Exploitation of Copyrights, Trademarks and Intellectual Property Rights in Modern Day Business An Examination of Adverse Practices in an Internet Dominated Era

The Internet and Intellectual Property Right Infringement Intellectual property rights are broadly defined as â€Å"exclusive rights pertaining to distinct intangible creations of the mind which range from music, designs and various artistic works to broad categories such as inventions, literature and even phrases† (Woker, 2006).Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Exploitation of Copyrights, Trademarks and Intellectual Property Rights in Modern Day Business: An Examination of Adverse Practices in an Internet Dominated Era specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The basis for intellectual property rights is to protect the creators of unique inventions, concepts, or ideas from having their work arbitrarily utilized without their permission for the profit of other individuals/ companies. Without IPRs (Intellectual Property Rights) various artists, writers and inventors would be reluctant to release any of their work to the general public due to the possibility of their ideas being subsequently stolen and claimed by others as their work. Companies apply IPR law as a method of protecting their patented and copyrighted products from being subsequently copied and sold by other companies. It is through this method of business law implementation that various corporations have been able to maintain their positions in the global market place due to their protection and control of their patented processes, products and designs. It is rather interesting to note though that within the past 12 years as a direct result of trends in the digitization of products and services as well as the prolific use of the internet many digital products such as software, music and images (taken or created) are increasingly being utilized, shared and distributed online without the aforementioned consent of the holds of their copyright (Jameson, 2011). Sites such as the Piratebay.org, Megaupload and Rapidshare contain millions of music, video and software files that were â€Å"ripped† illegally from legal sources and then subsequently shared online for free (Bhattacharjee, Gopal, Lertwachara, Marsden, 2006). This has resulted in significant losses in sales for hundreds of companies with estimates placing the amount lost in the hundreds of billions of dollars within a given year. On the other end of the spectrum billions of intellectual property right infringements are also done on a single day by the sheer amount of videos and images shared on social network sites such as YouTube and Facebook (Bhattacharjee, Gopal, Lertwachara, Marsden, 2006).Advertising Looking for essay on intellectual property? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Users arbitrarily share images taken from official websites and magazines as well as post videos online containing copyrighted songs, labels, symbols and images resulting in practically millions of people being gui lty of intellectual property right infringement. Yet for the past 12 years companies have been unable to successfully combat this problem due to its sheer scale and the inherent limits of business law in actually being able address the issue. What must be understood is that there are inherent differences between violations of intellectual property rights between a company and an online internet user (Bhattacharjee, Gopal, Lertwachara, Marsden, 2006). When a company commits a violation of intellectual property rights business law becomes more enforceable since the affected party is dealing with a single entity. In the case of online internet users, there are just far too many individuals, too many cases and not enough enforceable evidence of an intentional violation to actually implement a successful means of deterring IPR violation in the scale it is seen today. One of the means in which companies have attempted to combat this issue has been to lobby for stricter laws regarding dig ital good and services. The result was the DMCA (Digital Millennium Copyright Act) which in effect criminalized the production and distribution of various technologies, services or even devices which allowed individuals/groups to illegally access copyrighted works or circumvent the process that prevents digital distribution (Grosso, 2002). In effect, this law in the U.S. made it illegal to circumvent copyright protection on digital software for online distribution and made methods associated with intentional violation of such laws punishable by heavy fines or jail time. It must be noted though that the limitations of this particular type of business law is evident in the fact that despite its implementation in 1998 online piracy has continued unabated and has in fact increased within the past decade (Grosso, 2002). One of the reasons behind is the sheer size of the internet with quite literally billions of websites and trillions of pages devoted to all manner of digital content.Adve rtising We will write a custom essay sample on Exploitation of Copyrights, Trademarks and Intellectual Property Rights in Modern Day Business: An Examination of Adverse Practices in an Internet Dominated Era specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Despite the best efforts of any company or government agency it would be quite literally impossible to police all known sites. Not only that, even if a company or government agency was to take down a website based on its supposed distribution of pirated content the fact remains that website addresses can be changed resulting in the site being transferred to some other corner of the internet where it would take months if not years for it to be found by piracy regulators. Another problem in sufficiently implementing IPR law is the fact that when it comes to laws regulating the online distribution of digital content each country has a different application of IPRs (Miller Bove, 2011). For exampl e, though the DMCA is enforceable within the U.S., it is still a U.S. based law and thus cannot be enforced in other countries that have a different version and interpretation of what constitutes enforceable action regarding intellectual property rights. (Miller Bove, 2011) One way of seeing the overall lack of international enforceability can be seen in the case of the Piratebay.org which is the internet’s largest and most well-known site for finding and downloading pirated content ranging from movies, music and games to movies and software applications (Morton Koufteros, 2008). Over the past six years, the Pirate Bay has been able to resist various moves by companies such as Microsoft, EA, Universal Studios and even Apple Incorporated to shut it down due to the presence of pirated copies of the movies, software and games of these companies on the website. The reason it has been able to stay in operation for so long is not only due to the inapplicability of the DMCA since the Piratebay.org’s servers were based in Sweden but the fact is the site took advantage of a loophole in online IPR protection wherein technically the files weren’t stored on the website itself but rather what was present on the site were torrents in which people could use to download the pirated content from the computers of other people (Morton Koufteros, 2008).Advertising Looking for essay on intellectual property? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Torrents are a method of online file sharing wherein individual files are broken up into smaller aggregates which can be downloaded and uploaded from multiple sources (Norton Freedmart, 2006). In effect, this technology allows thousands of users to download from other users that are uploading the file from a background process on their computer (Norton Freedmart, 2006). As such â€Å"technically† the files aren’t present on the Piratebay.org itself and it merely acts as a collection of torrent files that can be used to download the content from elsewhere. While it may be true that international pressure on the Swedish government did in fact hamper the Pirate bays servers in 2010 with several of its owners being arrested the fact remains that the site was able to go back online within a matter of hours as soon as it transferred from its servers based in Sweden to other servers based in other countries (possibly China). Based on this particular outcome, wherein despite the best efforts of the application of business law no satisfactory outcome was created, this calls into question whether business law involving IPR of digitized content can still be considered effective when taking into consideration the flexibility the internet grants illegal online content distributors. IPR Violations and E-commerce One of the current trends in E-commerce has been the digitization and sale of EBooks via Amazon, iTunes and various online stores. As seen in the article of Miller (2011), EBooks have gained considerable ground in terms of market penetration and popularity among different age groups due to the proliferation of EBook readers such as the iPad and the Amazon Kindle as well as their considerably lower prices since they easy replicable digital content that costs distributors next to nothing to reproduce and sell (Miller, 2001). The inherent problem though with this particular method of sale and distribution is that unlike hardcopy version of novels, short stories or textbooks EBooks can be easily copied, transferred and even distributed freely online by the thousands. The same digitization that allows companies to sell EBooks also allows other people to use the same methods for their gains. A brief Google.com search shows that there are quite literally dozens of sites where EBooks can be illegally downloaded for free. (Growth of Internet Piracy, 2011). The main question that must be asked in this particular case is what can business law do about? When examining the possible resources of the law in this particular case, it becomes quite obvious that in the age of digital content distribution and consumption business law has in effect been rendered impotent in terms of its ability to limit illegal IPR violations. Domain Names and Trademark Violations Going back to the example mentioned in the previous section involving the illegal distribution of digitized content by the Piratebay.org it can be seen that such a trend in online piracy is not limited to merely movies, music, software and games but extends to other aspects related to digital content (Szuskin, de Ruyter Doucleff, 2009). What must be understood is that the internet is now considered one of the best platforms for mass sales and content consumption and as such an online E-commerce site such as Amazon can now be compared to the previous generation of traditional superstores in New York such as Macy’s and Bloomingdales or the equivalent of Dubai’s â€Å"Mall of Dubai†. While there are quite literally thousands of other examples that can be mentioned what all of them have in common is a proprietary trademark. This trademark is an essential aspect of a store or company’s brand image and as such, is protected by various business laws against illegal or unsanctioned reproduction. In the case of online E-commerce stores such as Amazon, eBay and Alibaba their proprietary trademarks come in the form of their domain name. A domain na me is the name of the website with the prefix â€Å"www.† and the suffix â€Å".com†; this is the primary method in which sites are visited and searched for on search engines such as Google and as such can be considered the online equivalent of a trademark. When it comes to business law, what must be understood is that there are inherent differences and limitations to the application of business law in traditional market environments and the application of business law on the internet. Domain name â€Å"copying† is actually a proliferate and frowned upon practice today wherein variations of the suffix or in the name itself are done so as to imitate the trademark of a particular site. For example, the trademark Amazon.com can use the suffix Amazon.biz, Amazon.net, Amazon.xxx, Amazon.cc as well as a sheer plethora of possible suffixes. Variations to the name itself can result in the following examples as well: â€Å"TheAmazon†, â€Å"AmazonShop†, â⠂¬Å"AmazonStore†, etc. All of these techniques are utilized in order to draw consumers away from the original owners of the trademark to other E-commerce stores that utilize the same site design but are in no way connected to the original trademark owners. While the traditional response of business has been to sue other companies who have obvious trademark infringements the same cannot be applied to cases of internet domain names since while such names are considered part of the trademarks of companies business law is not applicable to their use or creation unless in particular cases. For example, misleading domain names which direct users to pornographic sites are in violation of the U.S. Truth in Domain Names Act which was created in 2003 to prevent such actions from continuing. Domain name seizures also occur when the use of a particular domain has been proven to be connected to a specific form of criminal activity (Joe, N.D.). As seen though, in the case of the Piratebay.o rg, there are limits to the application of this particular form of the law since U.S. law is not applicable to domain names registered, applied or transferred to companies outside the U.S. In fact there is an underground business currently booming online wherein domain names are held â€Å"hostage† so to speak. This practice is done by buying and registering a domain name which has the same name as that of a company, organization, or brand. Since such institutions would want to create their own online presence, they would need to subsequently purchase the domain name in order to ensure proper online brand recognition. This usually leads to the company paying several thousand dollars (more than 300 times the worth of the domain) in order to acquire it from the person that had â€Å"legally† acquired the company’s online trademark by being the first to purchase it. Based on this it must be questioned whether there need to be subsequent changes in business law in o rder in order to mitigate the apparent problems related to online practices that are in clear violation of not only a company’s IPR but their trademarks as well. While it may be true that domain name providers do give companies a certain degree of preferential treatment when it comes to purchasing specific domain names related to their company when new suffixes are created (such as the recent.xxx suffix) the fact remains that this does not bode well for companies that will be created in the future that find their online presence hijacked by an unscrupulous individual looking to make a profit. Copyright Infringement in Website Posting and Development Copyrights are defined as â€Å"laws which give the creator of a certain work exclusive rights towards sale, distribution or development over a predetermined period of time†. This can encompass various literary works, artistic works and even film or music. What a copyright does is that it in effect, allows the creator of a particular piece of work the right to profit over what he/she created. Without sufficient copyright protections in place artists, writers and moviemakers would be unwilling to create any new work since they wouldn’t be able to profit from it in the long term due to alternative channels of sales and distribution that other individuals or groups would utilize in order to tell the created work themselves. While this paper has so far delved into the topic of illegally downloading copyrighted content from websites what hasn’t been discussed is how the process behind the creation of websites can actually fall under various aspects of copyright violation as well. Ever since the implementation of Web 2.0 which transitioned websites from the static domain of the solitary programmer to the dynamic world of the normal user the creation of sites through the use of numerous types of online and offline website making software has made copyright infringement a norm rather than rarity (Kahandawaarachchi, 2007). Thousands of websites utilize â€Å"borrowed† content from other sites in the form of pictures, banners and even written information. Not only that, online services such as Photobucket allow users to store copied copyright content from other websites to utilize on their sites and blogs (Kahandawaarachchi, 2007). When attempting to examine the sheer proliferation of copyright infringement and the ability of business law to resolve this issue it becomes evident that there is actually no way to stop it. Just as there are hundreds of websites which allow users to illegally download ripped content, there are millions if not billions of sites where copyrighted content has been utilized in order to add some â€Å"pizzazz† to the site (Kahandawaarachchi, 2007). There are just far too many sites, too many internet users and internet technology have become too accessible resulting in no possible way to even make a small dent in the degree of infringem ent. It must also be noted that the general anonymity connected to the internet helps to proliferate the practice of copyright infringement online. Studies such as those by Hinduja Ingram (2009) indicate that while internet users are aware that their activities are a form of copyright violation some users still post copyrighted images online since they are under the apparent assumption that their anonymity grants them a certain degree of immunity from direct prosecution, they are unfortunately right in this case due to the fact that it is quite literally impossible to examine all aspects related to what individual users are doing online (Hinduja Ingram, 2009). Internet Anonymity and the Application of Business Law One of the current problems in the application of business law in online cases of IPR infringement is the level of anonymity granted by the internet which not only makes methods of prosecution against violators difficult but also encourages criminal behavior. As seen in the study of Hinduja Ingram (2009) which attempted to explain the reason behind the popularity of online IPR infringement it was seen through numerous interviews and accounts that anonymity played a massive role in encouraging the behavior. As Hinduja Ingram (2009) notes, social identity plays a huge factor in limiting criminal or anti-social behavior yet when the concept of social identity and thus accountability is taken away people are more likely to commit acts related to IPR infringement as they otherwise would have done if there was a distinct level of identity and accountability related to their online presence (Hinduja Ingram, 2009). In other words, the Hinduja Ingram (2009) study showed that people were more likely to commit acts of online copyright infringement and the promotion of online piracy since they knew that the level of anonymity afforded to them by the internet allowed them to act without negative consequences. This, in turn, explains the depth and proliferat ion of online piracy and copyright infringement and shows how the problem cannot be so quickly resolved merely by applying laws which state that a particular action is illegal. Another way of looking at this concept is to look at it from a prosecutor’s point of view. While there are many instances where users download illegal IPR content there is no way to prosecute them for the act since there is no way of knowing who they are. Not only that, services such as Rapidshare, Megaupload and Torrent technologies enable users to anonymously upload content and distribute it to millions of other users which further complicates the problem. The sheer number of users and the amount of available online services which allows illegal IPR violations to continue shows just how impotent business law is at the present in actually resolving this issue. It must be noted though that one way in which companies have attempted to fight back against online piracy has been to directly attack the site s themselves through their ISP (Internet Service Providers) however just as the Piratebay.com has been able to say operational by shifting ISPs and servers other websites have done the say which makes any attempt at even trying to resolve the issue a losing battle for companies due to the sheer number of servers available that are not under the jurisdiction of IPR law (Nelson, 2010). Selling Counterfeit Goods online One of the more interesting developments regarding online violations of IPR, copyright and trademarks has been the use of E-commerce platforms as a way in which counterfeit goods are sold and distributed to international customers in bulk shipments (Internet IP: Review of UDRP begins, 2011). While the IPR, copyright and trademark violations in this particular case are quite obvious the audacity in which the products themselves are sold is indicative of the limitations of the reach of business law in such cases. For example, numerous websites utilizing the name â€Å"Chi naPortal†, â€Å"importfromChina† or a variation thereof utilize online advertisements seen in prominent sites such as YouTube in order to convince online consumers to go to their website and purchase counterfeit goods online (Internet IP: Review of UDRP begins, 2011). The reason why businesses haven’t be able to shut these websites down is due to the fact that their servers, domain names and ISP providers are all based in China and as such becomes yet another example of the limits of business law in combating IPR violations (Internet IP: Review of UDRP begins, 2011). It is actually quite interesting to note that there is currently an ongoing trend wherein services that engage in online IPR violations are increasingly transferring their domains and servers to China as a direct result of U.S. and European based legislation that seeks to prevent such websites from going online in the first place. This is particularly interesting to note since the study of Johnson ( 2008) indicates that nearly 40 to 50 percent of all counterfeit goods sold in markets today actually come from factories based in China (Johnsonn, 2008). As such, not only is China becoming a harbor for the production of counterfeit goods, but it has also become a refuge for illegal online services that distribute copyrighted content (Johnsonn, 2008). It now becomes a question of why businesses haven’t been able to do anything regarding China’s actions which in effect cost them billions of dollars a year in lost revenue. One way of explaining this particular situation is to examine it from the Realist theory of international relations which specifically explains that â€Å"States are the primary actors in international relations and as such, there is no entity above a state† (Hall, 2011). Foreign policy, according to Professor Daniel W. Drezner of the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University, â€Å"is conventionally defined as the means by which a nation-state advances and protects its interests in the world. It includes fashioning alliances, establishing trade relationships, negotiating treaties, shoring up domestic support for international policies, bargaining with international organizations, crafting military doctrines, and waging war†. From this, it can be seen that foreign policy is the manner with which a state interacts and relates to other countries and actors with the aim of protecting and securing a state’s national interests. Moreover, foreign policy is â€Å"something that a state and its machinery produce on behalf of a nation using all the instruments they can muster in competition with other similar actors in a world that is dominated by the logic of Realpolitik†. Taking this into consideration it now becomes obvious that the reason why businesses cannot do anything to resolve this particular situation is due to the fact that they don’t have the right or the capability to activel y force the domestic policy of a foreign state towards their ends (Hall, 2011). While it may be true that in the case of the U.S., lobbyists within Congress are able to influence the decisions and laws implemented the fact remains that such a system does not exist in China and as such companies have next to no ability to actually prevent the current server and domain transfer towards Chinese based services in order to perpetuate the release of illegal copyrighted content. Furthermore, this also prevents companies from actively targeting websites that sell counterfeit goods since they are not located within countries that have strict IPR regulations. Discussion Based on the facts presented in this paper so far it becomes quite obvious that necessary changes in the application of business law need to be implemented in order for it to apply to the challenges described so far. In response to this particular situation two new proposed acts of Congress by the U.S. namely PIPA (Preventing Real Online Threats to Economic Creativity and Theft of Intellectual Property Act of 2011) and SOPA (Stop Online Piracy Act) are currently being deliberated and should they go into effect would resolve many of the problems described in this paper. The first act, SOPA, allows copyright holders to utilize a court-ordered agreement which would in effect ban U.S. based advertising networks from advertising on such sites, would prevent online payment transaction services such as PayPal from processing payments on behalf of that site and it also prevents search engines from displaying the site during an online search as well as requires ISPs to in effect block the website from being accessed by anyone within the U.S. or if the site is based within the U.S. allow all users to visit the site (Nagesh, 2011). The Stop Online Piracy Act effectively neutralizes all possible avenues by which a sight with either pirated or IPR violating content from continuing to exist by strangling all means by which it could derive an income or attract users (Nagesh, 2011). This proposed act is the culmination of all the various facts presented in this paper regarding the inadequacies of business law thus far regarding violations of IPR and as such resolves many of the problems indicated in this paper. What must be understood is that a vast majority of online internet users are from the U.S. and as such by blocking their ability to access to create sites with infringing content this could possibly create a cascading effect where due to reductions in income due to a lack of visitors, sites with illegal copyrighted content would in effect have to shut down (The Internet, 2011). As such, this particular application of business law not only affects violators within the U.S. but violators on an international scale as well since it limits their ability to conduct business. On the other hand, SOPA has continued to receive widespread derision and contempt from a vast majority of internet users du e to the limits it imposes on the consumption of online content (The Internet, 2011). What must be understood is that many of today’s users have grown used to various websites having infringing content in the form of photos, graphics, music and files and as such have considered their presence as an ubiquitous right to online internet usage. What must be understood is that the broad definitions of the act itself could possibly result in thousands of sites being shut down as a direct result of copyright infringement. This involved not only illegal sites but legitimate sites such as Facebook where users share copyrighted images by the thousands on a daily basis. Not only that the implementation of the bill itself has numerous pundits concerned on how it would effect the ability of internet-based entrepreneurial businesses to operate due to the increased liability that may have to face due to the exposure to possibly copyrighted content. The best way of examining this particular issue is from the words of blogger James Alworth, who works at the Harvard Business Review. He states the following quote which reverberates throughout all the problems and concepts presented in this paper: â€Å"Is this really what we want to do to the internet, shut it down every time it doesn’t fit someone’s business model?† (The Internet, 2011). This very statement actually calls into question business law itself as it is applied on the internet today. What must be understood is that the internet is widely acknowledged as the single greatest innovations within the past century due to its ability to not only encourage communication but information sharing on a massive scale. Implementing solutions to the problem of applying business law solutions to the cases presented in this paper unfortunately has the effect of stifling the ability of the internet to continue to be an effective platform of communication and the sharing of ideas since as seen in the case of SOPA the implementation of the most effective solution prevents the proper functioning of the open and freestyle of communication and collaboration the internet is known for. It can even be argued that copyrights and IPRs actually constrain innovation and the subsequent application of new methods to use old technologies. With copyrights and IPRs securely in the hands of companies that want to keep them in order to perpetuate the success of their business models they in effect stifle potential new applications of the technologies they so religiously guard. Evidence of this can be seen in the way in which open-source software projects such as Linux, Mozilla and Google’s Android software application have practically done leaps and bounds in their ability to not only rival but exceed the capabilities of proprietary based systems. While it may be true that under business law companies have a right to profit from the copyrighted and trademarked content that they created it is at t imes questionable whether the perpetuation of practices which allow old business models to continue to operate is truly the most effective path to pursue. In fact, it was stated by the director of Valve (one of the largest computer game companies in the world) that the popularity of online IPR violation isn’t an issue that involved business law but is rather a service issue. Examining the Concept of IPR Violations as a â€Å"Service† Issue When the head of Valve mentioned that IPR violations are a service issue he meant that certain licensed content whether in the form of media, games, software or pictures were either unavailable in a particular region or unaffordable by people that wish to utilize the copyrighted content. What must be understood is that a vast majority of IPR violations done today through the illegal consumption and use of copyrighted content is actually done by individuals who can’t afford to get the software or media in another fashion (Khouj a Park, 2007). As such, they turn towards IPR violation as the only recourse they have in order to gain the content the need. In the case of Valve, they resolved the problem of IPR violations being a service issue by establishing a service that both addressed the issue of availability and affordability of video games. Through their proprietary â€Å"Steam† portal, players from all around the world were able to find the games they wanted and pay for them at a fraction of the cost that they otherwise would have if they had bought the game through traditional methods. Based on this it can be seen that there are alternative solutions that other companies are not event attempting since they seem more concerned in perpetuating their old business models instead of attempting various methods of innovation to address the issue of IPR violations (Khouja Park, 2007). Losing Touch with their Customers It can actually be stated that based on the words of the Valve CEO that the inherent problem in this particular case is the fact that companies have in effect lost touch with their customers based as a direct result of the internet and as such have begun to rely on business law as a way of reversing an unfavorable situation. One way of looking at this is by comparing the case of Netflix and Blockbuster and how one business model was affected by changes to consumers and the effects of innovation. When examining what company has lost touch with its consumer base, the best example that can be seen at the present is the fall of Blockbuster and the subsequent rise of Netflix within the past 10 years. What is notable in this particular case is that Blockbuster originally had a dominant position in the U.S. market. It has 3,000 stores and controlled 95% of the video rental market; however, it is interesting to note that its business model did little to change over time. Blockbuster stores were notable for their large selection of movies and games; however, they tended to b e overly spacious and placed in an equally large parking lot with few surrounding stores. Such a scheme did result in high sales over a period of 15 years however it must be questioned whether the sales were a result of its business model or just the sheer proliferation of its stores and the dominant position it enjoyed in the market. When examining how Blockbuster dealt with local competition, it was obvious that they did so by offering a wider selection, lower prices and more attractive looking stores in order to gain more consumers. Not only that Blockbuster also enjoyed a rather healthy relationship with several studios which enabled it to release movie rentals faster than its competitors could have, which resulted in more consumers coming to Blockbuster as a result. The fall of Blockbuster By the late 1990s though it is obvious that Blockbuster was so competitor centered in maintaining its dominant position that it neglected to examine changes within its consumer base (Gandel, 2010). By this time, faster internet speeds were becoming available to the general public which, along with the proliferation of home computer systems, resulted in more people turning towards the internet for their needs. In fact, it was at this point that online e-commerce systems which enabled consumers to make purchases online started to proliferate which enabled new companies to enter into previously hard to enter markets due to the flexibility and low-cost nature of online sales and consumer marketing. When Netflix began its online video rental service in the latter half of the 1990s this gave consumers a faster and more convenient method of video rental which subsequently eroded away at Blockbuster’s market position till by 2005 to 2009 when Netflix released its online video streaming service this could be considered the â€Å"final nail in the coffin† so to speak resulting in the dominance of Netflix and the complete erosion of Blockbuster’s previously do minant position. Based on this example, it can be seen that companies that don’t innovate in light of subsequent changes to markets very likely could go under as a direct result of their actions. Examining the Issue The case of Blockbuster and Netflix is actually an example of the wider state of all businesses today and as such is evidence as to why the fight against online IPR infringement should not be considered one based on business law but one where companies are reluctant to innovate in light of the changes needed and are utilizing business law as a means of â€Å"resisting the change† so to speak. The reason behind this is the fact that businesses don’t operate within a vacuum and have to deal with intense competitive environment forces on an almost daily basis. What must be understood is that there are three components to market orientation that dictate how a company acts within a competitive environment; these are: customer orientation, competitor orien tation, and inter-functional coordination. In the case of customer orientation, a company spends what resources it has in gathering data on the needs and behaviors of various consumers, the same can be said for competitor orientation however it focuses on competitors instead. What must be understood is that either method has a distinct weakness. Focusing too much on consumer orientation can actually blind a company to changes in the market or may actually stifle innovation since the company focuses too much on consumer satisfaction rather than changing based on trends. Focusing too much on competitor orientation on the other hand results in too much time and capital being placed on competitive activities which results in companies at times neglecting their consumer bases and focusing too much on getting ahead of the competition. On the other hand, both methods also have their own respective strengths, such as the customer orientation strategy being more effective in uncertain market s, whereas competitor oriented strategies become effective in fast-growing markets. The best way to maintain a balance between the orientations is to first create a market intelligence mechanism that gathers consumer information and disseminates it within the company and secondly is to encourage the free flow of information within the organization. What must be understood is that market orientations tend to become ineffective when organizations are mired in bureaucratic nuances which prevent information from being passed on quickly. This is exactly what is happening to companies at the present wherein they are mired in the bureaucratic entanglements of IPRs, copyrights and trademarks. 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Miller, S, Bove, C 2011, ‘Fighting intellectual property theft in the internet age: why we need a statute like the combating online infringement and counterfeits act’, Intellectual Property Technology Law Journal, 23, 4, pp. 3-11, Business Source Premier, EBSCOhost. Miller, R 2011, ‘Dramatic Growth’, Library Journal, 136, 17, pp. 32-34, Literary Reference Center, EBSCOhost. Morton, N, Koufteros, X 2008, ‘Intention to Commit Online Music Piracy and Its Antecedents: An Empirical Investigation’, Struct ural Equation Modeling, 15, 3, pp. 491-512, Academic Search Premier, EBSCOhost. Nagesh, G 2011, ‘Tech groups warn piracy bill poses regulatory ‘nightmare†, Hill, November, MasterFILE Complete, EBSCOhost. Nelson, R 2010, †Pirating Is Now Safe.†, Publishers Weekly, 257, 8, p. 72, Literary Reference Center, EBSCOhost. Norton, P, Freedmart, A 2006, ‘Torrents. (cover story)’, PC Magazine, 25, 2, pp. 112- 116, Business Source Premier, EBSCOhost. Szuskin, L, de Ruyter, S, Doucleff, J 2009, ‘Beyond Counterfeiting: The Expanding Battle Against Online Piracy’, Intellectual Property Technology Law Journal, 21, 11, pp. 1-13, Business Source Premier, EBSCOhost. The Internet, S 2011, ‘Internet Society Joins Opposition to Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA)’, Business Wire (English), December, Regional Business News, EBSCOhost. Woker, T 2006, ‘Principles of copyright in intellectual property law: An overview’, Critical Arts: A South-North Journal Of Cultural Media Studies, 20, 1, pp. 35-46, Literary Reference Center, EBSCOhost. This essay on Exploitation of Copyrights, Trademarks and Intellectual Property Rights in Modern Day Business: An Examination of Adverse Practices in an Internet Dominated Era was written and submitted by user Dark Wasp to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

People are determined to find a way to categorize books as

People are determined to find a way to categorize books as great or not. It is impossible to come up with a set of guidelines and requirements that will enable us to dub a book as great. Everyones view point is different. We have brought up the considerations of the book serving its purpose, and how important that purpose is. For a book to be great it should accomplish what it set out to do. It would be a rare thing for an author to accidently come out with something great. The importance of the purpose is a subjective topic. What is pertinent to one may not be to another. The subject matter does not need to be dark and heavy for a book to be effective. A great piece of literature should have you walk away affected. There is no way you will be able to come to a general consensus on whether a book is great or not. Literature is based on a personal relationship between the reader and the novel. I found Lolita, by Vladimir Nabokov, to be a great book. Simply, it is a work of art. Nabokov uses such beautiful language. His poetry manages to make the reader strangely comfortable with a sinister situation. It is able to make you sympathize with someone you would not normally. This book also goes deeper, showing the complexities of The names of characters in the book show the duality in themselves. They have repetitious names such as Humbert Humbert and J.R.,Jr. These represent the competing natures within everyone. Throughout the book Humbert professes his unconditional love for Lolita. He assumes the role of a parent, even buying books on how to raise children. At the same time, though, he pays her for sexual favors. Every human being has desires which clash with what is accepted by society. What distinguishes Humbert from the majority is that he acts upon them. In Humbert we find a man with qualities we can all relate to. At ...

Reactive Power compensation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Reactive Power compensation - Essay Example This is due to the fact that it has no reactive power at all. As a matter of fact, its reactive power is equivalent to zero. In this case, the power triangle mimics and horizontal line. This should logically be so noting that the opposite side which represents reactive power has a length of 0 cm. inappropriate power factor can be rectified, paradoxically, through addition of an extra load to the circuit. In essence, the added load is equivalent reactive power acting in an opposite direction. The addition cancels the effects resulting from a load's inductive reactance. Notably, only capacitive reactance can cancel the inductive reactance and hence a parallel capacitor is added to the provided circuit to act as the extra load. As a result of the impact resulting from the two reactance acting in opposite directions, and parallel to each other, the circuit's total impedance becomes equivalent to the entire resistance. This assists in making the impedance phase angle equivalent, or in the least tends towards zero. Having the knowledge that that the un-rectified reactive power is 561.724 VAR (inductive), there is a need to derive the right size of a capacitor to generate an equivalent amount of reactive power. Given that the identified capacitor will act in a direction parallel to the source, the following formula is applied in calculation and it begins with identification of voltage and reactance: But And hence, The simulation is done using a rounded of capacitor value of 29, yielding the following results, True power = 447.002 Apparent power = 447.008 For case 2, where capacity improves power factor to 0.95 lagging, Circuit sketch The circuit has both inductance and resistance and hence the two are combined to form, Given that, P = True power, Q= Reactive power, and S = Apparent power P is given as, S is given as, Q is given as, Redrawing the circuit, we have Resistive/reactive load: For power factor = 0.95 Consequently, This indicates the capacitive reactance XC m ust be Original XL - Improved PF XL = 80.2986 – 16.434 = 63.8646 ohms Simulating this, a 20 is used, as shown True power = 447.

1.3 Movie Review Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

1.3 - Movie Review Example Precisely, he does what he thinks is right without thinking whether it’s right or wrong but he has standards. Dexter is a very strong, intense, and straight forward person as he does only what he feels is right. He is living a double life which is hidden from his colleagues at the police department, his sister, and even his girlfriend. He is complex and very different from other single-headed ‘good’ heroes out there. However, the serial killer side of Dexter is not bad or evil as he believes he has standards and he would only kill those who ‘deserve it’. He leads the life of a ‘good’ serial killer and believes that he should use his skill to do something good which is killing the bad people. Dexter has an adoptive sister who also works in the police department. She doesn’t know about Dexter’s serial killer side and thus she trusts him and loves him. Dexter believes that she is the only person in the world who actually loves him. His both adoptive parents have died but his father lives in his mind and guides him though everything that he does. Dexter feels haunted by these thoughts sometimes as they conflict with what he thinks. However, he values the teachings of his dad who taught him a code according to which he kills. His dad was the one who instructed him and taught him how to avoid getting caught and gave him the values to only kill those who deserved it. Dexter’s psychological analysis would seem to be pretty disturbed. Even though he turns out to be complex and strong, he can be perceived as depressed and confused. He doesn’t know what he is doing but he wants to do everything the right way. He keeps his father in his thought process and loves his sister; he also doesn’t kill children as he believes he has some standards. However, despite this he is very complicated and difficult to understand in the first attempt. The episode consists of certain moves such as killing of the child which Dexter refuses, the

Adults Returning to College Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Adults Returning to College - Essay Example 'Adults returning to college', is essentially a transition beyond the ordinary.Foremost, it is a social conversion for the adult; jumping into an era that was, at least theoretically, long gone. It is time travel in a very crude and possibly uncomfortable way. Regardless of the academic value and professional excellence that education may provide, the impact of identifying with the fact that the peers shall no longer be of the same age group, a feeling of being a misfit is created. This generates a social challenge that can only coped with successfully if time and understanding friends stick by. Other than that, one should remember the primary concern for re-entering the college. It may be for educational superiority, for professional excellence, for career searching, or merely to relive a once imagined dream. Whatever the preference, it should, by all means, supersede the social challenge.Another relevant issue is that of changed domestic commitments. Years back, when one would have been single, independent and free of domestic liability, college could have seemed much more feasible. However, with a job, a spouse and a couple of children (who themselves require adequate education), the picture seems in a totally different frame. This one factor alone probably deters many middle-aged individuals from returning to college - the myth of not being able to cope with family and studies together is just too strong to be broken with ease. With the work-at-hand and other personal commitment in modern times, the time spent with the family is already less than desired in many cases. Considering college in such circumstances becomes a real challenge. An associated problem to the one just mentioned, which only those can appreciate to the fullest who have gone through it, is child bearing and rearing. Largely for working single parents and even with professionally occupied couples, adequate care giving for their children is always a thwarted goal - something they feel to be missing out on every day of their life. Add college studies to this, and you can just forget about giving your child any time at all; at least till where they assume! However, for infants and even slightly older children, many community colleges offers daycare centers and customized child care services that actually help the student (whatever the age) to organize their course work and manage their domestic life in a better manner than they were doing before. A feeling of being intellectually rusty is another great demeanor for those who seek to go back to college at a later stage. Somehow, they rate intellect and creativity to youth; quite ironically, youngsters consider elders as more intelligible on the simple premise of maturity. This stark contrast, however, affects the adults more adversely than it does the young ones. For one, the youth feel that they might grow up one day to 'that' particular level of maturity. Whereas the elder person does not have that hope, as he has been through both phases and knows his/her correct standing. According to the Education and Employment Information Center, "Adult learners tend to be highly motivated and tend to approach learning in a mature manner". The psychological issue of being inferior, an under-achiever and out of sorts is also a hidden yet potent factor. Even if a person has the ability to learn and excel, the factor of being 'left behind' one's own friends, and to be amongst those of a different era gives rise to a series of timid ideas and mediocre feelings about

The similarities of leadership styles

The similarities of leadership styles Purpose of this study is to examine the similarities of Servant leadership, transformational and transactional theories and also examine the Contribution those theories make to the understanding of leadership. Introduction: Leadership has a major role in 21st century in all sectors. Here I am going to discuss about understanding of what leadership is, is there any similarities among three theorists on what fine or valuable leadership ought to be. Expectation, in the 21st Century leader should be moral, social and ethical responsible. What is leadership? Leadership is a process of influencing the people to obtain the desired goal. There are many authors giving different definition. Goleman (2000): A leaders singular job is to get results. House et al (2004): Leadership is the ability to motivate, influence and enable individuals To contribute to the objectives of organizations of which they are members. Stogdill (1974): Leadership is an influencing process aimed at goal achievement. Johns T (2008) says: A leader takes people where they want to go. A great leader takes people where they dont necessarily want to be, but ought to be.There are a number of types of leaders who adopt different leadership styles According to Richard Bolden (2004), Different leadership theories were revealed and classified.   And also only few leadership theories reached to people. They are: Great Man Trait Contingency Situational Behavioral Participative Management ( transactional leadership theory ) Relationship (transformation , servant and team leadership) Now I am going to discuss about transformational, transactional and servant leadership. Transformational leadership: James Macgregor Burns was the first person who forward concept of transforming Leadership. Burns (1978) states, Transforming leadership as a process where leaders and followers raise one another to higher levels of morality and motivation(p.20). Transforming leadership can answer in a relationship of mutual Stimulation and elevation that converts followers into leaders and may convert Leaders into moral agents(p. 4) and then bass b.m was developed the transformation leadership. Bass (1996), Transformational headship happens when a Leader encourage followers to share a vision, allowing them to achieve the vision, and providing the opportunity to develop their individual potential. covey (1992) says, The goal of transformational leadership is to transform people and organizations in a literal sense, to change them in mind and heart; enlarge vision, insight and understanding; clarify purposes; Make behavior congruent with beliefs, principles, or values; and bring about changes that are permanent, self-perpetuating, and momentum building(p.287).Transformational lea ders serve as role models, and also (Kelly, 2003) mentioning about how transformational leadership motivates its followers by following Maslows hierarchy. Transformational leader raise people from low levels of need (food, water, etc) to higher levels (self actualization). Components of transformational leadership: Four common Is are, 1. Idealized influence: Transformational leaders behave in ways that result in their being role models for their followers. The leaders are admired, respected, and trusted. 2.  Inspirational motivation. Transformational leaders act in ways that inspire and encourage those around them by providing sense able and challenge to their followers, work. Team spirit is aroused. The leader creates clearly communicated expectations that followers want to meet and also demonstrates commitment to goals and the shared vision. 3. Intellectual stimulation. Transformational leaders encourage their followers hard work to be inventive and new, modern by questing assumptions, reframing the troubles, and approaching mature situations in new or different ways. Creativity is encouraged. Followers are encouraged to try new approach and are not criticized because they differ from leaders idea. 4. Individualized consideration. Transformational leaders pay special focus to each individuals needs and to help them achieve their higher level needs. Trace over individual talents. Being a coacher and mentor to his followers and colleagues are developed to consecutively higher levels of potential. Source: (Kelly, 2003) Characteristics of transformational leader: According to (Tichy and Devanna, 1986), they have seven characteristics to inspire their followers to achieve beyond the expectation. 1. They visibly see themselves as change agents 2. They are brave 3. They believe in people 4. They are driven by a strong set of values 5 .They are life-long learners 6. They can cope with complexity, uncertainty and ambiguity 7. They are visionaries Example of successful transformation leadership: There are many leaders succeed in the way transformational leadership qualities. Mahatma Gandhi is Transformational leader representing charismatic qualities. Lou Gerstner is a transformational leader retired Chairman and CEO of IBM (1993 to 2002). He entered in IBM when it was in $8.1 billion loss in 1993 after recognizing the companys problem are wrong validation, only looking for results and values. IBM had become small-minded and nonflexible (Sheppard, 2002). Lou Gerstner entirely transformed organizational culture. For example, shut down infamous IBMs dress code to reproduce better the clothing of their customers (Sheppard, 2002). Another example for transformational leader is Lee Iacocca, who is accredited with saving the Chrysler Corporation (1980-1992). Chrysler Corporation when it was on the edge of bankruptcy. He taken responsibility and he set about transforming the principles to his contiguous subordinates. He began to restructure the corporations culture. Because a trans formational leader gives confidence to others to become transformational leaders, soon the whole organization was packed with successful leaders (Kelly, 2003). Transactional leadership: Transactional leadership emphasizes Social transaction or exchange between followers and a leader that involves involves a number of transactions based on reward. The transactional leader makes clear what he want, Performance expectations, goals, link between goals and rewards. The leader also watches followers performance And if any mistakes occurring towards the goal, the leader appear to correct (Burns 1978). In practice, these leaders use more closed and leading questions (Randell, 1997). Components of transactional leadership: (Bass Avolio, 1994) Contingent rewards: It refers to a prearranged agreement: If you do as we agreed then it specifies expectation and sets goals. Active management-by-exception : It refers to behavior where the leader is actively monitoring a follower: I am seeing to it that you (do not) the leader is strongly supervising and has specified corrective actions for mistakes. Passive management-by-exception: It occurs when the leader is passively monitoring a follower: If I happen to notice that you (did not) ; the leader takes corrective action in the case of mistakes if these are found out. All these behaviors work on the principles of expectancy of reward and fear of punishment, related to needs that are lower on Maslows hierarchy Characteristics of transactional leadership: according to Marcbowles (2003), They setting a clear goal. They create targets for each individual and the team They spot performance gaps. They wont trust their followers, they monitor their performance. They take corrective actions when necessary. They gaining promise to performance and tasks through pay, reward, appreciation and honor. Example of successful transactional leadership: Transactional leadership is mostly follow by managers and CEO in many organizations in 21st century. Ezine (2010) mentioning about Steve Jobs chairman and CEO Apple inc.he got award best CEO OF 2009 by TIMES. He is the famous transactional leader. Steve Jobs was famous for his down to world and job oriented nature of his leadership in apple computer. http://ezinearticles.com/?Leadership-StylesTransactional-Leadershipid=4262945 Servant leadership: Servant leadership sights a leader as a servant. Servant leadership was developed by green leaf in 1970, he said that The servant-leader is servant first. It begins with the natural emotion or feelings that one wants to serve, to serve first. Then mindful choice brings one to aspire to lead. Such a person is sharply different from one who is Leader first, perhaps because of the need to assuage an unusual power drive or to acquire material possessions. (Greenleaf et al, 1998). Katzenbach and Smith (1993) highlights The importance of leaders knowing when to follow The importance of the leader acting as supportive person to their followers to achieve task rather than just directing. They propose that the leader should ask questions rather than giving answers; provide opportunities for others to lead them; Components of servant leadership: According to (Laub, 1999) cited in (Smith et al, 2004), Servant leadership has six distinct components: Respecting people Rising people Building society Displaying legitimacy offering leadership shared leadership Characteristics of servant leadership: They Serve others needs before their needs They believe in people They are very simple and caring personalities They Provide opportunities to learn and grow They create Strong interpersonal relationships divide power and release control divide status and promote others Example of Successful servant leadership: Maxwell j (2007) add the new law in The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership Leaders Add Value by Serving Others, he described about serving others ,can make huge values(profit) in the organization. Adding Profits by Adding Value Costcos CEO, Jim Sinegal, believes the success of Costco comes from treating his employees well. Transactional versus Transformational leadership: According to Bass (1985) transactional leader motivates subordinates by exchanging rewards for services provided. Transactional Leader mainly focused on goal. Leader has been gaining promise to performance and goals through pay, reward, recognition and praise. Transformational leaders, on the other hand, motivate subordinates to perform beyond expectations.. Bass argued that such performance cannot be achieved through transactional leadership alone. A Comparison of Transactional and Transformational Leadership: Leithwood and Jantzi (2000) end that transactional leader more generally apply teleological principles (teleology is the study of goals, ends and purposes.) Where as transformational leaders deploy deontological ethics. Servant Leadership versus Transactional Leadership: Servant leadership and transactional leadership are evident in a number of ways. Servant leaders emphasize activities that fans of well-being, while transactional leaders focus on the activities of routine maintenance and resource allocation followers of monitoring and management to achieve organizational goals. Contrary to the chief servants who influence followers through personal development and empowerment, the transactional leader influences followers through the use of rewards, sanctions, and formal authority and position to induce behavior consistent. According to Blanchard and Johnson (1985), transactional leaders create strong expectations about the behavior of employees, as well as clear guidance on employees receive rewards for meeting the expectations of transactional leader.Li Thus, leaders use transactional contingent reward behavior to implement transactions with followers to achieve work goals (Bass, 1985). Servant Leadership versus Transactional Leadership: According to the stone and his colleague point of view servant leadership and transformational leadership, both models incorporate characteristics such as value, vision, power, molding, belief, honesty, and designation (Stone et al., 2003).Transformational leadership and servant leadership have similar qualities such as individualized appreciation and consideration of followers. A Comparative Model: Servant and Transformational Leadership The Servant Leader model, the leaders motivation to lead occurs from a fundamental attitude of social equality. The servant leaders system believes that He or she is no better than those headed. The All associates of the organization have equal privileges to vision, value, and information. The leaders role is to make easy the appearance of a community within the organization. According to (Laub, 1999), the key inventiveness for Servant leadership is importance of people, rising people, structuring community, displaying legitimacy and sharing management. Possible impacts of these drivers could be: higher capable people, more moral people, better negotiator, well-built interpersonal relationships, establishment of shared visions, and clear tasks. It is discussed here that these results in combination with the leader initiatives that produce them to form a spiritual generative culture. Transformational leader model, the key initiatives for the transformational leader is II or charisma behavior, IM, IS and IC. These Components lead to: role modeling, high moral standards, caring about others needs requirements, communication of hope, shared visions, innovations, risk taking, and quizzical of practices and systems. Servant leadership tends to develop a more fixed method to the exterior environment than transformational leadership. The transformational leaders motivation is aimed at for more toward achieving targets for the organization, which will reveal on his/her capabilities, and the success of these leaders is calculated by the level to which they acquire organizational rewards. The Servant leaders motivation is mainly focus on its follower the personal growth, thus the servant leaders achievement is calculated by the level to which the follower moves on the way to self actualization. Source: smith .B et al( 2004) CONCLUSION: leadership is attitude not a role. Leadership in Leadership, It seems, is increasingly becoming the universal remedy of the 21st Century and its emphasis is turning towards the moral, social and ethical responsibilities of leaders. Transformational leadership is suitable for dynamic organization and servant leadership suitable for static organization such as church, non-profit organization, non-government organization. Most of leader using transactional leadership theory while they using transformational leadership. There is nothing as practical as a good theory (Lewin, 1935). So Todays leaders need to be skilled in change management to adopt in any situation CHRISTINA OSBORNE (2008).

The Role of Government and Culture on Innovation in Greek City-States :: Essays Papers

The Role of Government and Culture on Innovation in Greek City-States A simple analysis of the culture, structure and technologies of Greek city-states reveals the fact that culture plays a vital role in the development of technologies. More specifically, an analysis of the government of Greek city-states demonstrates the very influential role of culture upon technological development. The democratic form of government first seen in Greece is reflected in the structure of the city-states. The basis for this form of government, which is more sensitive to the needs of the people, can also be seen in some of the more traditional types of technological development. Water supply fits the more traditional definition of technology, shows a concern for public well being, and is apparent in the Greek city-state. Analysis of the Greek city-state is further strengthened by comparison to Sparta. This opposing city was built into a much different culture, and as a result, was structured quite differently and produced different technologies. While it is certain that more than simply culture and form of government influence technological innovation, the evidence highlighting these factors' contributions is ample. Culture influences and is influenced by the form of government in a given region. This government and culture then influence the manner in which the environment in treated, and the innovations that occur. In his chapter on Greece, Colin Chant writes: "The system of cities was also shaped by fundamental political changes" (p. 57). This statement leads into a discussion of the rise of democracy in Greek city-states. An elected assembly wielded the authority in these city-states. Chant states, "Although the development of participatory modes of government might well be seen as a product of enlightened Greek culture, the influence of the Aegean environment must also be considered" (p.57). This assertion deserves some attention, as it insinuates that macro-level forces could be more responsible for governmental evolution than micro-level changes. The statement also walks the fine line concerning the innate political nature of individuals. In his article "The Pentagon's New Map," Thomas Barnett explains that one must be very careful with this type of thinking, as it is a definite generalization to say that something is inherent in a people making them govern themselves in a certain manner. It is a small step from this type of thinking to the statement "those people will never be like us" (Barnett, p.174). Barnett goes on to explain that it was once thought that there was something innate in Russians and Slavs that prohibited them from accepting capitalism and democracy (Barnett, p.

The Hunters: Phantom Chapter 30

Stefan drove like a maniac al the way back to the boardinghouse. â€Å"I can't believe I forgot to tel him that his name had been cal ed,† he said for what felt like the hundredth time. â€Å"I can't believe we left him alone.† â€Å"Slow down,† Meredith told him, trying to hold Matt's sleeping body steady in the backseat as Stefan whipped around a corner, tires squealing. â€Å"You're going way too fast.† â€Å"We're in a hurry,† Stefan growled, yanking on the wheel to make a hard right. Alaric turned around in the passenger seat and gave Meredith a panicky look as Stefan narrowly missed a garbage truck. She sighed. She knew he was trying to make up for his mistake, for not tel ing them immediately that Matt's name had appeared in the herb shop, but kil ing them al in a race to get home wasn't exactly the solution. Besides, although they probably would have done things differently if they'd known, it might not have changed the outcome for Matt. It wasn't as if their precautions had saved either Bonnie or Elena. â€Å"At least you've got vampire reflexes,† she said, more to reassure Alaric than out of any particular confidence in Stefan's driving abilities. She'd insisted on being the one sitting in the back with Matt, and now she turned her attention to him. She put a restraining hand on his chest so he wouldn't go tumbling to the floor as the car jerked and swerved. He was so stil . None of the twitching and eye movements that usual y went with sleep, just the steady shal ow rise and fal of his breathing. He wasn't even snoring. And she knew from camping trips as far back as sixth grade that Matt snored like a buzz saw. Always. Meredith never cried. Not even when the worst happened. And she wasn't going to start now, not when her friends needed her calm and focused to try to figure out how to save them. But if she had been the kind of girl who cried, instead of the kind of girl who strategized, she would have been sobbing. And even now, the breath caught in her throat a little painful y, until she schooled herself into impassive calm again. She was the only one left. Of the four old friends who'd gone through school and summers and adolescence and al the horrors the supernatural world could throw at them, she was the only one the phantom hadn't captured. Yet. Meredith clenched her teeth and held Matt steady. Stefan pul ed up and parked in front of the boardinghouse, having somehow avoided causing any damage to other cars or pedestrians along the way. Alaric and Meredith started to inch Matt careful y out of the car, looping his arms around their necks and slowly shifting him forward into a half-standing position. But Stefan simply grabbed Matt away from them and threw him over his shoulder. â€Å"Let's go,† he said, and stalked off toward the boardinghouse, easily balancing Matt's unconscious body with one hand, not looking back. â€Å"He's become kind of a strange guy,† Alaric commented, watching Stefan alertly. The sunshine caught the stubble on Alaric's unshaven chin and it glinted with a touch of gold. He turned toward Meredith and gave her a rueful, disarming grin. â€Å"Once more into the breach†¦Ã¢â‚¬  he said. Meredith took his hand, warm and solid in her own. â€Å"Come on,† she said. Once they were in the boardinghouse, Stefan clomped straight upstairs to deposit Matt with the other bodies – the other sleepers, Meredith reminded herself fiercely. Meredith and Alaric, hand in hand, turned toward the kitchen. As she pushed the door open, Meredith heard Mrs. Flowers's voice. â€Å"Very useful indeed, my dear,† she was saying, a warm note of approval in her voice. â€Å"You've done very wel . I'm so grateful.† Meredith gaped. At the kitchen table with Mrs. Flowers, cool and calm and pretty in a blue linen dress, sat Dr. Celia Conner, sipping tea. â€Å"Hel o, Alaric. Hel o, Meredith,† said Celia. Her dark eyes bored cool y into Meredith's. â€Å"You'l never believe what I've found.† â€Å"What?† said Alaric eagerly, letting go of Meredith's hand. Her heart sank. Celia reached into a tote bag sitting by her chair and pul ed out a thick book bound in ragged brown leather. She smiled triumphantly and announced, â€Å"It's a book on phantoms. Dr. Beltram ended up sending me to Dalcrest Col ege, which actual y has a very comprehensive col ection of texts on the paranormal.† â€Å"I suggest we adjourn to the den,† Mrs. Flowers said, â€Å"where we can be more comfortable, and examine its contents together.† They moved to the den, but Stefan, when he joined them, did not seem any more comfortable. â€Å"Different types of phantoms,† he said, taking the book from Celia and flipping rapidly through the pages. â€Å"The history of phantoms in our dimension. Where is the banishment ritual? Why doesn't this thing have an index?† Celia shrugged. â€Å"It's very old and rare,† she said. â€Å"It was difficult to find, and it's the only book on the subject we're likely to be able to get our hands on, maybe the only one that exists, so we'l have to excuse things like that. These older texts, the authors wanted you to read straight through and real y learn about their subject, to understand what they wanted to tel you, not just to find the page you needed right away. You might try looking near the end, though.† Alaric was watching Stefan whip through the pages with an expression of pain. â€Å"It's a rare book, Stefan,† he said. â€Å"Please be more careful with it. Would you like me to look? I'm used to finding what I need in these kinds of books.† Stefan snarled, literal y snarled at him, and Meredith felt the hairs along the back of her neck rise. â€Å"I'l do it myself, teacher. I'm in a hurry.† He squinted down at the text. â€Å"Why does it have to be in such ornate print?† he complained. â€Å"Don't tel me it's because it's old. I'm older than it is, and I can barely read it. Huh. ‘Phantoms who are feeding like vampires on one choice sensibility, whether it be guilt, or despair, or grudge; or lust for victuals, the demon rum, or fal en women. The stronger be the sensibility, the worse be the outcome of the phantom created.' I think we could have figured that out ourselves.† Mrs. Flowers was standing slightly removed from the rest of the group, eyes fixed on empty air, muttering seemingly to herself as she communed with her mother. â€Å"I know,† she said. â€Å"I'l tel them.† Her eyes focused on the others as they stood around Stefan, peering over his shoulders. â€Å"Mama says that time is getting short,† she warned. Stefan leaped to his feet and exploded. â€Å"I know it's getting short,† he roared, getting right up into Mrs. Flowers's surprised face. â€Å"Can't your mother tel us something useful for once?† Mrs. Flowers staggered away from him, reaching out to steady herself on the back of a chair. Her face was white, and suddenly she looked older and more frail than ever before. Stefan's eyes widened, their color darkening to a stormy sea green, and he held out his hands, his face horrified. â€Å"I'm sorry,† he said. â€Å"Mrs. Flowers, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to frighten you. I don't know what came over me†¦ I'm just so worried about Elena and the others.† â€Å"I know, Stefan,† Mrs. Flowers said gravely. She had regained her balance and she looked stronger, calm and wise again. â€Å"We will get them back, you know. You must have faith. Mama does.† Stefan sat down, turning back to the book, his lips pressed together into a straight line. Her skin prickling with apprehension, Meredith gripped her stave more tightly as she watched him. When she had revealed to the others that the members of her family were hereditary vampire hunters and that it was now her turn to take on the duty, she had told Elena and Stefan that she would never turn on Stefan, that she understood that he wasn't like other, evil vampires, that he was good: harmless and benign to humans. She had made no such promises about Damon, and Elena and Stefan hadn't asked her to. They al shared an unspoken understanding that Damon couldn't real y be characterized as harmless, not even when he begrudgingly worked with them, and that Meredith would need to keep her options open when it came to him. But Stefan†¦ she had never thought this would happen, but now Meredith was worried that someday she might not be able to keep her promises about Stefan. She had never seen him acting the way he had been lately: irrational, angry, violent, unpredictable. She knew his behavior was probably caused by the phantom, but was Stefan becoming too dangerous? Could she kil him if she had to? He was her friend. Meredith's heart was racing. She realized that her knuckles had whitened against her fighting stave, and her hand ached. Yes, she realized, she would fight Stefan and try to kil him, if she had to. It was true that he was her friend, but her duty had to come first. She took a deep breath and consciously relaxed her hands. Stay calm, she coached herself. Breathe. Stefan was keeping himself more or less under control. It wasn't a decision she had to make. Not yet, anyway. A few minutes later, Stefan stopped flipping pages. â€Å"Here,† he said. â€Å"I think this is it.† He handed the book to Mrs. Flowers. She scanned the page quickly and nodded. â€Å"That feels like the right ritual,† she said seriously. â€Å"I ought to have everything we need to perform it right here in the house.† Alaric reached for the book. He read the spel , too, frowning. â€Å"Does it have to be a blood spel ?† he asked Mrs. Flowers. â€Å"If it backfires, the phantom might be able to turn it against us.† â€Å"I'm afraid it's going to have to be a blood spel ,† Mrs. Flowers replied. â€Å"We'd need more time to experiment to change the spel , and time is the one thing we don't have. If the phantom is able to use its captives the way we think it can, it's only going to get more powerful.† Alaric began to speak again but was interrupted. â€Å"Wait,† said Celia, a slightly shril note in her usual y husky voice. â€Å"A blood spel ? What does that mean? I don't want to get involved in anything† – she searched for a word – â€Å"unsavory.† She reached for the book, but Stefan slammed his hand down on it. â€Å"Unsavory or not, this is what we're doing,† he said quietly, but with a voice as hard as steel. â€Å"And you're a part of it. It's too late for you to back out now. I won't let you.† Celia gave a convulsive shudder and cringed back in her chair. â€Å"Don't you dare threaten me,† she said, her voice quavering. â€Å"Everybody calm down,† Meredith said sharply. â€Å"Celia, no one is going to make you do anything unless you agree to it. I'l protect you myself if need be.† Her eyes flew quickly to Alaric, who was glancing back and forth between them, looking worried. â€Å"But we need your help. Please. You may have saved us al by finding the spel , and we're grateful, but Stefan's right – you're part of this, too. I don't know if it'l work without you.† She hesitated a beat. â€Å"Or, if it does, it might leave you as the phantom's only target,† she added cunningly. Celia shivered again and wrapped her arms around herself. â€Å"I'm not a coward,† she said miserably. â€Å"I'm a scientist, and this†¦ irrational mysticism worries me. But I'm in. I'l help any way I can.† Meredith, for the first time, felt a flash of sympathy for her. She understood how hard it must be for Celia to continue to think of herself as a logical person while the boundaries of what she'd always accepted as reality col apsed around her. â€Å"Thank you, Celia.† Meredith glanced around the room at the others. â€Å"We've got the ritual. We've got the ingredients. We just need to gather everything together and start casting the spel . Are we ready?† Everyone sat up straighter, their faces taking on expressions of stern resolve. As scary as this was, it was good to final y have a purpose and a plan. Stefan breathed deeply and visibly took hold of himself, his shoulders relaxing and his stance settling into something less predatory. â€Å"Okay, Meredith,† he said. His stormy green eyes met her cool gray ones, in perfect accord. â€Å"Let's do this.†

Business Performance Measurement Using Balanced Scorecard Critical Review Accounting Essay

In a rapid turning economic universe, companies ‘ direction has ever sought for ways and metric to estimate if a company ‘s concern public presentation aligns to its scheme. Performance metric is critical in doing direction a possible exercising and aid in replying some common inquiries like what are our ends and how effectual is our scheme? As one of the most important recent inventions in history, the Balanced Scorecard foremost proposed by Kaplan and Norton in 1992 defines a methodological analysis that can be used by direction for end scenes or strategic preparation and public presentation measuring from fiscal and non-financial or operational point of view. It is besides aimed at heightening organisational public presentation by leting companies ‘ chief organisational procedures to be better managed by directors to better competitory market place and company public presentation. The outlooks of directors are high, and this explains why academic and managerial i nvolvement in this direction tool is on the addition. This paper critically examines plants or research done by outstanding writers on this topic to see the verve of Balanced Scorecard as a concern public presentation measuring tool in modern economic system. Literatures on Balanced Scorecard are on the rise as its methodological analysis become popular among top concerns. Gumbus and Lussier ( 2006 ) in their work, examined Balanced Scorecard and its characteristics ( ) , and why little medium concerns are recommended to utilize it as a metric for concern public presentation. Their surveies came at the clip when Balanced Scorecard is non been widely adopted by SME but by the large companies as a public presentation measuring method. Braam and Nijssen ( 2008 ) discuss factors impacting Balanced Scorecard acceptance and the two cardinal constructs of Balanced Scorecard use in recent clip: as a public presentation measuring system ( PMS ) and as a strategic direction system ( SMS ) . [ 4 ] carried out researches to look into if the Balanced Scorecard add values to companies that adopt it and how it does contributes to the public presentation of an organisation. [ 5 ] examines a outstanding characteristic of Balanced Scorecard cause and conse quence relationship and if Balanced Scorecard can associate operational prosodies with scheme which can be understood and influenced by directors as a valid strategic direction tool. [ 7 ] took a practical attack in discoursing ways that Balanced Scorecard can be used by undertaking directors to step and better the operational public presentation of their squad and besides clarifies aims and concern scheme. These literature discuses extensively on public presentation measuring with Balanced Scorecard cutting across assorted use and industries every bit good as farther elaborated in the advancement of this paper. Most surveies focus on large companies the scarceness of surveies associating to Balanced Scorecard been used in SME for concern scheme motivated [ 1 ] to ship on shutting this spread. They used a instance survey methodological analysis attack on three little concern endeavors. Research was conducted through personal interviews with executives at Hyde Park Electronics, Futura Industries, and Southern Gardens Citrus ( SGC ) . [ 1 ] examine each of the SME to place how of their concern scheme and public presentation aligns with the Balanced Scorecard features both in the short footings and long term. Financial metric, as indicated in their survey, is sale from new merchandise accounting for high net income of the organisation. The Operational Quality was identified to same-day bringing, bringing within five yearss, and on-time bringing. Customer Satisfaction metric was detected to be indicated by increased gross revenues and increased income that would ensue from merchandise credence a nd the coevals of repetition clients. Learning and Growth metric see the induction of employee public assistance plans such as benefits, net income sharing, preparation, and employee communicating and employee activities. By the above findings, [ 1 ] farther cited that about half of the large corporations in recent times has improved public presentation with the usage of Balanced Scorecard as operational and strategic measuring. The instance surveies affecting the SMEs rhenium seen to besides profit from utilizing this direction tool. [ 1 ] The consequences of the instance surveies of Hyde Park Electronics, Futura Industries, and SGC support the anterior literature from big companies. The consequences once more indicated that enterprisers can excessively profit from developing and utilizing a BSC. The benefit or value gotten from utilizing BSC was investigated by [ 4 ] , and in their survey, two research hypotheses were developed: how much does the Balanced Scorecard create value and secondly, how does the Balanced Scorecard create value? For the first inquiry [ 4 ] adopted the usage of Activity-Based Cost Management ( ABCM ) model, in comparing to BSC effectivity in happening how organizational ends aligns to people ‘s public presentation. The 2nd inquiries saw the usage of the Strategy-Focused-Organisation ( SFO ) to research the beginnings of possible value created by BSC. The methodological analysis used was quantitative in nature and an empirical study and analysis of informations collected from EU companies that have used BSC. In their findings, [ 4 ] argued that value is so been added to companies by the usage of BSC. They indicated that the public presentation of an organisation comes chiefly from what it does during scheme interlingual rendition, its consistence in act uponing managerial patterns, and its function in resources alignment to strategic aims i.e. from the agencies to the terminal. The surveies of [ 4 ] hinted the construct of following BSC for PMS every bit good as SMS. Thus, [ 2 ] , in their research differentiate these lifting constructs of Balanced Scorecard ( public presentation measuring system ( PMS ) and strategic direction system ( SMS ) ) , and factors impacting their acceptances by companies as shown the survey done by [ 2 ] . Hypothesiss were developed to steer and develop their methodological analysis which involves quantitative attack. Data aggregation was done by questionnaires sent to 40 Dutch houses gotten from database of companies which had responded to a benchmark study for best patterns in direction control and public presentation measuring in the four areas/domains of involvement of the Balanced Scorecard. [ 2 ] indicated in their findings that the acceptance of both types of Balanced Scorecard benefits from top direction engagement. Consequences besides show that utilizing Balanced Scorecard as PMS will profit from the support of the admi nistration ‘s finance section. They besides cited that Balanced Scorecard as PMS accent on an inclusive measurings of both fiscal and non-financial values which gives valuable image of the company ‘s place in the market. However, public presentation metric indexs cut across the cardinal characteristics of BSC itself, as such [ 5 ] in their survey analysed the cardinal premises of BSC and the relationships among the four countries of measuring suggested ( the fiscal, client, internal-business-process and learning and growing positions ) and its consequence on scheme and public presentation of an organisation. Research inquiry to steer their survey was besides raised: is there a causal relationship between the countries of measuring suggested? The methodological analysis that was used is analytic because, as argued, increases preciseness and lucidity degree in understanding the BSC construct and theoretical account. Past and present literatures were widely analysed. [ 5 ] one cardinal findings indicated that companies ‘ do non necessitate to see priori concern scheme before planing a coherent set of public presentation measurings reasoning that the design of public presentation indexs can work as a accelerator for scheme preparation. The preparation of scheme entails the development of undertakings to transform them into operational aims. This is further discussed by [ 6 ] in their survey. They used the BSC methodological analysis in their survey to develop, trial, and use a strategic measuring system, specifically for undertakings. The attack adopted was a comparing and study of two undertakings monitored by the writers and undertaken by undertaking squad. Their consequence indicated that BSC plays important function in bettering undertaking direction effectivity. They besides argue or indicated that balanced public presentation measuring is an of import technique for set uping on-strategy undertaking bringing The above surveies further give more penetration on the construct of BSC as a public presentation measuring tool that is best used in exciting thought of comparative steps in the critical success factors of any concern. Thus, organizational public presentation sees an addition when, as the chief tool, BSC is used to interpret the scheme of the house. In this respect, BSC contributes positively [ 4 ] [ 6 ] . However, the acceptance of BSC in an organisation depends to a great extent on the degree of top direction and product-market kineticss every bit good as the finance section. If a company is in a competitory market, client satisfaction and fiscal values are of extreme importance to exceed direction and finance section. These public presentation prosodies influence the preparation of scheme and therefore the acceptance of BSC particularly as public presentation measuring system [ 2 ] . However, the support of top direction and the employees ‘ deduction do non look to be requi rement conditions to do the successful development of a BSC [ 4 ] . The influence of BSC on departmental units and internal administrations within the house can be detected in undertaking squads. The BSC clarify and improves strategic step and connexions thereby bettering internal public presentation in traditional deliverables. It is importance to observe that at that place does non be one BSC that matches all administrations but BSC development is team-based [ 1 ] [ 6 ] . Furthermore, as indicated by [ 6 ] , companies ‘ operational aims in undertakings become a direction success as internal sections are exposed to run of strategic-performance indictor which clarifies and proctors project vision and ends. [ 4 ] Surveies indicated that despite the broad acceptance of BSC in recent times, the methodological analysis is non free from defects. Kaplan and Norton describe the relationship among the characteristic of BSC as causal ( cause and consequence ) , i.e. one metric taking to another, and a dependence relationship. This nevertheless, an issue as for case, the satisfaction of clients does non basically give good fiscal consequences hence the relationship is a logical and non causal one as it is inherit in the BSC construct. This portends that the premises made by BSC possibly invalid taking to the expectancy of public presentation indexs which are faulty, ensuing in sub-optimal public presentation [ 5 ] The reviewed surveies are non without restrictions as hinted by the writers. The research by [ 1 ] is marked with a restriction in instance survey attack as at that place does non be any survey on BSC been used by little concern at the clip of the survey. Furthermore, the plausibleness of findings did non protect against the research restrictions in the survey done by [ 2 ] . The generalizability of the findings was edged by a restriction in the sample size, the respondents ‘ chiefly fiscal background, and the usage of cross sectional informations to look into the degree of acceptance of both BSC types at the same time. [ 4 ] besides highlighted that measuring or mensurating the public presentation of an organisation is a difficult scientific discipline. Again, in their survey, sample houses did n't hold unvarying execution of the BSC construct. One restriction of this paper is that it is analytic which is based on researching surveies and researches associating to BSC. Trustin g on these beginnings can, nevertheless, non be deem insightful as an empirical survey. Further research is necessary and should be expanded on about all concern service sectors on how BSC is used to aline concerns to capital budgeting processing. Larger sample size should be used every bit good as extra factors, for case consideration of institutional motives for BSC acceptance. The influence of BSC on the internal relationship between sections and undertaking squads should besides be researched.DecisionThe balanced scorecard is a tool which methodically expands the measuring zones traditionally involved in accounting. Its cardinal end is to cut down the issues associated with the usage of fiscal steps for control intents by infixing non-financial measurings in a strategic control model [ 5 ] . The connexion between concern scheme and aims utilizing BSC creates an apprehension of public presentation measuring and metric that guides the co-ordinated and careful action of directors. Surveies analysed in this paper show that the BSC creates and adds value to organisations that adopt it and promotes more reliable communicating effectual plenty for direction decision-making. Therefore while the adopting of BSC is on the rise by more concerns, this paper analytically shows the positive part of BSC to the public presentation of an administration with an increasing organic structure of cogent evidence.[ 1 ] Gumbus, Andra. & A ; Lussier, Robert N. ( 2006 ) . Entrepreneurs Use a Balanced Scorecard to Translate Strategy into Performance Measures. Journal of Small Business Management, 44 ( 3 ) : 407-425.[ 5 ] Norreklit, H. ( 2000 ) , â€Å" The Balance on the Balanced Scorecard-A Critical Analysis of Some of its Assumptions † , Management Accounting Research, 11 ( 1 ) pp. 65-88.

Free Essays on Heroes

that can describe a hero. In the American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, a Hero is described as someone endowed with great courage and strength, and someone celebrated for his bold exploits. To me, it takes more than just courage, strength, and boldness to be a hero it takes Honor. Honor is the defining characteristic of Western Civilization. It determines what a man must do and what he must not do. Honorable actions are bound up with the Ability to achieve a desired result, the Courage to undertake it and see it through. We say that a man has honor accepts, as a duty, the responsibility of rendering necessary and valuable service to his own people and the vital interests of his country, and in so doing puts them above his own self-interests. It is the highest aspect of the Code of the Gentleman and is present only in high civilizations. Honor includes: integrity, courage, loyalty, respect, selfless-service, and duty. Only one of the two characters in these two stories is what â€Å"I† would call a hero. That character is Sir Gawain, this is because he is more honorable. He actually overcame the challenge of having to deal with searching for the Green Knight, even though he feared it. When his weakness was put out there, when then Green Knight admitted to Sir Gawain that he had been in a test all along, sir Gawain was able to admit to the fact that he was afraid. He was loyal by doing as he said he was going to do and admitting that he was scared to get hurt, he showed respect towards the Green Knight by showing that he had been afraid and following trough with his word in order to show that he had been wrong, he was also selfless, and he did things for his own good not just to be considered greater than what he thought he really was. In the other ... Free Essays on Heroes Free Essays on Heroes In the epic Beowulf, and romance Sir Gawain and the Green knight, the main characters are considered heroes but they hold different characteristics. There are many words that can describe a hero. In the American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, a Hero is described as someone endowed with great courage and strength, and someone celebrated for his bold exploits. To me, it takes more than just courage, strength, and boldness to be a hero it takes Honor. Honor is the defining characteristic of Western Civilization. It determines what a man must do and what he must not do. Honorable actions are bound up with the Ability to achieve a desired result, the Courage to undertake it and see it through. We say that a man has honor accepts, as a duty, the responsibility of rendering necessary and valuable service to his own people and the vital interests of his country, and in so doing puts them above his own self-interests. It is the highest aspect of the Code of the Gentleman and is present only in high civilizations. Honor includes: integrity, courage, loyalty, respect, selfless-service, and duty. Only one of the two characters in these two stories is what â€Å"I† would call a hero. That character is Sir Gawain, this is because he is more honorable. He actually overcame the challenge of having to deal with searching for the Green Knight, even though he feared it. When his weakness was put out there, when then Green Knight admitted to Sir Gawain that he had been in a test all along, sir Gawain was able to admit to the fact that he was afraid. He was loyal by doing as he said he was going to do and admitting that he was scared to get hurt, he showed respect towards the Green Knight by showing that he had been afraid and following trough with his word in order to show that he had been wrong, he was also selfless, and he did things for his own good not just to be considered greater than what he thought he really was. In the other ...