The various methods of dealing Essay Example for Free

The various methods of dealing Essay Legally, a working Monopoly is defined as a firm which controls 25% of their market. This immediately raises problems, within the measurement of market share, and the definition of their market. Microsoft is a considerably well known monopoly (as a whole), but is this the case for all areas of business? This would be the initial problem: determining their market. Microsoft spans a vast spectrum of business, however, virtually breaking into distinct main markets Desktop and Server. It is clear that Microsoft dominate the Desktop market, far outselling any near threats, but is this the case for the server market? I have broken down the server market into two main areas the Operating System itself, and the web based server. Operating System Percentage Share Linux 31.3% Microsoft Family 24.3% Server Software Percentage Share Apache Foundation 56% IIS (Microsoft) 24% According to the definition, Microsoft is not technically a monopoly in both markets. However, as Microsoft can be accepted to live within a single market (computing), they would have a clear monopoly. Consequentially, problems of dominance begin to occur. It has been discovered that they have been abusing their market power by forcing small firms into signing contracts that require them to purchase their software, should they be using their hardware. There are numerous ways to reduce or reclaim the power of monopolies, some controversial, and some are economic theory, therefore unrealistic. I will be discussing these within my essay. Monopolies tend to play as the dominant firm within their market, and as a result, tend to me price makers rather than takers. However, they can only control the price, or output, but not both. Generally, monopolies can be bad for the market mechanism as they are neither productively nor allocatively efficient. Like most firms, they would choose to profit maximise (at the point MC=MR). As you can see from the diagram on the left, if they choose to output the profit maximising level Q1, they will receive the price displayed by the demand curve P1. Fortunately, there are several remedies for monopoly. The first that I am going to discuss is: regulation. An excellent remedy for pure monopolies (where a single firm dominates 100% of a market) is regulation. Regulation involves the government appointing an independent body to monitor the activities of the firms. Ofcom (merged, previously Oftel) are a working example of this. They are the regulating body for the communications industry, covering telecommunications. Previously, before deregulation occurred, there were two main dominant firms: Telewest/NTL (Now Virgin Media), and British Telecommunications. If there was no regulatory body in place, it would have been too easy for this duopoly (where two main firms dominate the market) to price fix (tactically through the use of informal signals to indicate their future and current pricing structures) and therefore take advantage of the consumers, at they would have little choice other than to remove their fixed line telephones completely. One of the methods that can be used is RPI-X (RPI minus X) regulation. The value of X is defined by the regulatory body, and limits the pricing that firms may change based on the RPI (retail price index) less the value of X. As a result, if RPI-X0 then the firms will be forced to reduce their prices by the resultant value. The kind of price barrier will motivate firms to lower costs (as they cannot increase their prices) in order to generate greater profit for themselves. This kind of regulation has been using against British Gas, which expired on the 31st March 2000. Expanding on my telecommunications example: NTL has had agreements put in place by Oftel of RPI-1, so they were permitted to raise prices by no more than the value of RPI, less 1%, per year. However, this particular agreement expired on 31st December 1996. However, actual regulation has (in my opinion) proven to be inefficient and adequate, and possibly deemed to be failing the industry. A typical example of this lack of regulation is demonstrated by the unstoppable, but inevitable, profits of British Gas. They announced profits of à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½992 million for the first 6 months of this year, less than 24 hours after raising household prices by 35. This raises the question of whether or not these price rises are justified. They, along with the rest of the market, justify their actions on the elevation of wholesale gas and electricity prices (costs which they cannot absorb), but is this form of a tacit agreement (where firms informally signal price decision to other firms, to suggest they copy)? While it is proven that the barrel of oil did rise to approximately $150 per barrel, the firms were quick to act, raising their prices in quick succession of each other. However, now that the prices have fallen by half, have the firms taken the same quick action in reducing prices? I think not. This is an example of asymmetric information between the firms and the regulator, where the regulator is only dropping suggestions to the firms; they are not forcing any actions upon them. Despite preaches by Fuel Poverty organisations and EnergyWatch (the regulator), prices are still not falling at the rate that they should be. However, one of the most significant problems lie within determining the correct value of X for RPI-X price capping, as the regulator has few resources (as this example has demonstrated), therefore they cannot correctly evaluate costs. Setting a value too low may lead to under investment within the industry, causing undesired adverse effects. Having said this, the regulatory body has the power to split up a monopoly into multiple, smaller, firms if it deems this as necessary. This can be good for the market, as this will open up it to more competition, and possibly lower barriers to entry for other firms. This is the case of British Gas, where the regulator (Ofgas) had split it up into two major firms: Centrica and Transco. The idea was to open the market up to greater competition, as then British Gas (a trading name of Centrica) who sells the gas to business and domestic users would be separated from Transco who manage the actual gas pipelines. This would lower the barriers to entry (sunk costs) for new firms, as they would not have to produce the gas, nor have it routed to their customers homes. They can simply purchase it at a wholesale rate, and sell that on with a margin for profit. Other countries have adopted a different method for regulating monopolies, called Rate of return regulation. This is where companies are taxed a percentage of their profits, however this has similar problems. As there is no price ceiling introduced by this method, the monopolistic firm(s) may choose to simply increase their prices in order to cover the additional tax. This actually solves no problems, and leaves the consumer worse off, as they would be faced with paying higher prices. As the market is dominated by the few single firms, it may leave the consumer no choice but to purchase their goods from those single or sole suppliers at the higher cost. The competition commission also has a strong say on mergers, whether or not they are permitted to go ahead, if there is a threat to the market of a monopoly. An example of this was the Halifax Bank of Scotland and Lloyds TSB merger which resulted in a monopoly for the merged company of the mortgage market over 30% market share. However, these rules were brushed aside due to the nature of the merger, and the apparent confidence that the bank would collapse, and the government being unable to use more public money, therefore being unable to resort to nationalisation without public backlash. The reverse of regulation, de-regulation, can also help to remedy the problems of monopoly. De-regulation is when remove or simplify restrictions on a market in order to increase competition, or the threat within. While the thread of competition may keep push prices down (limit pricing where firms sell at just above their average costs, therefore diminishing the threat of new firms entering the market, forcing any new entrants not to take the chance as the barriers to entry and exit may be too high), it may not been enough in the long term. An example of this is the postal industry. In 2006, the market was fully deregulated, meaning that any new entrant had the ability to complete a range of functions, ranging from collecting and deliver door-to-door mail, to bulk mailing. While this does open the market up to some serious competition, the barriers to entry are still too high. The initial cost of dropping door-to-door mail to 99% of the country is very labour intensive, and explains why the state owned Royal Mail have a monopoly on this. Additionally, there needs to be a way for new firms to pick-up the mail locally from their clients. All this has to be profitably fairly quickly, as if they firm does not have enough finance behind them, they will quickly go bankrupt. However, there have been several new entrants to the marketplace for courier services, and this has become more apparent over the past few years. Such an example is www.Parcel2Go.com (who are a reseller of such companies such as DHL), but pickup large items from your home (as this cheaper service is domestic) and deliver it to another place of a domestic nature for a extraordinary low fee in comparison to the pricing that Royal Mail would change for the same service. Monopolies can also be dealt with by challenge of new firms. However, when a monopoly exists, this is sometimes less likely due to barriers to entry and exit. The new entrants have to assess these barriers, and judge whether or not it would be wise for them to compete; this then encompasses the theory of contestable markets. There are several factors involved, such as the reputation (pricing predictions) of the current (incumbent) firm. The existing monopoly may employ (legal) limit pricing to keep the threat of competition low, or apply predatory pricing. Illegal in the UK, predatory pricing involves setting the price below cost, with the intent to drive out their rivals, and then raise prices again. Another such formal form of collusion is cartels, however they are also forbidden by law. Fortunately, such anti-competitive practices are removable, however unfortunately, as I have discussed above: tacit collusion is the most likely and the hardest to prove and stop. Furthermore, there is resale price maintenance where the manufacturer will fix the price that the retailer must sell their goods at (they will generally apply this), and if they did not they would refuse to supply, which is again, illegal. Additionally, the incumbent firm can compete with non-pricing strategies, such as brand loyalty schemes or certain kinds of special offers so that their customers naturally do not buy from their competitors. There are also considerable sunk costs that are involved, and the more irrevocable they are, the less tempting for the new entrant. Depreciation is common, and when technology is fast-moving, a production system thats 6 months old can lose considerable value, quickly. An almost totally irrevocable cost is advertising such as branding and gaining that brand awareness and loyalty. While its average cost can be kept low by spreading the budget over large volumes of output, however the only realistic way this cost can be recovered, is if the firm was to sell their entire brand to the monopolist. Unfortunately, the incumbent firm can easy rival any advertising that the new entrant makes, making their efforts redundant. There may also be legal barriers, but these are more uncommon than not. Such barriers will include Patents, where the incumbent firm is rewarded for the research and inventions that they have created, so have a legal barrier to prevent any other firms from coping their idea, design or otherwise. Such patents stand for around 2 decades, so this can be a considerable amount of time for the incumbent firm to gain a monopoly on their product (regardless of the fact they will be the sole supplier). Natural monopolies act at as a barrier to entry for new firms, and within industries such as Water (Thames Water have a monopoly on this), it would be too costly and inefficient to lay down two pipes to consumers homes. However, should the market be deregulated for example, if Thames Water sell the water a wholesale price (such as British Gas does with Gas) then additional firms can afford to enter the market with lower barriers to entry. Finally, there is information asymmetry, where the existing firm has the experience and the knowledge about the industry that allows them to be more productive and drive down their costs. If the information is not known to the new entrants, this can be a sunk cost for them, acting as yet another deterrent for entering the market. However, having discussed the problems that monopolies may bring, the reverse can be true. Monopolies can be beneficial to a market because they achieve greater economies of scale, and tend to have a lower market price than smaller firms as they are more able to pass on cost reduction. A typical example of this would be the comparison of a monopolistic firm such as Tesco against Jays News. A typical product, one pint of milk will cost around 49 pence in a small firms shop, or 26 pence in Tesco. At a 53% saving, it seems clear that monopolies can benefit the greater economy. Sources: NTL Price Capping: http://www.ofcom.org.uk/static/archive/oftel/ind_info/broadcasting/ntlprice/section2.htm

Strategies Designed to Motivate Employees Essay -- Business Management

Strategies Designed to Motivate Employees One of a manager's responsibilities is to inspire employees and encourage them to strive for excellence and remain motivated even during the difficult times. While this task is challenging, there are measures a manager can take to generate enthusiasm in any working environment. Although different people are moved by different desires, values and goals, there are a number of generally agreed-upon motivators to which most people respond. The employees at Gullivers are de-motivated because of the poor environmental conditions. The employees work alone for long periods of time. This leads the worker to feel isolated. As well as this the tasks that some employees carry out are repetitive and boring. This is brought on by the use of a production line. The employees also work in two day time shifts. The hours of these shifts might not be suitable for some people, such as mothers. The times that shifts start and finish might clash with school hour, leading to people coming in late or leaving early. F. W. Taylor developed the early idea that to motivate the worker you have to pay him/her at the highest possible wage, through working in the most efficient and productive manner. This approach was called the rational-economic concept of motivation. Taylor believed if an organisation first evaluated the job to be done. Then came up with the best way to do each stage of that job. The lastly put the people in the right place to then carry out that job effectively. So the job would be completed in an efficient, producing more profit, which would lead to higher wages. Taylor believed that this alone wo... ...d the team leader allow discussion of any disharmony. Maintaining a highly motivated staff is key to a company's success. A lack of employee enthusiasm can alter your company's productivity, and ultimately, your bottom line. There are several factors which effect motivation. A combination of techniques that matches the unique needs and personalities of your employees will bring the most effective results. However any measures taken is only effective as far as the employee is willing to be motivated. Bibliography Laurie J Mullins 2002, Management and Organisational Behaviours, Financial Times Pitman Publishing imprint, Great Britain Susan Jarosz 2003, Class Notes, Borders College, Galashiels W.H. Weiss 2001, Building Morale, Motivating and Empowering Employees" Supervision. Vol. 62, Issue 1 pages 1-2

Military Rule

Many third world countries have been under military rule from time to time, for many years. The reasons behind this are many, and are complicated and interconnected. A military dictatorship gets established when political power rests with the military. Developing countries are so called because they are still in the process of development. These areas of development include economy, financial planning and budgeting, setting up of a working administrative machinery, a working constitution, a functional system of government, a system of institutions of education, a system of health, so on and so forth. Altogether, developing countries lack a lot of basic tools needed for proper functioning of a country. Civilians in general are disillusioned with life. There is widespread poverty and illiteracy. Flaws in the working of the system ultimately result in major problems for the common man. Neither is the health system strong, nor the education. The government usually does not provide for even the basic needs. People generally have large families, with no regular source of income. Since literacy is low, most people have confounded and obscure views, and do not understand the working of the system. People get frustrated, and blame the government for not providing for them. As public support begins to crumble, the administration gets weakened. In developing countries, politics is frequently a monopoly, handled by the rich few. Laws and rules can be bended and twisted as desired. And so this ‘feudal’ system of government results in economic and social collapse. Crime rates go on increasing, along with a host of other illegal activities. In the absence proper jobs, ordinary people turn to illicit ways of obtaining money. These are just some of the main problems. In case of a threat from another country, or a natural disaster, or food shortage, matters get worse. Often governments succumb to ill advised measures. And so goes on the cycle. Military rule comes in the absence of a strong government. There are many inter-related factors behind the prevalence of military rule, especially in third world countries. A weak civilian government can be disbanded easily, without much force. Historic examples of military rule include the Greek ‘Sparta [7]’ The ideology behind military rule is one based on discipline – the one thing a developing country lacks. Militarism is generally the belief of the far-right [7]. Under military rule, everything is under strict control of the army, and civilians are subservient to it, whether they like it or not. Civilian rule on the contrary advocates complete freedom, along with organized plans for social and economic development and establishment of diplomatic relations with other countries [7]. Militarism can also mean Martial Law [7]. When a normal judicial system is replaced by military rule, it is called martial law [7]. It is used mostly by authoritarian governments [7]. Earlier, it was imposed in times of war, or territorial occupation, to deal with trials of prisoners and soldiers [7]. It was also used by those countries with expansionist and imperialist policies [7]. Today, in developing countries, it is the easiest tool to bring a distraught and a disorganized society under control. Martial law trials are short, and usually severe when compared to normal court trials [7]. Many counties have now shifted to another system, in which a country is said to be in a ‘state of emergency,’ in place of martial law [7]. Martial law also gives the government the liberty of detaining anyone it thinks is a threat to national interest or security, even without adequate proof.   Media and press freedom is also under strict control. The few leading the hegemony can make decisions without hindrance, keeping the public and its opinions at bay. Under military rule, a country’s population has no say in any matter whatsoever. Without a parliament, all decisions are directly made by the autocrat and his collaborators, without the approval or disapproval of ministers. Think a little deeper, and it seems as if a country comes to an economic and social standstill if under military rule. This is exactly what most developing countries go through. One coup after another and the country lags behind even in the basic amenities of life. Egypt, for example, has been under martial law on and off from 1952 [7]. Gamal Abdel Nasser was the president of Egypt from 1956 until his death, in 1970 [7]. Algeria spent three decades under military rule (1965-1994) [7]. Mohammad Al-Gaddafi has been the de facto head of Libya since 1969. Nigeria has also been caught up in a tangle of coups. Adebowale, in his work criticizes the way military coups took to power, squandering money on lavish cars and houses, and turning into multi-billionaires overnight [10]. He also goes on to say that â€Å"Nigerians are mute because they are terror-stricken and know no other state [10].† He also states that â€Å"Several human rights activists continue to be unjustly detained [10].† Countries like Somalia, Sudan, Liberia, Philippines, Thailand, Ghana, Ethiopia, Bangladesh, Indonesia and Gambia have also been under military control often. Maureen Aung-Thwin criticized the undemocratic manner in which politics was run in Burma [9]. Uganda spent a decade under the rule of one man – Idi Amin [1]. As opposed to this, almost no first world country has been under military rule since almost 20 years. Military governments also justify themselves by claiming that it is important for political stability [7]. Military regimes tend to portray themselves as neutral and unbiased [7]. Though not always, military rule tends to have little respect for human rights, and often use force to silence their political opponents [7]. Another key factor is the convenience of having a military leadership, as opposed to the effort required for an elected one. Public choice can be conveniently ignored and new laws can be easily imposed. The general public is weak, with little or no voice of its own. With widespread illiteracy, public opinion can be suppressed, bribed, or even forced. The general public in developed countries, on the contrary is much stronger and aware of their due rights. Hunger for power and money make the entire system corrupt and fraudulent, with innumerable loopholes. With an influential background, anyone can come to power. High posts like those of governors and chief ministers are based on favoritism rather than open merit. Countries currently under military rule include Thailand, Myanmar, Egypt, Libya, Pakistan and Fiji [7]. If loosely stated, the three key factors behind prevalence of military rule in developing countries are the hunger for power and money, a large but weak civilian population, and convenience for the army. With just one man to make decisions, it gets very convenient for military personnel to run the country. In the end, it is the normal civilian population which suffers. In hopes of better prospects, people look forward to young and dynamic leaders, but in reality, the nation continues to live under a rigid and a totalitarian leadership. It is a widely believed notion that civilian rule is always better, long lasting, and makes a country prosperous. With free and fair democratic elections, the people themselves choose their leader, and so, everything falls in place, and the country can look forward to a brighter future.    Works Cited: Prince Adebowale, Samuel Abiodun, Nigeria: The Nation under Siege by Power Drunk and Ruthless Military Dictatorship,   1997 Aung-Thwin, Maureen, Burma: Political Economy Under Military Rule, (edited by Robert H. Taylor), 2001, New York: Palgrave (Global Publishing at St. Martin's Press), ISBN 0-312-23568-2. Birkhimer, William E, Military Government and Martial Law (third edition, revised), 1914, Kansas City: Missouri, Franklin Hudson Publishing Co. Chris, Alli M. The Federal Republic of Nigerian Army: The Siege of a Nation, 2002, Nigeria Malthouse, 9780231277 Fidel, Kenneth, 1975, Militarism in developing countries, Transaction Publishers ISBN 0878555854 Fink, Christina, Living Silence: Burma under military rule (politics in contemporary Asia), 2001, Zed Books Ltd. â€Å"Libya – History,† (2006, July 14), US Department of State's Background Notes, (Nov. 2005). Militarism, wikipedia, retrieved from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Militarism Olukotun, Ayo, Repressive Stat e and Resurgent Media under Nigeria’s Military Dictatorship, 1988-98, Nordic Africa Institute, (2004)      

Mandatory Minimum Sentencing Laws Should Be Legal Essay

Mandatory minimum sentencing laws entail binding prison terms to a certain length for people who have been convicted of state or federal crimes. These intransigent, â€Å"universally adaptable† sentencing laws may seem like an easy and quick solution for crime. However, these laws prevent judges from suiting the punishment to the criminal according to their offenses. Mandatory minimum sentencing causes not only state but federal prisons to overcrowd, extortionate tax costs, and deflect from law enforcement funds. Often times when a judge issues a sentence they have relatively no say on whether or not the defendant receives the sentence they deserve. Working as a federal judge no longer seems to be about presiding rather than strictly abiding to mandatory minimum sentencing laws. These laws almost entirely take judges out of the mix which can be very detrimental to the system. The purpose of a judge is to fairly convict criminals to a sentence they believe necessary. Now, judge s are just mediators between these laws and the defendant. These laws also do not guarantee that the sentence is just to the crime. Crimes such as kidnapping with a firearm is only punishable from one year to twenty-five meaning that the kidnapper would be out and capable of committing the crime once again after release. Home invasion has a minimum of ten and a maximum of twenty five years in prison, once again giving opportunity for the crime to be repeated. Not only this but heinous acts such asShow MoreRelatedMandatory Minimum Sentencing Laws Should Be Legal1150 Words   |  5 Pagesuse of mandatory minimum sentencing laws to keep drug offenders locked up for longer than they should be. Mandatory minimum sentencing laws are laws that require binding prison terms of a particular length for people convicted of certain federal and state crimes. Most mandatory minimum sentences apply to drug offenses, but Congress has enacted them for other crimes, including certain gun, pornography, and economic offenses. For the purpose of this paper, the focus will be on the mandatory minimumRead MoreThe Concept Of Mandatory Sentencing1096 Words   |  5 PagesThe concept of mandatory sentencing is a relatively new idea in the legal field. It was first introduced in 1951 with the Boggs Act, and it made simple marijuana possession a minimum of two to ten years with a $20,000 fine. This was eventually repealed by Congress in 1970, but mandatory sentences came back with the passage of the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1986. Since then, the scope and presence of mandatory sentencing has only grown, especially mandatory sentences for drug related offenses. RecentlyRead MoreAbolishing Mandatory Minimum Sentencing On The United States1690 Words   |  7 PagesAbolishing Mandatory Minimum Sentencing in the United States EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The concept of mandatory minimum sentencing has been plaguing the justice system of the United States of America for too many years and therefore must be abolished. If mandatory minimum sentencing were to be done away with, then the criminal justice system could finally start to bring desperately needed change to itself and start to get back to where it needs to be; a system that takes people with a problem andRead MoreThe Federal Mandatory Minimum Sentencing978 Words   |  4 Pagesmethod of sentencing criminals was the establishment of the mandatory minimum sentencing. During the early days of the republic, specific sentences were carried out for certain crime and early mandatory sentences the forms of punishment used at the time stretched from ducking stools/cucking stools for disorderly women and dishonest tradesmen in England, Soctland to hanging for convicted murderers. However, in recent years, evidence gathered have shown that the federal mandatory minimum sentenci ng wereRead MorePrison Blues : How America s Foolish Sentencing Policies Endanger Public Safety1033 Words   |  5 PagesRehnquist, a former Supreme Court Justice, stated his opinion of minimum sentencing during an often cited speech. As stated in his book Prison blues: How America s Foolish Sentencing Policies Endanger Public Safety, David Kopek credits Rehnquist with stating: These mandatory minimum sentences are perhaps a good example of the law of unintended consequences. There is a respectable body of opinion which believes that these mandatory minimums impose unduly harsh punishment for first-time offenders -- particularlyRead MoreCriminal Justice Outline1660 Words   |  7 PagesArraignment- Guidelines and Process of Law b. Trial- Judge and Supreme court roles c. Sentencing – 3 types Sentencing a. Determinate- pros and cons b. Indeterminate- pros and cons c. Mandatory- pros and cons d. Specific or general deterrence Determinate sentencing a. Time- Each punishment is set person to person regardless b. Punishment- does not discriminate c. Community- deter people from committing it again Indeterminate Sentencing a. Courts and judges role in helpingRead MoreMandatory Minimum Sentences For Nonviolent Drug Crimes Essay1644 Words   |  7 PagesMandatory Minimum Sentences For the vast majority of crimes committed in the United States, the fate of those who have been found guilty is left in the hands of a judge, after a trial by jury. However, since the 1950’s the fate of nonviolent drug offenders has been shifted to the hands of the partisan prosecution with the expansion of mandatory sentencing. Mandatory minimum sentencing is a system which sets minimum jail sentences for crimes, which not even judges can overturn. In the decades afterRead MoreFences Of Mandatory Sentencing1923 Words   |  8 Pages3.1 Offences where Mandatory Sentencing is Applied Mandatory sentencing currently applies for many offences. Stated in the CCA, section 279(4), adults who are guilty of murder must be sentenced to life imprisonment. Under section 90(1a) of the SA it also states life imprisonment must be imposed with a minimum of 15 years without parole. Section 318(2) of the CCA states if a person is over 16 but under 18 and committs a serious assult against any officer (police, transit, security etc) a term of detentionRead MoreIt s Time For Re Think Mandatory Minimums1607 Words   |  7 PagesIt’s Time to Re-think Mandatory Minimums During the mid-1980’s an epidemic of cocaine and crack swept the nation leaving many wondering what could be done to eliminate this problem that reached everywhere from small town middle America to the larger metropolitan areas. It has always been the common acceptance that by putting more offenders in jail, crime statistics will decrease. This belief led congress to enact the anti-drug abuse act of 1986. At first, it was believed that this seemed to workRead MoreMandatory Sentencing For Minor Drug Offences957 Words   |  4 Pagesdollars later, we are still fighting this war (Branson). All that we have to show for this war is drugs running rampant and tons of citizens incarcerated. Mandatory sentencing for minor drug offences should be overturned due to overflowing prisons, damaging families, and the scare tactic it was created to be has failed. Due to mandatory sentencing for minor drug offences, the American prison system is overflowing with inmates. According to E. Ann Carson, a Statistician for the Bureau of Justice Statistics