha recently taken a huge impact to the market due to the fact that you can literally buy anything with just a click of a button. Shopping online opens up many choices to choose from for a certain product and list out different price rates, sales or promotions, and even brands. With the continuous deal of free shipping, the future is going to certainly be more advanced and used within the process of online shopping.

Natalie Torres

MKTG 3343

Baskin, Brian. "Amazon's Free Shipping Pushes Small Retailers, Delivery Firms to Compete." The Wall Street Journal. Dow Jones & Company, 08 Apr. 2017. Web. 11 Apr. 2017.

https://www.wsj.com/articles/amazons-free-shipping-pushes-small-retailers-delivery-firms-to-compete-1491649203

Youtube Subscribers are Forced to Watch Ads

         YouTube subscribers are forced to watch ads even if the viewer records their episode on DVR. In order to receive credit from marketers, they are playing the live commercials with a digital recorder stored in the cloud. This is similar to other TV networks and has an On- Demand option where within at least 24 hours any new episode will be uploaded.
          YouTube made a deal with many TV programmers so that the full episode can be played without being able to skip any ads. It is almost similar to recording a movie or episode on a DVR. YouTube thought it'd be best to try and make future deals with streaming services to offer different channels as well.  
         This is related to marketing because they are finding new opportunities for the company. They collaborate with other companies in order to form better ideas and an interestingly better combination of companies working together in order to be apart of a successful business. Marketers are also more successful by getting the ads played. TV networks are hoping that viewers will start to expect ads during streaming shows.

Link: https://www.wsj.com/articles/youtube-tv-will-force-you-to-watch-ads-on-many-dvrd-shows-1491842805
Sheridan Hopkins

PepsiCo's "Inspiration Drops" Of Water

PepsiCo Inc. planned on making publicity of its new product during the Super Bowl that happened February 5th. PepsiCo Inc. bought a 30 second spot during the commercials to introduce LIFEWTR, the company's first premium water, which will compete with Coca Cola Co.'s smartwater. 

Following the Trend

Americans are switching to healthier choices, which has been marked by a decline in the consumption of sodas, and an increase of more than 50% in the last decade of bottled water. Therefore, responding to this need, Pepsi and Coke are spending more marketing dollars in the advertisement for water. Coca Cola has two of its brands in the Top 5 brands of bottled water: Dasani and Glacéau  Smartwater with 6.9% and 4.9% per share respectively that occupy the number one and five in the top list. While PepsiCo only has one water brand in the Top 5, Aquafina, which occupies the second place in the list with 6% per share.

Relevance to Marketing

In order to have a successful marketing strategy, one key component is to address the demands of the consumer by innovating, and that is exactly what PepsiCo is doing right now. PepsiCo water is "pH-balanced with electrolytes added for taste." In addition, PepsiCo's smartwater  will feature texture labels on its packaging with the works of emerging artists. PepsiCo hopes that this design will appeal and prompt young people to share images of bottles on social media.

MKTG 3343

Priscila Quimboca

https://www.wsj.com/articles/pepsico-gives-its-premium-water-a-super-bowl-push-1485253982

Apple Pay Promised to Make Plastic Obsolete. Then Came Wary Shoppers, Confused Clerks

Apple launched Apple Pay almost two years ago, and people are still hesitant to use it. Credit card transactions have always made people wary of the security. With Apple Pay, people have been less likely to use it because their credit card information is within their phones, and people can easily hack a person’s phone or the information is more vulnerable saved in their phones rather than in their wallets.

Apple hoped that with Apple Pay, it would speed up transactions and replace people carrying wallets. With the launch of using a chip card, transactions have sped up a bit more, and slowed down the significance of using Apple Pay. Apple Pay has also suffered through retailers not using Apple Pay, and the places that do accept Apple Pay, do not train their cashiers to learn how to be familiar with the system, so it makes the transaction complicated for the customer and retailer.  Furthermore, out of all the Apple users, only 13% of them are actually using the Apple Pay feature.

Apple Pay has been adapted faster than other systems, but due to the lack of some retailers not using it, people are hesitant to all together shift to Apple Pay because they would still have to carry some form of payment that is not on their phone. The Vice President said that it doesn’t matter how long it takes to replace cash and debit/credit cards as long as they get there. With customers using Apple Pay, Apple gets a percentage of each transaction, but Apple has to try to get more customers on board, because this will depend on whether banks renew their contracts with Apple.

https://www.wsj.com/articles/apple-pay-promised-to-make-plastic-obsolete-then-came-wary-shoppers-confused-clerks-1491384606

The World’s Largest Cruise-Ship Company Recovers and Expands Overseas

Carnival Corporation fully recovers shares after last year’s Zika-related disturbs. Analysts estimate earnings of 35 cents a share that will increase the company's revenue to $3.8 billion.

The company has also improved customer confidence by maintaining a favorable public image so travelers can believe in Carnival's capacity of safekeeping its users from diseases or viruses. In addition, Carnival has benefited from low fuel costs and higher booking prices. It is certain they will keep these buoying results as they continue their success in countries such as China, the fastest-growing market for tourism. 

Furthermore, the corporation have been investing prudently in recent years and its return on invested capital has risen for four consecutive years. In fact, their invested capital jumped to 8.9% in fiscal 2016.

With investors eyeing Carnival’s potential, the corporation's shares have rarely sharp swings after earnings, and their success overseas continues with no signs of seasickness in the near future.   

Relevance to Marketing: 

Carnival has adopted the marketing concept because they have analyzed the needs of their customers, made decisions to satisfy these needs, and increased the company's profit. In fact, by improving customer confidence after last year's Zika-related concerns, travelers will certainly reserve more ship compartments allowing the company to elevate their booking prices and offset high fuel costs. Then there is Carnival marketing itself in Asia, particularly in China as more than a million of Chinese citizens go on cruises every year. As a matter of fact, the market in China is profitable and keeps on growing up representing an important segment of Carnival’s overall business. For instance, if booking prices keep on going up and international growth remains strong, Carnival's equity and remunerations will keep increasing permanently.  

  

Application to Other Businesses: 

Carnival's plan to attract clients after recent unwelcome events should be a precedent for other businesses as the corporation's strategy has proven to be successful and decisive. In fact, Carnival has increased their earnings by elevating booking prices because they have improved consumer confidence to attract more customers every day.  

Name: Javier León 

Class: MKTG 3343 

Article: Carnival Shareholders Are Having Fun Now, Too 

 Link to WSJ Website: https://www.wsj.com/articles/carnival-shareholders-are-having-fun-now-too-1490641651