Electric and Music industries limited Essay

EMI or electric automobile and Music industries limited is a British symphony compe rattling founded in 1931 as a vector sum of a giant merger of two companies namely the UK Columbia Graphoph wiz company and Gramophone company. Initially it was winding in manufacture of recording and play tooshie equipment and provision of euphony to play in its machines. EMI Group Plc comprises two study companies i. e. EMI medicinal drug based in Kensington, London England and EMI publishing based in New York. EMI is one of the quaternity music companies in the demesne. The other three are Sony BMG, Warner group, and Universal music group.As we shall see Terra Firma, great partners now own EMI since august 2007. This change of ownership was because of drastic decline in sales and a huge loss to the tune of 2000 million pounds in 2006/20007 pecuniary year (http//www. occupancyweek. com/magazine/content/03_06/b3819058. htm? chan=search). This passing saw several artists walk come in of E MI including Radio head, Sir Paul McCartney among others. The take all everywhere as well as saw Guyhands, the impudently owner bring in new- bemuse restructuring policies to reduce the labor scathes by two cardinal pounds.This was to be achieved by bring shootting up to two hundred workers out of the 5000 plus EMI labor rage (http//www. cornerc. com/emi. htm). Initially EMI majored in the manufacture of gramophones, which went on achievement amply for a period of 40 years. However, during and later the world war two they ventured in the manufacture of radar equipment and guided missiles. They later began to manufacture broadcasting equipments with BBC be their main customers. They employed skilled engineers an example such was Godfreys Hounsefield who came up with the first s put forwardning machine, used in medical imaging. EMIs strategic choicesAlthough EMI was established along time ago, an indicator that it had cut itself a turning point in the music production patience, it had to grow up with regular strategies to maintain its position in the foodstuff. This was also necessary to stay in level with its business rival e. g. Warner music group and others. In any business, it is mandatory that to acquire a large market share a manufacturer must upgrade quality products. This aspect of quality is what customers look for and so EMI embarked on producing quality and efficient products through the fight of skilled work wildness play such as engineers.For instance the re skilled and able engineers who make sure that quality and efficiency was not compromised. Another very important tool EMI used to bite out its competitors was by signing contracts with popular artists. It roster of artists included both(prenominal) local and international artists who releases new albums every now and then. These regular releases helped EMI to offer its customers a large rage of music choices. Emi continued investiture heavily in the very best song writ ing standards across the world. Local artists included the hammer Boys, Nora Jones.Lenny Krawtz, among others while artists from other regions included Japans Noriyoku Matiara, Latin Americans Marissa Monte, continental atomic military issue 63s Raffael, Diam among legion(predicate) others. These best talents enabled EMI to maximize all potential revenue opportunities. Due to hypercompetitive spirit of the music industry, EMI has always been on the look out to remain executive in the industry. This, they have achieved by making systematic decisions, monitoring the decision effects, and adjusting where necessary. EMIs fast, efficient and flexible business intelligence group draws these strategies. done this intelligence team, EMI was able to embark on facilitating a new architecture for selling its products. They engage an IT firm, Avanade who successfully designed a web services solution. This new architecture helped EMI to take advantage of whimsical interactive market oppo rtunities, which offered a competitive advantage when signing new artists. EMI has also labored inexhaustibly in creation of new products, formats, channels, and new partnerships as a real competitive tool over its rivals. For instance, EMI diversified its distri stillion channels by introducing digital online selling.This has supplemented the physical selling method. As expected, this online selling has helped to cut the costs of shipping, and offered survey to its customers dollars. Another competitive advantage of this method is that its dynamic, secure, and its flexible for slatternly extension to new E-commerce business technology initiative (http//www. avanade. com/customers/casestudy. aspx? id=39). EMI has also focused on creating of very harming music content and making it available where consumers want it, when they need it, and in the format, they want it.This has helped them to maximize the demands for its artist works. Of more(prenominal) importance is the diversifi cation of its product range, which has been a routine exercise as part of their business products. New corporate partnerships have been created and therefore making EMIs music available in more than 56 countries. However, this market diversification has posed a greater challenge due to sprouting of both physical and digital piracy. However, through a serial of successful legal suits the company has made rise in combating unscrupulous pirates.Another tool EMI continues to use in order to broaden its international market is by establishing right relationships on the right terms. This has made them to be in the fore front of the music industry and there fore exploiting new products and possibilities that digital technologies brings e. g. this innovative digital approach, saw EMI music unwrap the first ever album available on i-tunes. An indicator of how EMI music is exploiting new opportunities that digital technologies brings (http//billboard. blogs. com/billboardpostplay/2005/06/s ales_and_marke. html) .Through these digital innovations, EMI music has therefore ventured in a wide geographical region with ventures in N. America, Japan, Continental Europe, Latin America, Australia, and in S. East Asia. In all this regions EMI music has entered into joint ventures with local companies, making its products to be widely accepted by the locals, a phenomenon, which could have been the other way if EMI music decided to go on its own. These international ventures have been successful because British had many colonies across the globe. Therefore, it has been promiscuous to market EM products in the common wealth countries (http//www. ybase. com/detail? id=1025595).EMI limited is now one of the four leading companies after Universal music group, Warner music group and Sony BMG. Therefore, measures to protect it and make it sustainable strong in the music industry market have to be arrived at. His measures are not only purely for protection but also for building the com pany further. An example of such measure was EMIs bold proposal head for the hills to buy its music rival Warner group. EMI argued that this move will not only cut down the cost of unnecessary competition but also will add value to the company share value in the London rip exchange market.Warner on its side did not take the proposal positively. EMI has also invested hugely on intensive marketing and promotion through collaboration with mobile phone manufacturers e. g. T-mobile which uses EMI music as its ring tunes. In addition, EMI music has entered into contracts with advertisers and media houses as a way of diversifying its revenue opportunities. Another milestone EMI has achieved in protecting its market share is by proper use of copyrights and hence reducing piracy. detailed success factorsIn order to achieve all the supra strategies and objectives, EMI had to come up with a series of practices. These practices, which are in other words referred to as critical success facto rs, included the following develop a distinctive approach towards its list of artists, which are its main assets. Also making consistence enthronement in artists with long-term carrier potential and maximizing its local and global sales. Another factor was getting in partnership with willing music companies across the world. This approach was seen as the only way EMI products would be readily accepted by customers globally.From EMIs financial and performance data, it is evident that to nigh extend they achieved these success strategies. This is clearly shown by the number of business ventures it entered into the globe e. g. in Asia, Australia, North and South America among many other places. In addition, the roster of artists affiliated to EMI speaks volumes about this. It s evident then that EMIs strategies and objectives were very much appropriate initially. This is the reason as to why EMI has been successful for a very long period. The strategies were in line with its resour ces and capabilities.EMIs recourses and capabilities It is evident that the long term EMIs success did not just come on a silver platter, it was occasioned by intensive investment of capital, intensive marketing and promotion, tireless efforts by its skilled and able workers, regular releasing of albums by its long roster of artists, and lastly prevailing counterinsurgency and stability in many countries it ventured into. To begin with, the main asset towards the support of EMIs strategies was their large meter of artists who were blessed with immense real musical talent.These artists released new hits every now and then and therefore this made EMI to be constantly in business, hence its expansion to overseas market. EMI being a company that started back before the start of the world war two stands a better chance in terms of competitive advantage from its rivals. This is so because its long time presence in music production industry makes it to have built a reputation with new an d old artists. Long time presence in music industry makes it to be popular with its customers and therefore its volume of sales have always been in high spirits until lately when it started making losses.To satisfy its customer s demand as we saw earlier EMI achieved this by investing heavily in new technology whereby new brands of products were released every now and then. This new technology was achieved through EMIs large workforce of able and skilled technicians. EMI group have two branches i. e. EMI music, and EMI publishing though they are very much separate from one another as its normal in music industry. These two branches have contributed a lot in making EMI what it is today.This is so because they supplement one another in that, the publisher branch publishes and records musical tracks while the music branch offers distribution and marketing services and thus EMI managed to sail successfully in its business endeavors. Its variety of branches also gave its customers a wid e choice of products. These brands included music packaged in physical devices like disks and music digitally delivered to customers online. The above recourses and capabilities and many more others are what made EMI to be strategically capable in edging out its rivals, business wise.An evaluation of EMIs current strategies Today the company being under the ownership of Terra Firma it has to make new strategies as one of the core actions in its efforts of regaining its disconnected glory. An example of these strategies is the labor force down sizing which its new owner, Mr. Guy Hands, brought in. Literally, this strategy will mean that a quite number of workers will face the axe. Its suitability therefore is wanting, because it will be contracting the companys initial policies since quite a number of sectors of production will remain understaffed.All the same, it is worthy the cause since in the end expenses will shoot down and the saved funds channeled towards the main objective o f reviving the at a time renowned music powerhouse (http//helium. com. tm/494190/music-industry-dying-painful). By looking at EMIs business surround it not clear whether it will regain its lost market share. This is because the take over by terra firma was worsen by the walking away of some of its of long time artists therefore it will be difficult to win the back.It can also be argued that Mr. Guy Hands strategy was not in good faith because may be his main intention was to come up with a invent that will see him recover his money he paid for the takeover deal (httpwww. whatmakesagoodleader. com/Porters-five-forces. html). In terms of feasibility, which is concerned with whether the strategy is implemental it can be said that cutting the labor force although easy to implement can be of no consequence when it comes to regaining its lost market share.This so because when some of EMIs artists left, they obviously signed contracts with other music companies, which are probably its t hree major rivals and therefore increasing the level of competition. Basing this argument on competition, cutting the number of employees will not bring down the level of competition. Again, EMI badly needs the services of some of its experienced workers to turn around the situation face it. For instance, EMI needs the services of IT technicians to bring new and fresh technological ideas to gain that competitive advantage over its three main rivals.It is in order that the money which were to be paid to the retrenched workers will be invested in researching for more technology, but in real sense new technologies mean more labor force to work on it (http//www1. ximb. ac. in/users/fac/dpdash/dpdash. nsf/pages/BP_Evaluation). On acceptability of this strategy, it remains to be seen because now EMI has been faced with financial constraints and hence its subsequent change of ownership. This change of ownership saw EMI being delisted from the London stock market, and mass walkouts of long time loyal artists.This is a phenomenon, which means that its volume of sales went down considerably, and hence making EMI to find its self in a financial quagmire. This also affected the capital coordinate of the company with the shareholders being forced to sell their shares to the new owner. This policy also affected the functions of different departments in the organization. Some departments were merged, while others were scraped all together. The companys reputation also went down especially its customers, suppliers lost faith in it, and therefore it can be said the general acceptability of this strategy was relatively poor.In conclusion it can be deduced that it will take some time for the company to fully regain its lost glory this so because in the music a single flop can lead to long time consequences. Music production is unique in that it involves the signing of long-term co tracts with artists, suppliers and stakeholders and therefore breaching such contracts is not a common thing. Unless during abnormal occurrences like in the case of the take-over of EMI by Terra Firma. However, EMI can build on from its other range of products to regain its popularity and market share.