G topics

G topics A Unipolar World spells disaster for underdeveloped countries like India Is Globalization Really Necessary? What shall we do about our ever-increasing population? Corruption is the price we pay for democracy Foreign television channels are destroying our culture What India needs is a dictatorship With media publishing and telecasting trivia, censorship is the need of the hour Kaun Banega Krorepati is less about knowledge but more about money and personality Beauty contests degrade womanhood The rise of regional blocs threatens independent nations like India Six billion and one ronze!Is dependence on computers a good thing? Should the public sector be privatized? China and India are similar nations with contrasting ways Is India a Soft Nation? Value based politics is the need of the hour Religion should not be mixed with politics How to deal with high oil prices Our cricketers are not to blame for match fixing Why cant we be world players in industry as we are in software? Mu ltinational corporations: Are they devils in disguise? Should there be limits on artistic freedom (the controversy on Fire). Should there be private universities?Does banning fashion shows and New Year parties save our culture? Are Big Dams Necessary? Films are corrupting the Indian Youth A Gandhian State selling liquor is an anomaly Bride burning and dowry may look bad, but are an integral part of India Our Culture is Decaying We are not serious about saving Wildlife/Environment The education system needs serious reforms The impact of MTV on our psyche Showing Violence and Crimes should not be allowed in films and on television Let us legalize gambling Is management an art or a science? The Rush for MBA is really a rush for big moneyEthics in Business are Just a passing fashion The objective of Management is to maximize profits Do professional managers have a chance in our family run businesses? The Internet Is an MBA necessary to succeed in life? Family owned business vs. professi onally run businesses Smaller businesses and start-ups have more scope for professional growth Dot com or doubt com? The Wheel is Turning Round and Round If I was the Finance Minister/Prime Minister There is no right way to do a wrong thing Group Task: How can we have Mount Everest in India?Do Beauty and Brains Go Together? When I woke up in the morning I saw†¦ A ship docked in harbor cannot face the storms Up the Down Staircase Just as we have smoke free zones, we should have child free zones Marriage is a social trap India needs dictatorship or democracy Education and success -direct correlation Indian villages-our strength or weakness Budget-good or bad Role of NGOs in todays world (and India) International Women's Day MBA necessary for successful business? Are beauty pageants Justified? Is coalition politics here to stay?India needs a dictator? Is India moving away from a secularist state? Education in India – or the lack of it What ails Indian sports? The Age of Inf ormation Is Philosophy Just an armchair theory? Success is all about human relations Borderless worlds – Dream or reality? Quality is a myth in India. Education and success – Is there a correlation? We dont learn from history, we repeat it Dowe need a global policeman? Indian villages – our strength or our weakness? Agrarian Economy in India – boon or bane If there were no armies in the world†¦.Open book examination system would eliminate all the ills of present system. (Dept. of Fin. Studies, DO, March'99) Women's empowerment will lead to social development 11M Kozhikode, March'99) Computers result in unemployment (FMS Delhi, March'99) Indians lack a sense of social responsibility (MDI Gurgaon, March'99) Are we raising a generation of burnt out children? (IIMB, Mar 97) Advertising is all glitter and little truth. (MICA, Apr '97) Is bureaucracy a hindrance to economic reforms in India? llMCJuly '97) Film-makers are indulging in cinematic Fortitution in the name of folk culture. (IIML, Mar'97) Under Indian parliamentary democracy it is impossible to ensure balanced regional development. (IIMC, Mar 97 ) In an over-regulated society corruption is inevitable. MICA, Apr 97) For the poorer sections of society, a state-controlled economy is better than a liberalized economy. (IIMC-PGDCM, March'97) With IT replacing middle level management, software Jobs are more lucrative than MBAs (S.P Jain, March'99) Do you think accent holds you back? Would you prefer everyone speaking uniformly? (XIM Bhubaneswar, March'99) Men resent women power at work place (NMIMS, March'99) Youth in India are becoming greedy by the day (MICA, March'99) MBAs should be taxed at higher rates in the country (IIMB April'99) Group Discussion topics asked in SCMHRD on 12/2/2001 IT boom in India. Large Dams are a must for India's development. Leaders should be followers first. Should the Government ban India from playing cricket match in sharJah?Justify. Why more girls choose Human Relations Management. Advertising and ethics. IT  ¤ What does the future hold? Recommendation? Conscription should be made compulsory. Why is patriotism lacking in India? What Ails India more – corruption or Overpopulation. What should India do to preserve its IT command over the World. IIFT GD Topics on 20-02-2001 India makes nuclear bombs, but cannot make quake resistant houses. Role of money in elections Fast changes in Information Technology- excitement or agony?

Book Reflection : The Book Of Negroes

It's 1802 and Aminata Diallo, now an old woman, sits down to write her life story at the request of the Abolitionists in London. Abducted from her village in West Africa at the age of eleven and marched in a coffle (a string of slaves) for three months before reaching the coast, Aminata survives the voyage to America and ends up sold to an indigo plantation owner in South Carolina. She describes herself as lucky, because compared to the tragic circumstances and end of so many other black slaves, Aminata manages to survive using her wits, her skills as a midwife, her ability to pick up new skills quickly, and her strength of character.She witnesses many horrors and sorrows, and experiences them as well, that make her ponder the human nature and the hypocrisy of religions, even her own. Yet through it all surprisingly she does not succumb to anger or hatred; she wants only to be together with her husband, Chekura, their children, who are all taken from her and her homeland.When Britain surrenders to the rebels they keep their promise to the Black Loyalists – in a way. With a certificate proving they have worked behind British lines for at least a year, they can sign their name in the Book of Negroes and be given passage to a British colony. Most are sent to Nova Scotia, including Aminata. She may have escaped the American slave owners but she hasn't escaped the prejudice, fear and hatred with which the blacks face everywhere they go. The opportunity to return to Africa – the dream she's always had – comes her way, but if she ever wants to see her home village of Bayo again she'll have to make a deal with the devil.out of all the books I have read about slavery this novel is by far the greatest. This book is going straight onto my â€Å"favourites† list. The Book of Negroes is a powerful story on many fronts: it's a very human story, sympathetic, honest, fair to the greys of history, thought-provoking, poignant.One of the beautiful thin gs about this book is how, as a reader, you feel more in tune with the Africans, while the whites seem strange, alien, bewildering, contradictory. I don't mean that Hill paints an uneven picture – far from it, the rendering of history into something visceral, tangible, grants perspective and context. It's not a simple matter of â€Å"white man, bad; black man, victim†. That's what I mean by this book being honest: honest about human nature, about the complexities of history, without making excuses for anyone of any colour. I don't mean that there weren't characters who enrage you, but that they are presented relatively free of the taint of presentism.If you're not familiar with the term, â€Å"presentism† refers to our natural tendency to judge history through the lens of the present, by our own modern standards, rather than acknowledging and positioning things within a historical perspective. Hill has done an admirable job of completely immersing us in the 18th century, creating a protagonist who is a product of the time as much as one of circumstance.Hill has managed to write a convincing, wonderful female protagonist – frankly, not many male writers are this successful. Aminata is unflinchingly honest with herself and others, and by being so thoroughly in her head, she gives us what the Africans needed most during slavery: a voice, the understanding that she's just like us, not some black beast from darkest Africa – heathen, barbarian, uncivilised. As in some other books, the irony comes through clearly: which is the uncivilised race? Who is the barbarian? When Aminata arrives in London, the first thing she sees are the legless beggars on the street, the filth and crowds and pretensions. She doesn't even need to say anything.Another irony is the rebellion in the American colony – Aminata is in New York when things get nasty, and constantly hears the white Americans talking about being slaves to the British, and figh ting for their freedom. Aminata doesn't need to point out anything here, and I don't think I do either.Her own people don't come off smelling of roses either. The book is thoroughly researched and historically accurate, and makes no bones about Africans enslaving each other well before the white people came, and it is  Africans who capture Aminata, kill her parents, torch her village, and sell her to the white slavers. Slavery has a long, long history, and no race, it seems, is exempt. The Egyptians did it, the Chinese, the Japanese, the Israelites were famously enslaved, the Romans are guilty – and what is feudalism if not a form of slavery, which the English and French and others used for a very long time?If nothing else, this book highlights the fact that, no matter what colour you are or what your diet is, we are all human and share this intangible thing called human nature. Cruelty exists everywhere, and cannot be simply attributed to your race, though neither can it b e excused. This is why I insist that the history of black slavery – while it existed predominantly between the British slaving companies and the Americas – is everyone's history. For a comprehensive story covering three different continents and exposing many of the situations black slaves, runaways and freed slaves faced, you can't go wrong with this one.It's also beautifully written. Aminata has a simple, honest style, without embellishment or fanciful detail. She rarely passes judgement, but offers her own thoughts and perspective subtly. She is captured just before reaching puberty and so, ironically, escapes female circumcision, which her people practised (removing the clitoris and part of the labia, and sewing up the vaginal entrance – extraordinarily painful and meant to make a woman â€Å"pure† for her husband – Aminata isn't keen but doesn't judge; I on the other hand believe it is the cruellest form of torture you can do to a woman and the re's no excuse for it. It's an old African tradition, nothing to do with Islam, and still occurs in some places like Ethiopia).There are moments of violence and cruelty, because that was largely the life of the black slaves, but while Aminata doesn't gloss over them, neither does she dwell on them in such detail that you shy away from the book.I was walking one day behind a yoked man who swerved without warning to the left. I had no time to react, and my foot sank into something wet and soft. Something like a twig cracked under my heel. I let out a scream. Under my  foot was the body of a naked, decomposing man. I jumped away and ripped leaves from the nearest branch. In a frenzy, I wiped a mass of wriggling white worms from my ankle. I was shaking and wheezing. Fanta took the leaves and wiped my foot and held me and told me not to be afraid. But my hysteria escalated, even though Fanta barked at me to calm down, and I could not stop screaming. (p41)For all that Aminata and other slaves go through, she deserves the right to tell her whole story and not shy from the unpleasant details, or have her account censored. Remember her audience: white, genteel 19th century English men and women, the Abolitionist committee, the court of law, the common people who can read the newspapers in which parts of her story are published. It is the early 1800s, Regency London – the same time and place in which we love to read carefree romance novels that are free of the taint of black slavery – and the English have no real idea or any sympathy for what the black slaves endured. She argued to be the one to write her own story, by herself, and she refused to let the Abolitionists remove details that â€Å"couldn't be proven†. Even though she is a fictional character in a fictional account, she deserves to be heard by us as well.There's one other thing I just have to mention: the evolution of the African-American dialect. I've come to appreciate it because of this book. I mean, I always understood that it was their way of forming a new identity, one that couldn't be taken away from them, even now. But as they learnt English, as slaves, what would happen if they spoke like their masters? Aminata learns this, she learns the dialect that the slaves speak to each other, and the grammatically stronger but far from perfect English they use with the white people.They needed a way to speak to each other without the whites understanding, yet they all came from different African tribes speaking one of thousands of African languages, or they were born on plantations and don't know any African languages at all, and so they devise their own way of speaking, close to English but entirely of their own creation. After Aminata escapes slavery, she drops this dialect and speaks â€Å"proper† English, but I get the sense it is due to her ability to learn languages quickly and well, and her desire not to be looked down upon,  rather than a form of pretension. It certainly makes her a bit of a curiosity with the white people.The Book of Negroes is a masterpiece of historical literature, capturing the contradictions of the human condition in graceful, honest prose, and gifting us with a new, entirely sympathetic protagonist.

Assignment 6 Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Assignment 6 - Research Paper Example In this regard, Data works have extreme support towards the successive evaluation of various school counselling programs. There are huge numbers of schools whose data records are to be kept appropriately for the easy evaluation of these counselling programs. School counsellors with support of other members of the school build paper works regarding the learning, participation in various programs, undisciplined behaviour and absenteeism of the students. In addition, school counsellor delivers information to the principal of the schools so that they must structure an overall data of the students in an excel sheet and other data storing software to have a better track record of the actions of students. Moreover, l counsellors should organize meetings with parents, teachers and students to reveal the effectiveness of the counselling programs towards the educational, social along with future career development of the students. They should deliver motivational thoughts with practical exampl es so that it encourages the students. They should also share the survey status wherein illiteracy along with the poverty rates has arised due to lack of proper education and career programs. These actions of the counsellors would motivate and create a positive environment for the students to have a bright future (1American School Counselor Association 1-4; Young and Kaffenberger 1-31). Furthermore, professional school counsellors play a crucial role towards efficient implementation of â€Å"School Counselling Programs†. School counsellors have various responsibilities for assessing and evaluating appropriate and successful counselling programs. Therefore, they have to plan the academic program of the students and organize aptitude, cognitive and achievement tests from the students. They also need to organize counselling programs for the absentees, undisciplined students as well as to address the

Biology Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 1

Biology - Essay Example (Johansen CA and Mayer D.F, 1990) The importance of pollinators like bees is such that in an extensive report prepared by the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) of the UN it has been found out that 90% of the food supplies that are used for feeding 146 countries, over 71% of the crops were cross pollinated by bees. Other insects included wasps, beetles and wasps. These insects can therefore be considered as critical agents in the food chain as it is responsible for the reproduction of flowers and food bearing crops. (Free J.B, 1993) Food production to a large extent will be compromised in the event of these natural pollinators fading away. A recent report from North America states that a disease called ‘Israeli acute paralysis’ viruses was responsible for the disappearance of a large percentage of honey bees in what was called ‘ Colony Collapse Disorder’ (CCD). The reasons were mainly attributed to the fact that the origins of the virus were contributed to by humans. (Kluser Stephane and Peduzzi Pascal, 2007) Decline of Pollinators Recent studies conducted in the UK and Netherlands as late as in 2006 suggests that there has been close to 70% reduction of insect pollination for a certain category of wild flowers. (Biesmeijer Jc et al, 2006) Part of the reason is that close to 3.4% of butterflies causing this pollination has become extinct with an equal decrease of 71% of butterfly species. (Warren M.S et al, 2001) Source: Free J.B, 1993, Effect of bees on food output. The other recorded significant event was that of the Colony Collapse Disorder in North America. In 2007 there was major decline of one third of the honey bee population which had a domino effect on the crop production. This is because a major portion of the food crops cultivated by farmers in North America relied on the pollination of bees, butterflies and flies. About 95 different types of food crops are being cross pollinated by these insects. (Morse R.A and Caldero ne N.W, 2000) Some of the factors that were attributed to this decline in North American bees included attack by parasites known as Varroa Destructor. Imports of African bees also lead to incompatibility issues. The unrestrained uses of pesticides in crops also lead to the death of these bees. (i) Symptom of CCD- Absence of adult bees in the hives was the primary symptom. The presence of a lot of immature bees along with abundance of food in the form of honey was also an indicator. The bee colonies started collapsing and sugar syrup that is fed as food was not being consumed. Further the task force was being limited to only young bees. (Kluser Stephane and Peduzzi Pascal, 2007) (ii) Causes of CCD (a) To overcome the attack from mites these beehives were being subjected to increased dosage of chemicals resulting in irreversible damage. (b) Pathogens like Paenibacillus Larvae and parasites had found their way into the bee ecosystem. (Kluser Stephane and Peduzzi Pascal, 2007) (c) The f itness levels of bees experienced major decline as was deduced by the release of stress proteins. (d) Use of Insecticides. (e) Theories have also suggested the radiations that were emitted by the towers engaged in mobile communication affect the bees in an adverse manner although this has not been substantiated

Diary Entries (About a Brit Lit Character) Essay

Diary Entries (About a Brit Lit Character) - Essay Example Fortunately, it does not work with me. It is very clear to me that there is something lurking beneath that casual hospitality. Well then, let me attend to other matters my friend. It has been hours since I went up here to my favorite room at the mezzanine. Yours, H. 23th April 635 My Dear Friend, It has been almost a month since I last shared my reflections with you. I am holding a cameo medallion that I gave to my Queen during our wedding. Oh and yes! The ring! That wonderful piece of intaglio jewelry that she loved very much. The stones were embedded beyond the gold’s surface. I cannot forget the look on her face when I gave the pieces to her. I wonder what’s happening between us now. She seems distant. Anyway, I need to go as it seems I lost track of time. I hear the morning sound of the campanile from the nearby chapel already Yours, H. 1st May 635 My Dear Friend, My dear Queen is very happy with my consent to invite my brother over. She is talking about having a pa lace ball, to coincide with our anniversary. She is thinking of ordering some fresco paintings for the rotunda, the palace hall where she intends to accept the majority of the guests. Also, she mentioned about using a new type of wares called majolica. She mentioned how colorful the earthenwares are, and she wants the guests to be served in a new fashion.

Nursing Leadership & Management in Practice Essay

Nursing Leadership & Management in Practice - Essay Example Never for a moment should she let members of her staff forget that they are nursing human beings, not diseases. The patient is an individual, the member of a family and of the community. He may be intelligent or unintelligent, educated or uneducated, American or some other nationality, but he has feelings and emotions which influences his emotions which influences his attitudes and actions. Before working as a staff on a nursing care unit, the nurses generally completed their training in mentoring and nursing. Patients will be grateful to a thoughtful nurse who anticipates his personnel needs and remembers his individual preferences, nevertheless he should be given the opportunity to make further requests and to participate in the planning of his care if he is able and desires to do so. During convalescence or a long chronic illness, the patient needs something to occupy his mind, be its pleasant companions, reading, games handwork, or assisting with the work of the ward. He needs faith in his nurses, their knowledge and dependability of judgment. He needs the sense of security that comes from the feeling that are people are working together-doctor, nurses, maids, porters-and not at cross purposes. He needs the confidence which results from knowing that the entire nursing staff is interested in him, is sympatric and understanding, knows his needs, has plan for his care, and is doing everything in its power to help him regain and maintain his health. The patient who has required an injury or an illness which places permanent limitations on his activity or makes necessary a change in his pattern of living needs help in accepting the restrictions, help in marshalling his resources and finding was to live happily and usefully within the limits of its illness. The good nurse recognizes early any social and emotional factors which contribute to the patient's illness and its prolongation and which inhibit his peace of mind. Since man patients need more help than she is prepared to give, nurse refer them to another individual or agency for assistance when necessary. 2. Nursing - Leadership & Management in Practice Identification of Skills The responsible for a nurse lies on promoting finest health and for preventing ill health. Nurses occupy a primary role in assessing nursing requirements, considering their medical, emotional and family circumstances, then plan and deliver care in hospitals, outpatient departments and in transit between hospitals. Typical work activities will vary according to the role, but they can include: The Nursing process is often Assessment Diagnosis Planning Implementation EvaluationThe nurse through her close contact with the patients learns of social problems which may need to be referred to a medial social worker. She also is in position to recognize when the services of a public health nurse would be advantageous and is responsible for supplying the agency with sufficient accurate information. Many patients will feel to receive the necessary home care and supervision unless the hospital staff nurse is alert to his needs and his ability to met hem without help. Teaching of the patient about his condition, his care and the ways of attaining optimum health should begin as early in

Referencing Skills and Ethics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Referencing Skills and Ethics - Essay Example Sloman(2010) has pointed out that "Oligopoly occurs when just a few firms between them share a large proportion of industry"(Sloman, 2010, p.135). It is evident from the above definitions that in oligopoly market conditions, the firms are interdependent and hence the decisions taken by one firm about the price and output of their product may affect other firms in the oligopoly setup. OPEC (Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries) is one best example for oligopoly. On the other hand, monopoly is a market condition in which a person or an enterprise has sufficient control over a particular market, service or product. For example Microsoft has immense control over the operating system market all over the world and they control around 90% of the OS market worldwide. In other words they have monopolized the OS market and they can determine the price of their product without considering the factors like competition. This paper briefly compares oligopoly with monopoly Firstly, an oligopoly maximizes profits by producing where marginal revenue equals marginal costs (Ison and Wall, 2007, p.150). Moreover, Riley (2006) has mentioned that barriers to entry are high in oligopoly market and â€Å"the dominant firms in the long run would maintain supernormal profits† (Riley, 2006). It is possible for small firms to operate in the proximity of the oligopolistic market, but none of them would be able to make any impacts on the market price and output. On the other hand, in a monopolistic market, it is impossible for small firms to operate because of the total supremacy of the monopolistic firm in the market. Consider the case of Microsoft. No other firms, big or small, so far able to compete with Microsoft because of the absolute monopoly enjoying by Microsoft. Negbennebor & Willis (2001) has pointed out that â€Å"there are many barriers to entry in oligopoly market such as economies of scale, patents, access to

The Rise of Mao Zedong within the Communist Party in China, Essay

The Rise of Mao Zedong within the Communist Party in China, Culminating in the Proclamation of the Peoples Republic of China in 1949 - Essay Example He started his career as a teacher. In 1918 he left for Beijing and worked as assistant librarian at the Beijing University. There he became member of Marxist study group. In 1919, he returned to Changsha and became more attracted to the message of Russian revolution and Leninist version of Marxism. Mao was one of the thirteen delegates who attended the Chinese communist party's founding congress which was secretly convened in Shanghai in July 1921 (Mao, 2011). Mao was more attracted to countryside and peasants than cities and proletariats. He spent more time on studying the rural socio economic conditions and focused on organising the peasants. In fact, he discovered the great revolutionary potential of peasants. The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has merged with the nationalist party of Kuomintang in 1923. However, this partnership did not last long. By 1927, it became clear that Mao and Chiang had different perceptions on Soviet interests in China. Mao supported Soviet Union while Chiang opposed it. As a result, the CCP- Kuomintang alliance broke. Both the leaders competed for domination of China. While Mao focused on rural areas, Chiang focused on urban areas. In 1927, Mao published the Report on an Investigation of the Peasant Movement in Hunan. It contained the important ideas of Mao. He believed in the power of the peasants and described it as a tornado. In his opinion it is "so extraordinarily swift and violent that no power, however great, will be able to suppress it." (2011). He believed in the revolutionary creativity of peasants which Marxist-Leninists reserved for the Communist Party. According to Mao, it is not the party which has to determine the revolutionary capabilities of the peasants, but the peasants who has to judge the capability of the party for revolution. From April, 1927 onwards, Chiang Kai-shek focused on destroying communists and their organisational base in urban areas. Rise of Mao Mao had great admiration for sun Tzu and gave prior ity to maintaining an army. So he formed the Red Army. He knew that war against the powerful state will take years to win. He worked for gaining support for the red army among the peasants. He followed the tactic of sun Tzu, attack when stronger and retreat when weak (Seize the Night, 2010). Mao applied this strategy four times when confronted with the strong forces of Chiang. In 1930, a notable incident called the Futien incident occurred. That is, Mao suspected that a red army unit in Jiangxi is not supporting him and so ordered execution of 3000 officers and men. This shows Mao’s strict nature. Between December 1930 and September 1931, there were three guerrilla campaigns under the leadership of Mao, but failed. The fourth guerrilla campaign in 1932-33 was also a failure. But, the fifth one succeeded. In 1934, after series of defeats, the communists and three red armies were pinned down in the mountains of Jiangxi Province in southern China. The communist army became exhau sted as a result of harassment form the Kuomintang. As a result of the nationalist offensive, the communists and the red armies decided to flee their southern bases and retreat to meet Communist forces in Shaanxi, Gansu and Ningxia in northern China (Hays, 2011). This retreat is known as the long march. It was a six thousand mile march. The long march began in Jiangxi on October 16, 1934 and crossed 24 rivers, 18 mountain ranges (5 covered with snow) and 11 provinces before it ended after 368 days at the caves of Yenan on the edge of the Gobi desert in northern China (Hays, 2011). On January 8, 1935, they met in Zunyi in Guizhou province. There, they discussed the future leadership of the communist party. The old leadership and generals of the red army supported Mao. He was made the

International Economic Problems Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

International Economic Problems - Coursework Example It measures the average price of goods relative to the average price of goods of trading partners. a. The Calculation of the multilateral trade-weighted annual U.S. dollar exchange rates (USD per unit of foreign currency) with respect to four major trading partners of the United States: Canada, Mexico, China, and Germany, from 2007 (normal time) to 2013 (not so normal time) involves aggregation that take the following form: (Please note that weights are the volumes of US trade (exports + imports) with each trading partners). The weights for the j currencies included in the TWI are then calculated by re-scaling the trade shares so that they sum to 100. The inverse of the share of trade accounted for by the currencies included in the TWI basket, which make up at least 90 per cent of U.S’s total merchandise and services two-way trade. c. Calculate the real value of multilateral trade-weighted monthly average U.S. dollar exchange rates (use CPI of each nation to convert nominal exchange rate to real exchange rate. Index the real values of multilateral trade-weighted exchange rates (2007 = 100). d. With help of excel make two line graphs of the multilateral trade weighted-average monthly exchange rates (the nominal and the real). Write a short essay (about 100 words) on the performance of trade-weighted U.S. dollar exchange rates and its possible effects on U.S. trade with major trading partners. The exchange rate plays an important role in the tradable sector of the U.S. economy since movements in the exchange rate affect both the demand and supply of export and imports. The rise and fall of the exchange rate of the major trading partners of the U.S. is therefore an important point to the analysis of the U.S. economy. The unstable foreign currency value of the dollar over the past years and the increase in the U.S. price inflation recently have caused rippled pressure and concerns on the depreciating value of the U.S. dollar. Both

Stepping out Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Stepping out - Essay Example n expressing their desires.  It should not be surprising then that quite a majority of females have once had these desires without the public knowledge, which makes them either lesbians or bisexuals. Recent studies have also indicated that the contemporary society is getting more comfortable with the concept of lesbianism and homosexuality, (Schroeder 5-6) as opposed to several years ago. Lesbians have a right to pursue their feeling just as anybody else, and their sexual orientation is purely informed by the fact that females are emotional beings. Many lesbians have developed their sexual orientations because of both physical and mental reasons (Walker et al 391). Traditionally, women have felt a need to have much more satisfying relationships that are based on trust, love and understanding. However, this  has not been gotten in heterosexual relationships as many women consider them unsatisfactory; females understand each other’s needs more than men do. Because of this disconnect, females tend to turn to fellow females for emotional and sexual gratification. Given that sexual orientation is discovered rather than decided at birth, it must be understood if a female’s sexual orientation is towards fellow females than towards males as is the norm, accepting one’s sexuality is more helpful than denial as it may lead to multiple psychological problems. For instance, the stigmatization of lesbianism may cause psychological trauma to lesbians, which has far reached repercussions in their later lives (Hilton and Szymanski 292-293). In this regard, lesbians must be given the love and support of family, friends and society without discrimination; moreover, it should also be acknowledged that lesbianism does not destabilize the norm of heterosexual relationships in any way as opposed to the fears of those who reject it. Lesbianism in any case should be looked at as an alternative form of relationship to females, rather than being ostracized in society. Lesbians have

GEs Talent Machine Solution Essay Example for Free

GEs Talent Machine Solution Essay ?Question NO 1:While most companies have difficulty producing sufficient quality candidates for top management succession, how has GE been able to create a surplus? What philosophy policies and practices have made it a â€Å"CEO factor6y† as Fortune and Economist call it? Really producing sufficient quality top executives is very difficult task for companies, but if we see case of General Electric, it was producing managers not only for own, GE was producing these executives in enough quantity to meet the need of industry. The philosophy adopted by GE includes some techniques, policies and practiceswhich enable GE to fill vacant top positions. Following are these techniques that wehave analyzed in this case study. Continuous Improvement:Management development process of GE was very effective in which employees aredeveloped step by step. Every manager was continuously involved in diversified andinnovative task in which every employee is rotate in different departments which enablethe employees to be expert in almost every field. The company was providing on jobtraining to its employees through training programs conducted in university which wasestablished by GE. Self succession plan and session C was also good for improving and polishing talent. Focus Strategy:To fill the vacant top positions GE was focusing on internal source. For this GE wasconducting a lot of training programs for its employees because when these were trained by company, it was easy for company to adjust existing employees at top positions. Emerging Culture:Company is try not only to gain objectives but also to merge the new employees withthe existing culture followed at GE. New employees are encouraged to adopt the cultureof GE which was very helpful in transferring the culture and value from senior executivesto junior executives. Company Strategy:Company was considering the employees as the asset of the GE. Company was notonly focusing on business development but also on employees development. It wasspending 10% of its pre tax income on employees development. It was also givingtraining to employees in university established by GEMeritocracy:In GE employee’s performance was measured by quantitative and qualitatively andthe basis of this evaluation the employees were promoted. While concluding we analyze that actually GE’s policies and practices were so goodthat it was producing the surplus managers. Values, culture, training programs, and performance appraisal measures are factor that help GE in exposing and polishing thetalent of employees. Question No2:How generalizable are GE’s , management development policies and practices? Howtransferable across cultures? Across industries ? Aross companies ? Overall policies and practices are very good and fulfill the requirement and need of management development. These policies and practices are generalizable in every wherein world up to some extent not completely. Their extent of generazibility depends uponthe circumstances and situation and environment of geographical areas, laws andregulations of state because these factors vary from culture to culture. E. g. moral valuesand ethics followed in American culture are not followed in Pakistan so we cannot saythat policies adopted by HR department in American organizations fully implemented inHR department of Pakistani organizations. Transferability across Culture, Industries and Companies:Of course policies and practices are implemented in European culture but it seemsvery difficult to implement these policies in Asian culture because HR policies have todeal with human behavior and culture. Human behaviors are different in differentcountries in same situations. In GE employees are recruited which are fresh graduate. Then these employees were polished by GE by taking into account future requirements. Employees at GE have onlyand only experience in GE company but This situation may not happened in other organizations because they do not have such employees who are trained and developed by only one company because almost all organizations are involved in external hiring, so policies to develop employees cannot be implemented in those companies. How we transfer policies and practices to other culture, industries and companies. For transferring these policies it is necessary to change and create the circumstances andsituations according to that of GE. HR departments have to deal with factors like value,culture and behavior and these things are different from culture to culture, company tocompany.

Star Newspaper Business Study

Star Newspaper Business Study COMPANY BACKGROUND Companys history The Star was first published regionally in George Town, Penang on the 9th of September, 1971. The Star went to become a national newspaper on Jan 3, 1976, when it set up an office in Kuala Lumpur. To adapt a growing staff and a new press incorporating the latest technology, it moved its headquarters from Kuala Lumpur to its present premises in Petaling Jaya in 1981. The Star created histor y on June 23, 1995 when it became the first Malaysian newspaper and the third in Asia to launch a World Wide Web edition. In addition to that, The Star also achieved a new milestone in its corporate history in the same year by being listed on the Main Board of the Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange. In the year 2000, The Star relocated in stages to its very own 17 storey premises, Menara Star in Section 16, Petaling Jaya. In January 2002, The Stars new printing plant, Star Media Hub was officially opened by the Deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia, YAB Dato Seri Abdullah bin Haji Ahmad Badawi in Shah Alam, Selangor. The Star also has a new office and printing plant, Star Northern Hub in Bayan Lepas, Penang. About The Star and Sunday Star The Star weekday paper is packaged as a 4-in-1 paper, comprising the Main Paper, StarBiz and StarTwo. The Main Paper covers the latest in regional, national and as well as international news while StarBiz offers a comprehensive coverage of local and international financial news such as market trends, financial reports and latest market updates. StarTwo features articles on lifestyle, entertainment, health, parenting, social issues and et cetera. Every Sunday, there is an additional section known as Sunday Star. For the Sunday Star, it covers current local and as well as worldwide news. Apart from that, Sunday Star also contains an educational section where careers, further education, exams tips and various comments are featured within. Board of Directors The current Executive Deputy Chairman of Star Publications (Malaysia) Berhad is Dato Clement Hii Chii Kok whereas the Group Managing Director / Chief Executive Officer is Datin Linda Ngiam Pick Ngoh. There are two Executive Director in the company which is Tan Sri Datuk Seri Kamal Mohamed Hashim and Mr. Ng Beng Lye. And the Group Editorial / Education Advisor is Dato Ng Poh Tip. Groups Financial Highlights The revenue of the company as at 31 December 2008 is RM 831,040,000. Profit before tax is RM201, 463,000 whereas the profit after tax is RM138, 701,000 which show that the tax expense is RM 62,762,000. Political and Legal Environment There is one law in Malaysia that protects media freedom that is Article 10 of the Constitution. It also notes that there are limits to this freedom, and that these limits are, generally, defined by the Government. The constitution provides freedom for speech of the press. However, some important legal limitations exist. According to the government, it forced restrictions on the media to protect national security, public order, and friendly relations with other countries. The law that provides legislation in the interest of security or public order may restrict freedom of speech. Example, Sedition Act prohibits public comment on issues sensitive such as racial and religious matters. Government used Sedition Act, Official Secrets Act, Printing Presses and Publications Act, criminal defamation laws, and other laws to limit and threaten political speech. As for Printing Presses and Publications Act, it requires local and foreign publications to apply annually to the government for a permit. This is to make publication of wicked news a punishable offense and authorized the minister of internal security to ban or restrict publications believed to threaten public order, morality, or national security. Besides, it also prohibits court challenges to delay or revocation of publication permits. According to the government, these conditions make sure that the media did not spread twisted news and were necessary to preserve harmony and promote peaceful in a multiracial country. Criminal defamation is punishable by a maximum of two years in jail, a fine, or both. This is along with the government power over annual license renewal and other policies inhibited independent or investigative journalism and resulted in widespread self-censorship. Government had banned some foreign newspapers and magazines and, occasionally, covered up foreign magazines or newspapers. Furthermore, you could point to the guarantees under the Communications and Multimedia Act (CMA) if you want to impress the crowd which covers broadcasting and Internet. The guarantees under this act are no monopoly or oligopoly control of the airwaves and nothing in the Act is to be regarded as censorship of the Internet. No monopoly or oligopoly control of the airwaves is that no group of companies should own enough of the radio and television stations to prevent listeners and viewers from having a choice of material. So far is all good but they have not seen it put into practice as yet. As for censorship of the Internet, it is a bit more of a problem. Although there is not any censorship or control of the Internet under this Act, doesnt mean there isnt any censorship of the Internet. Internet access was widely available and internet subscriptions totalled approximately 13.5 million at the end of 2006. However, criminal offence and preventive detention laws generated some self censorship from local Internet content sources. Examples are bloggers, Internet news providers and NGO campaigners. The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) shut down 11 Web sites for breaking rules and regulations concerning the publication of information on the Internet. Neither the MCMC nor the government released the names of the 11 Web sites. The CMA requires certain Internet and other network service providers to obtain a license. Previously, the government stated that it did not intend to enforce controls on Internet use but that it would punish the misuse of information technology. The CMA permits punishment of the owner of a Web site or blog for allowing content of a racial, religious, or political nature that a court deems offensive. Besides that, almost all the newspaper companies are under a political control. This is where the politician uses the publications to spread their news to the public. The biggest press group was Media Prima which is owned by Malaysia Resources Corporation Berhad which has close ties with the ruling United Malays National Organization (UMNO) and government. Media Prima owns the leading English-language newspaper The New Straits Times, the second biggest Malaysia-language paper Berita Harian, Malay Mail, Harian Metro and the ShinMin Daily News. In addition, Media Prima owns four terrestrial TV channels. However, the acquirement of Nanyang from MCA two years ago which is 2005 has since setup its monopoly in Chinese media. Sin Chew Media Group was being owned by the timber tycoon, Tiong Hiew King. He already corners about 90% of the Chinese language newspaper market, with his control of Sin Chew ,which publishes Sin Chew Daily and Guang Ming Daily, and Nanyang Holdings, which has Nanyang Siang Pau and China Press. As for The Star, it was owned by MCA while MIC owned Malaysia Nanban. Economic environment 2009 will bound to be a very challenging year for Malaysia, although Malaysias economy is holding up pretty well this year. The first half of 2009 is expected to be a very tough period for Malaysia. The impact on Malaysia this year has somehow been cushioned but many are beginning to feel the economic downturn towards the year-end. Since the beginning of the global economic crisis, much has been said and published about its economic and financial impact, but relatively little has been said about the socio-economic impact. While it is not difficult to observe the direct and often immediate unpleasant social impact of the crisis, little is known about their indirect and long-term effect on the countrys human development and social capital potential which are increasingly acknowledged in developing economies as a critical factor for sustainable development. Economic pressures are becoming the primary forces determining the behaviour of Malaysian newspaper companies. It is increasingly clear that the responses of some newspaper managers are affecting journalistic quality, producing practices that reduce the social value of newspaper content and that redirect the atten ­tion of newspaper workforce from journalism to activities primarily related to the business interests of the press. This situation has promoted encouraged self-interested behaviour aimed at exploiting market potential, and there is a growing conflict between the role of newspapers as servants of readers and the exploitation of readers to seek additional com ­mercial gain. It should not be surprising that the public increasingly sees the press as just another business that is more concerned with its own economic interests than with the broader interests of those it purports to serve. This entry gives GDP growth on an annual basis adjusted for inflation and expressed as a percent. The graph above shows the overall performance of Malaysian in economy. We can see the economy started to drop from the middle for second quarter of 2008 till 2009. (Source: CIA World Fact book, September 17, 2009) The print media is already feeling the pinch of the economic downturn. Newspaper adex has fallen for four consecutive months from October to January 2009. In January, newspaper adex declined 4% year on year to RM258.6 million while total adex for the media industry as a whole (TV, radio and print) inched up 2% year to year. This means that newspaper companies suffered a bigger blow than other media channels. As an open economy, Malaysia was badly affected by the global financial crisis and economic downturn. The major decline in exports, in turn, affected domestic demand. Thus, economic growth contracted 6.2% in the first quarter of 2009. However, the decline narrowed to 3.9% in the second quarter, assisted by speedy and effective operation of stimulus packages as well as monetary easing. Economic performance is expected to improve in the second half of the year, supported by counter-cyclical measures and reinforced by stabilization in the global economic environment. As such, the economy is expected to turn around in the fourth quarter, though for the year it is estimated to contract 3%. The current environment exists as the Malaysian newspaper industry faces an uncertain future because of inactive markets, increasing competition from other media for audience attention, use by progressively smaller portions of the population and changes in advertiser media choices. It is a common view that the newspaper business is elastic because people read the papers every day, regardless of the economic climate. People want to know the latest happenings in good times and bad. It is expected to see a slowing down in adex in this year, 2009, with the absence of any major events, together with the weakening economic climate. The lower economic growth forecast has an effect on the newspaper industry including advertising. Last years growth was driven by worldly TV adex (up 20%), newspaper (8%), radio (21%) and point-of- sale (28%). Malaysia Advertising Expenditure Trends Year 1997 to 2008 Circulation Generally, there is a total newspaper circulation rise since 1998. The actual figure in appendix for 2008 should have rose higher though if the data from Nanyang, Malay Mail and Weekend Mail are included. Newsprint has not dead yet and will co-exist with online media. The circulation growth has been steadily all these years which contributed by the increase of the population and the knowledge of society. There are a few online news portals which without print circulation have been gaining huge popularity since last year. This creating a strong competition in online space compared to the print circulation. In English newsprint, The Star is still far ahead of everyone. As for The Sun, it considers that it offers free controlled circulation. Competition in Malay circulation is only reserved for the big three which similar to the online scenario shown in figure 2 at appendix. Harian Metro is gaining popularity in recent years. This had posed a challenged to Utusan Malaysias top position. Another famous trend in the Malay segment is newspaper sales on weekends are generally much higher than working days. Societal About three million Malaysians visited local online news portals daily in March this year, compared with 2.5 million in the same month last year, according to comScore Media Metrix (digital marketing research company). While the figures quoted in May edition of OnMedia, OmicomMediaGroups industry newsletter, were based on average daily readership for the online news sites over the past year from March 2008 to February 2009. In total, the average daily readership for local news portals for that period was about 2.8 million. Malaysiakini led online English news sites with 91,943 average daily visitors over the past year. In second place was The Star Online with 74,417 readers a day. Malaysia-Today.net registered 12,948 readers daily, putting it in third place. The New Straits Times Online came in fourth with an average of 16,871 readers a day. However, in fifth place was theedgedaily.com, the website of The Edge Malaysia, which averaged 3,844 readers daily over the past year. However, according to Google Analytics which monitors online site traffic, since its relaunch in March this year as theedgemalaysia.com, the site has averaged around 14,000 readers daily. For the Malay-language online portals, Utusan Malaysia Online led with an average daily readership of 70,641 over the past year. It was followed by Berita Harian Online which averaged 55,764 readers a day for the past year. myMetro (the website of Harian Metro) averaged 51,767 readers daily, placing it third. ChinaPress dotCom was the most popular of the Chinese-language online news portals with an average of 29,950 readers a day. It was closely followed by nanyang.com which averaged 27,168 a day, and Sinchew-i which received an average of 23,779 readers a day. Key points that emerged from the study, if price were not a factor and if their choice was restricted to paper, online, e-paper and mobile devices. Sixty-nine percent (69%) of respondents would pick traditional newspapers as their first choice for news consumption. While, twenty-nine percent (29%) would make online sources their first choice, with the remaining twenty percent (2%) opting for e-paper or mobile devices first. The gap between traditional newspapers and online was, however, significantly smaller for younger respondents. Both consumers and advertisers have demonstrated a willingness to pay more for high value, topic-specific publications than they would for newspapers providing general news only, wrote authors Marieke van der Donk and Marcel Fenez in the reports executive summary. Financial readers were willing to buy financial online content for 97% as much as they would pay for a traditional paper. Meanwhile, sports fanatics would pay as much as 77% as they would for a traditional paper, for an online edition that focused on sports. The study showed newspapers are still the major sources of news and information for consumers, with survey respondents listing almost equally television, the Internet, and newspapers (free and paid) as their main source of news and information. Moreover, all 4,900 respondents were willing to pay for the general print news content. This is not to say that newspapers should not make the move online, said the report. Over 60% of respondents were willing to pay for general online news. Furthermore, based on the reports findings, a key future trend is the willingness of younger readers to pay for online content. According to the report, newspapers have been able to earn readers trust and loyalty, thus giving them the opportunity to both lead and follow audiences as they migrate online and into the use of portable electronic media like mobile devices. It also noted that although the rapid adoption of the Internet and mobile technology have created a market for mobile devices, especially for those under 35, they are low on the list of preferences for accessing information because of the difficulty of reading content on these devices. Malaysians are not giving up newspapers for the Internet. This research based on the data sourced from Nielsen Media Index from 2006 to 2008. It shows that newspaper consumption levels held steady all through 2008 despite the rise in Internet consumption. Malaysian newspaper consumption holds steady despite Internet. Its written by Emily Tan, Tuesday, 01 September 2009 at 11:24.While the average time a Malaysian spends online has increased by 24% from three hours a day in 2006 to three hours and 46 minutes a day in 2008, the average time spent reading a newspaper has held steady at 49 minutes in the same time span. There is no sign that Malaysians are shifting from newspapers to the Internet, said the report published in PHDs August newsletter — PHD Pioneering. PHD is a media service agency under the Omnicom Media Group. The PHD study found that Malaysians over the age of 30 spend more time reading newspapers and its about 50 minutes daily, while the teenagers and young adults read for about half an hour on average per day. A few online news portals that without print circulation have been gaining a huge popularity since last year, creating a stiff competition in online space compared to the print circulation. As for English newsprint, The Star is still well ahead of everyone, considering The Sun offers free controlled circulation. Newspaper readership in Peninsular Malaysia for the fourth quarter of last year (4Q08) grew about two percentage (2%) points to 55% from 52.9% in the same period in 2007, possibly in tandem with population growth of those aged 15 and above. Bahasa dailies seemed to have gained the most from the slight increase in newspaper readership, growing from 26.8% to 29.3% in the fourth quarter. English dailies saw marginal growth of 0.3 percentage point while Chinese and Tamil dailies saw a drop of 0.2 and 0.4 percentage point correspondingly. This is written by Aznita Ahmad Pharmy, Thursday, 05 March 2009, at 17:44. Technology On the other hand, the media industry is challenged by the rapidly changing environment, birth of new digital technologies and advertising money diverting to new media platforms on the internet. The local media industry has yet to capitalize on the full potential of the internet which will remain the fastest and the next powerful media platform, globally. Largely driving this change is technological development but the industry is also being affected by the impact of globalization of media ownership, the phenomenal growth of the internet, and other ambient media such as outdoor, point of sale, television, bus and taxi sites. The process of creating media strategies has become more complex and dynamic with the introduction of very highly developed software designed to optimize media selection against an unending range of criteria. There is a growing movement away from the use of simple age sex demographics for most media assumptions and an increasing appreciation of the need for a more holistic understanding of current and potential customers, including characteristics such as media usage, buyer behaviour, attitudes, lifestyles and interests. According to Nielsen Media Index, while mainstream media continues to control the Malaysian media scene, the internet is fast catching up. There was a double growth in internet penetration which reaching up to two out of ten people compared to five years ago. The executive director for Nielsen Media Research Malaysia, Andrea Douglas said that internet will become a more important part of the media mix with its continuous growth in the market. She added that Malaysians are decided to go on online news for faster and constant updates. This can be seen by the 35% growth in online newspaper readership over a year, reaching one million readers. Those who only read news online exclusive online newspaper readers, it grew from 55,000 to 70,000 in 2008. The index signified a 21% increase in internet users with almost four out of ten users spending one to two hours on the internet every day. Increasing internet penetration goes hand-in-hand with increased Internet usage. However, news seekers have not abandoned the traditional medium as nine in 10 readers still obtain their news through a hard copy. Apart from more common features such as email, surfing and information gathering, the popular activities for citizen are online TV/music/games (47%), followed by message/chat/blogging (45%) and reading newspaper/magazines (35%). Within the Top 10 categories, nine categories advertised online but the spending only between less than 1% and 3% of the total budget online. Newspaper industry players have to constantly evolve themselves to stay ahead by improving technology and addressing readers preferences. The second Finance Minister, Tan Sri Nor Mohamed Yakcop urged the industry to play actively its role by involving themselves in developing the digital medium instead of ignoring it. He said it in his keynote address at the Malaysian Newspaper Publishers Association forum. Nor Mohamed said that with the online global reach, publish news about the countrys development became faster and easier. He added that to promote Malaysia as a developing and stable nation to potential foreign investors, information reported must be accurate. This image would be able to attract more foreign investments and visitors in Malaysia. As for Group M chief executive officer, Henry Tan said that as technology drove change, consumers, media, media agencies and clients were changing as well. New generation was created by new technology while new media structure and ownership will strengthen competition. The role of media agencies has expanded to more than just planning and buying media spots. Agencies also have to recognize changes in clients and deal with each one differently. Dow Jones Asia-Pacific sales director, Mark Hollands said change was not uncommon in the print media which comprised it to be better and more efficient. Potential new revenue stream and the branding improvement from a strong online presence in the combination of global trend, these have seen that local traditional news organizations begin to put more resources on the online platform. Besides, they also hired people who recognize the benefits of Web 2.0 applications such as social networking site Facebook, and Twitter, the so-called SMS of the Internet. The growing popularity of online news sites where readers can read for free is one reason decision-makers at traditional news organizations find it very hard to raise cover prices for their printing product. A drop in circulation numbers directly impacts the advertising rate which a publication commands. According to the On Media newsletter, the circulation numbers from Nielsen Media Research signified online news portals have not affected print newspaper that much though online readership has increased rapidly over the past year. At present, online news sites still do not enjoy the level of loyalty and commitment shown by readers to newsprint. Online readership tends to change based on economic, political and social events, said the newsletter. Based on Nielsen Media Research and Com Score, the newsletter concluded that readers spend less time reading online news than print. About three million Malaysians visited local online news portals daily in March this year, compared with 2.5 million in the same month last year according to ComScore Media Metrix, a digital marketing research company. The average daily readership for local news portals for that period was about 2.8 million. Malaysiankini led online English news sites average daily visitors over the past year. As for The Star Online was placing second. Utusan Malaysia Online led Malay-language online followed by Berita Harian Online. As for the Chinese-language online news portals, ChinaPress dotcom was the most popular. There are more on societal changes. Managing director of Omnicom Media Group, Andreas Vogiatzakis said that newsprint have little to fear from online news portals. He said that newspapers must learn to pull on their online portals to add value and enhance their offerings to the consumer. The industry has seen a decline in newspaper adex over the past three years, from 58% in 2006 to 54% 2008 said the Nielsen Co Malaysia executive director Andrea Douglas. She said that the reasons for these changes are difficult to said but some categories have changed their spending patterns. There has been a decline in residential ad spending due to the economic downturn and this category is almost fully print advertising. The web has introduced new advertising potential and new media that could be eroding the traditional print share. According to Nielsen Media Research, newspaper in Malaysia has a mainly younger readership, with 65 per cent below 40 and 35 per cent of its readers are above 40 years. Percentage of newspaper readership between 20-29 age is the highest while the age between 50-54 is the lowest percentage of newspaper readership. According to Nielsen Media Research, newspaper in Malaysia has a mainly younger readership, with 62 per cent below 40 and 38 per cent of its readers are above 40 years. Percentage of newspaper readership between 20-29 age is the highest while the age between 50-54 is the lowest percentage of newspaper readership. The readership of age above 55 years old in 2006 increases 3.5% compared with the readership of age 55 years old in 2005. The old generation between the age of 55 and above are still enthusiastic supporters of newspapers while the younger generation appear to be much in tune with computers and the internet. The newspapers are not only challenged by online websites but also the electronic media having regular updates in the news bulletin. Many youngsters enjoyed reading serious news on the internet rather than from the newspapers. Hence, newspaper publisher should focus on public from the age of 55 and above. According to a statistic from Department of Statistics, Malaysia, the population of Malaysia is increasing. The population of age 15 and below is decreasing every year. The decreasing rate of year 2002 to 2004 is 0.3% whereas the decreasing rate of year 2005 to 2008 is 0.2%. The population of age 64 and above is increasing every year by 0.1 % except for the year 2005 and 2006 which remain same at 4.3%. The same pattern of readership frequency could also be observed among the respondents with different educational backgrounds. According to The Public Awareness of Science and Technology Malaysia 2000, the frequency of newspaper readership continued to be the highest among those with tertiary education where 60.0% of them read the newspaper daily. This was followed by those with secondary education (44.1%) with the lowest frequency (28.1%) among those with primary or lower education. In terms of locality, The Public Awareness of Science and Technology Malaysia 2000 also revealed that 49.3% of the urban respondents read the newspaper daily compared to those in rural areas (39.8%). On the frequency of readership, the opposite situation could also be observed in the other categories (a few times a week, once a week, or seldom). For example, about one-third (32.1%) of the rural respondents and similarly about 34.4% of the urban respondents read newspapers only a few times a week. Identify the rivalry currently exists in the industry in which the company is operating. Are there many competitor or just a few competitor or no competitor? There are many competitors around Star Publication. For instance, Berita Harian, Guang Ming Daily, Sin Chew Jit Poh, The Sun Daily, Utusan Malaysia, and also New Straits Times. The largest Star Publication newspaper competitor is the New straits Times. The sell recommendation of analysts on Star Publications (M) Bhd are the countrys largest and most profitable print media group and as well as other media stocks, such as Media Chinese International Ltd and The New Straits Times Press (M) Bhd, shows the current negativity on the industrys earnings prospects in the coming quarters, if not years. The Nielsen Media Report shows that Stars gross adex dived 20.6% y-o-y in January. Citi Investment Researchs analyst Alyson Shin has noticed that the page count for classified advertisements, which make up 25% of Stars advertising revenue, has fallen 33% to 40 pages from 60 pages in better times. Alyson Shin mention that Star has raised its advertising rates by an average 4% for both classified and display advertisements for the heavier days which is Wednesday to Saturdays. However, this is unlikely to be sufficient to offset the drop in adex in FY (Financial Year) 2009. Factoring in the 4% ad rate hike, we still forecast adex to contract 12% in FY2009, Alyson Shin comments in a February research report. Over the past two decades, Star has grown by shooting up and bounds in terms of earnings as well as manpower, after its English daily, The Star, overtook its main rival New Straits Times. The groups fixed operating costs have blown up. Its total operating costs that inclusive of printing and the newsprint have been above RM600 million in the past three years. This ascend to RM651.2 million in FY (financial year) 2008 versus revenue of RM831 million and net profit of RM138.9 million. The high fixed cost structure is a blessing for the group when advertisers are fighting for space in the newspaper because of the profit margin is getting bigger as the advertisement relative amount rises. Star has been the case this for over the past 10 years. It is the countrys most profitable newspaper with a handsome pre-tax profit margin of 24.2%, compared with its rival NST (New Strait Times) which manages only 9.5%. NSTP lost much of its thump over the past 25 years, especially on two separate occasions. During Operasi Lalang in October 1987, Star Publications (M) Bhds licence was revoked under a plan to crack down on the opposition leaders and social activists. After Star got back its licence, its readership and circulation surged. According to Nielsen Media Research, as at end-2008, NSTPs flagship newspaper New Straits Times had a readership of 308,000 while New Sunday Times readership stood at 263,000. As at end-June last year, New Straits Times circulation, according to the Audit Bureau of Circulation, stood at 136,530 while that of New Sunday Times was 156,910. These figures cannot rival that of its main competitor, Star Publications, which had a readership of more than one million for both its daily and Sunday paper. Stars circulation was over 300,000 daily. Are the products/ services offered by company very much different from its competitors in terms of price/feature/others. KUNTUM An educational monthly in Bahasa Malaysia for children ages 6 to 12. In keeping with its Learning is Fun motto, the Kuntum Club organises many fun activities and ho Star Newspaper Business Study Star Newspaper Business Study COMPANY BACKGROUND Companys history The Star was first published regionally in George Town, Penang on the 9th of September, 1971. The Star went to become a national newspaper on Jan 3, 1976, when it set up an office in Kuala Lumpur. To adapt a growing staff and a new press incorporating the latest technology, it moved its headquarters from Kuala Lumpur to its present premises in Petaling Jaya in 1981. The Star created histor y on June 23, 1995 when it became the first Malaysian newspaper and the third in Asia to launch a World Wide Web edition. In addition to that, The Star also achieved a new milestone in its corporate history in the same year by being listed on the Main Board of the Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange. In the year 2000, The Star relocated in stages to its very own 17 storey premises, Menara Star in Section 16, Petaling Jaya. In January 2002, The Stars new printing plant, Star Media Hub was officially opened by the Deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia, YAB Dato Seri Abdullah bin Haji Ahmad Badawi in Shah Alam, Selangor. The Star also has a new office and printing plant, Star Northern Hub in Bayan Lepas, Penang. About The Star and Sunday Star The Star weekday paper is packaged as a 4-in-1 paper, comprising the Main Paper, StarBiz and StarTwo. The Main Paper covers the latest in regional, national and as well as international news while StarBiz offers a comprehensive coverage of local and international financial news such as market trends, financial reports and latest market updates. StarTwo features articles on lifestyle, entertainment, health, parenting, social issues and et cetera. Every Sunday, there is an additional section known as Sunday Star. For the Sunday Star, it covers current local and as well as worldwide news. Apart from that, Sunday Star also contains an educational section where careers, further education, exams tips and various comments are featured within. Board of Directors The current Executive Deputy Chairman of Star Publications (Malaysia) Berhad is Dato Clement Hii Chii Kok whereas the Group Managing Director / Chief Executive Officer is Datin Linda Ngiam Pick Ngoh. There are two Executive Director in the company which is Tan Sri Datuk Seri Kamal Mohamed Hashim and Mr. Ng Beng Lye. And the Group Editorial / Education Advisor is Dato Ng Poh Tip. Groups Financial Highlights The revenue of the company as at 31 December 2008 is RM 831,040,000. Profit before tax is RM201, 463,000 whereas the profit after tax is RM138, 701,000 which show that the tax expense is RM 62,762,000. Political and Legal Environment There is one law in Malaysia that protects media freedom that is Article 10 of the Constitution. It also notes that there are limits to this freedom, and that these limits are, generally, defined by the Government. The constitution provides freedom for speech of the press. However, some important legal limitations exist. According to the government, it forced restrictions on the media to protect national security, public order, and friendly relations with other countries. The law that provides legislation in the interest of security or public order may restrict freedom of speech. Example, Sedition Act prohibits public comment on issues sensitive such as racial and religious matters. Government used Sedition Act, Official Secrets Act, Printing Presses and Publications Act, criminal defamation laws, and other laws to limit and threaten political speech. As for Printing Presses and Publications Act, it requires local and foreign publications to apply annually to the government for a permit. This is to make publication of wicked news a punishable offense and authorized the minister of internal security to ban or restrict publications believed to threaten public order, morality, or national security. Besides, it also prohibits court challenges to delay or revocation of publication permits. According to the government, these conditions make sure that the media did not spread twisted news and were necessary to preserve harmony and promote peaceful in a multiracial country. Criminal defamation is punishable by a maximum of two years in jail, a fine, or both. This is along with the government power over annual license renewal and other policies inhibited independent or investigative journalism and resulted in widespread self-censorship. Government had banned some foreign newspapers and magazines and, occasionally, covered up foreign magazines or newspapers. Furthermore, you could point to the guarantees under the Communications and Multimedia Act (CMA) if you want to impress the crowd which covers broadcasting and Internet. The guarantees under this act are no monopoly or oligopoly control of the airwaves and nothing in the Act is to be regarded as censorship of the Internet. No monopoly or oligopoly control of the airwaves is that no group of companies should own enough of the radio and television stations to prevent listeners and viewers from having a choice of material. So far is all good but they have not seen it put into practice as yet. As for censorship of the Internet, it is a bit more of a problem. Although there is not any censorship or control of the Internet under this Act, doesnt mean there isnt any censorship of the Internet. Internet access was widely available and internet subscriptions totalled approximately 13.5 million at the end of 2006. However, criminal offence and preventive detention laws generated some self censorship from local Internet content sources. Examples are bloggers, Internet news providers and NGO campaigners. The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) shut down 11 Web sites for breaking rules and regulations concerning the publication of information on the Internet. Neither the MCMC nor the government released the names of the 11 Web sites. The CMA requires certain Internet and other network service providers to obtain a license. Previously, the government stated that it did not intend to enforce controls on Internet use but that it would punish the misuse of information technology. The CMA permits punishment of the owner of a Web site or blog for allowing content of a racial, religious, or political nature that a court deems offensive. Besides that, almost all the newspaper companies are under a political control. This is where the politician uses the publications to spread their news to the public. The biggest press group was Media Prima which is owned by Malaysia Resources Corporation Berhad which has close ties with the ruling United Malays National Organization (UMNO) and government. Media Prima owns the leading English-language newspaper The New Straits Times, the second biggest Malaysia-language paper Berita Harian, Malay Mail, Harian Metro and the ShinMin Daily News. In addition, Media Prima owns four terrestrial TV channels. However, the acquirement of Nanyang from MCA two years ago which is 2005 has since setup its monopoly in Chinese media. Sin Chew Media Group was being owned by the timber tycoon, Tiong Hiew King. He already corners about 90% of the Chinese language newspaper market, with his control of Sin Chew ,which publishes Sin Chew Daily and Guang Ming Daily, and Nanyang Holdings, which has Nanyang Siang Pau and China Press. As for The Star, it was owned by MCA while MIC owned Malaysia Nanban. Economic environment 2009 will bound to be a very challenging year for Malaysia, although Malaysias economy is holding up pretty well this year. The first half of 2009 is expected to be a very tough period for Malaysia. The impact on Malaysia this year has somehow been cushioned but many are beginning to feel the economic downturn towards the year-end. Since the beginning of the global economic crisis, much has been said and published about its economic and financial impact, but relatively little has been said about the socio-economic impact. While it is not difficult to observe the direct and often immediate unpleasant social impact of the crisis, little is known about their indirect and long-term effect on the countrys human development and social capital potential which are increasingly acknowledged in developing economies as a critical factor for sustainable development. Economic pressures are becoming the primary forces determining the behaviour of Malaysian newspaper companies. It is increasingly clear that the responses of some newspaper managers are affecting journalistic quality, producing practices that reduce the social value of newspaper content and that redirect the atten ­tion of newspaper workforce from journalism to activities primarily related to the business interests of the press. This situation has promoted encouraged self-interested behaviour aimed at exploiting market potential, and there is a growing conflict between the role of newspapers as servants of readers and the exploitation of readers to seek additional com ­mercial gain. It should not be surprising that the public increasingly sees the press as just another business that is more concerned with its own economic interests than with the broader interests of those it purports to serve. This entry gives GDP growth on an annual basis adjusted for inflation and expressed as a percent. The graph above shows the overall performance of Malaysian in economy. We can see the economy started to drop from the middle for second quarter of 2008 till 2009. (Source: CIA World Fact book, September 17, 2009) The print media is already feeling the pinch of the economic downturn. Newspaper adex has fallen for four consecutive months from October to January 2009. In January, newspaper adex declined 4% year on year to RM258.6 million while total adex for the media industry as a whole (TV, radio and print) inched up 2% year to year. This means that newspaper companies suffered a bigger blow than other media channels. As an open economy, Malaysia was badly affected by the global financial crisis and economic downturn. The major decline in exports, in turn, affected domestic demand. Thus, economic growth contracted 6.2% in the first quarter of 2009. However, the decline narrowed to 3.9% in the second quarter, assisted by speedy and effective operation of stimulus packages as well as monetary easing. Economic performance is expected to improve in the second half of the year, supported by counter-cyclical measures and reinforced by stabilization in the global economic environment. As such, the economy is expected to turn around in the fourth quarter, though for the year it is estimated to contract 3%. The current environment exists as the Malaysian newspaper industry faces an uncertain future because of inactive markets, increasing competition from other media for audience attention, use by progressively smaller portions of the population and changes in advertiser media choices. It is a common view that the newspaper business is elastic because people read the papers every day, regardless of the economic climate. People want to know the latest happenings in good times and bad. It is expected to see a slowing down in adex in this year, 2009, with the absence of any major events, together with the weakening economic climate. The lower economic growth forecast has an effect on the newspaper industry including advertising. Last years growth was driven by worldly TV adex (up 20%), newspaper (8%), radio (21%) and point-of- sale (28%). Malaysia Advertising Expenditure Trends Year 1997 to 2008 Circulation Generally, there is a total newspaper circulation rise since 1998. The actual figure in appendix for 2008 should have rose higher though if the data from Nanyang, Malay Mail and Weekend Mail are included. Newsprint has not dead yet and will co-exist with online media. The circulation growth has been steadily all these years which contributed by the increase of the population and the knowledge of society. There are a few online news portals which without print circulation have been gaining huge popularity since last year. This creating a strong competition in online space compared to the print circulation. In English newsprint, The Star is still far ahead of everyone. As for The Sun, it considers that it offers free controlled circulation. Competition in Malay circulation is only reserved for the big three which similar to the online scenario shown in figure 2 at appendix. Harian Metro is gaining popularity in recent years. This had posed a challenged to Utusan Malaysias top position. Another famous trend in the Malay segment is newspaper sales on weekends are generally much higher than working days. Societal About three million Malaysians visited local online news portals daily in March this year, compared with 2.5 million in the same month last year, according to comScore Media Metrix (digital marketing research company). While the figures quoted in May edition of OnMedia, OmicomMediaGroups industry newsletter, were based on average daily readership for the online news sites over the past year from March 2008 to February 2009. In total, the average daily readership for local news portals for that period was about 2.8 million. Malaysiakini led online English news sites with 91,943 average daily visitors over the past year. In second place was The Star Online with 74,417 readers a day. Malaysia-Today.net registered 12,948 readers daily, putting it in third place. The New Straits Times Online came in fourth with an average of 16,871 readers a day. However, in fifth place was theedgedaily.com, the website of The Edge Malaysia, which averaged 3,844 readers daily over the past year. However, according to Google Analytics which monitors online site traffic, since its relaunch in March this year as theedgemalaysia.com, the site has averaged around 14,000 readers daily. For the Malay-language online portals, Utusan Malaysia Online led with an average daily readership of 70,641 over the past year. It was followed by Berita Harian Online which averaged 55,764 readers a day for the past year. myMetro (the website of Harian Metro) averaged 51,767 readers daily, placing it third. ChinaPress dotCom was the most popular of the Chinese-language online news portals with an average of 29,950 readers a day. It was closely followed by nanyang.com which averaged 27,168 a day, and Sinchew-i which received an average of 23,779 readers a day. Key points that emerged from the study, if price were not a factor and if their choice was restricted to paper, online, e-paper and mobile devices. Sixty-nine percent (69%) of respondents would pick traditional newspapers as their first choice for news consumption. While, twenty-nine percent (29%) would make online sources their first choice, with the remaining twenty percent (2%) opting for e-paper or mobile devices first. The gap between traditional newspapers and online was, however, significantly smaller for younger respondents. Both consumers and advertisers have demonstrated a willingness to pay more for high value, topic-specific publications than they would for newspapers providing general news only, wrote authors Marieke van der Donk and Marcel Fenez in the reports executive summary. Financial readers were willing to buy financial online content for 97% as much as they would pay for a traditional paper. Meanwhile, sports fanatics would pay as much as 77% as they would for a traditional paper, for an online edition that focused on sports. The study showed newspapers are still the major sources of news and information for consumers, with survey respondents listing almost equally television, the Internet, and newspapers (free and paid) as their main source of news and information. Moreover, all 4,900 respondents were willing to pay for the general print news content. This is not to say that newspapers should not make the move online, said the report. Over 60% of respondents were willing to pay for general online news. Furthermore, based on the reports findings, a key future trend is the willingness of younger readers to pay for online content. According to the report, newspapers have been able to earn readers trust and loyalty, thus giving them the opportunity to both lead and follow audiences as they migrate online and into the use of portable electronic media like mobile devices. It also noted that although the rapid adoption of the Internet and mobile technology have created a market for mobile devices, especially for those under 35, they are low on the list of preferences for accessing information because of the difficulty of reading content on these devices. Malaysians are not giving up newspapers for the Internet. This research based on the data sourced from Nielsen Media Index from 2006 to 2008. It shows that newspaper consumption levels held steady all through 2008 despite the rise in Internet consumption. Malaysian newspaper consumption holds steady despite Internet. Its written by Emily Tan, Tuesday, 01 September 2009 at 11:24.While the average time a Malaysian spends online has increased by 24% from three hours a day in 2006 to three hours and 46 minutes a day in 2008, the average time spent reading a newspaper has held steady at 49 minutes in the same time span. There is no sign that Malaysians are shifting from newspapers to the Internet, said the report published in PHDs August newsletter — PHD Pioneering. PHD is a media service agency under the Omnicom Media Group. The PHD study found that Malaysians over the age of 30 spend more time reading newspapers and its about 50 minutes daily, while the teenagers and young adults read for about half an hour on average per day. A few online news portals that without print circulation have been gaining a huge popularity since last year, creating a stiff competition in online space compared to the print circulation. As for English newsprint, The Star is still well ahead of everyone, considering The Sun offers free controlled circulation. Newspaper readership in Peninsular Malaysia for the fourth quarter of last year (4Q08) grew about two percentage (2%) points to 55% from 52.9% in the same period in 2007, possibly in tandem with population growth of those aged 15 and above. Bahasa dailies seemed to have gained the most from the slight increase in newspaper readership, growing from 26.8% to 29.3% in the fourth quarter. English dailies saw marginal growth of 0.3 percentage point while Chinese and Tamil dailies saw a drop of 0.2 and 0.4 percentage point correspondingly. This is written by Aznita Ahmad Pharmy, Thursday, 05 March 2009, at 17:44. Technology On the other hand, the media industry is challenged by the rapidly changing environment, birth of new digital technologies and advertising money diverting to new media platforms on the internet. The local media industry has yet to capitalize on the full potential of the internet which will remain the fastest and the next powerful media platform, globally. Largely driving this change is technological development but the industry is also being affected by the impact of globalization of media ownership, the phenomenal growth of the internet, and other ambient media such as outdoor, point of sale, television, bus and taxi sites. The process of creating media strategies has become more complex and dynamic with the introduction of very highly developed software designed to optimize media selection against an unending range of criteria. There is a growing movement away from the use of simple age sex demographics for most media assumptions and an increasing appreciation of the need for a more holistic understanding of current and potential customers, including characteristics such as media usage, buyer behaviour, attitudes, lifestyles and interests. According to Nielsen Media Index, while mainstream media continues to control the Malaysian media scene, the internet is fast catching up. There was a double growth in internet penetration which reaching up to two out of ten people compared to five years ago. The executive director for Nielsen Media Research Malaysia, Andrea Douglas said that internet will become a more important part of the media mix with its continuous growth in the market. She added that Malaysians are decided to go on online news for faster and constant updates. This can be seen by the 35% growth in online newspaper readership over a year, reaching one million readers. Those who only read news online exclusive online newspaper readers, it grew from 55,000 to 70,000 in 2008. The index signified a 21% increase in internet users with almost four out of ten users spending one to two hours on the internet every day. Increasing internet penetration goes hand-in-hand with increased Internet usage. However, news seekers have not abandoned the traditional medium as nine in 10 readers still obtain their news through a hard copy. Apart from more common features such as email, surfing and information gathering, the popular activities for citizen are online TV/music/games (47%), followed by message/chat/blogging (45%) and reading newspaper/magazines (35%). Within the Top 10 categories, nine categories advertised online but the spending only between less than 1% and 3% of the total budget online. Newspaper industry players have to constantly evolve themselves to stay ahead by improving technology and addressing readers preferences. The second Finance Minister, Tan Sri Nor Mohamed Yakcop urged the industry to play actively its role by involving themselves in developing the digital medium instead of ignoring it. He said it in his keynote address at the Malaysian Newspaper Publishers Association forum. Nor Mohamed said that with the online global reach, publish news about the countrys development became faster and easier. He added that to promote Malaysia as a developing and stable nation to potential foreign investors, information reported must be accurate. This image would be able to attract more foreign investments and visitors in Malaysia. As for Group M chief executive officer, Henry Tan said that as technology drove change, consumers, media, media agencies and clients were changing as well. New generation was created by new technology while new media structure and ownership will strengthen competition. The role of media agencies has expanded to more than just planning and buying media spots. Agencies also have to recognize changes in clients and deal with each one differently. Dow Jones Asia-Pacific sales director, Mark Hollands said change was not uncommon in the print media which comprised it to be better and more efficient. Potential new revenue stream and the branding improvement from a strong online presence in the combination of global trend, these have seen that local traditional news organizations begin to put more resources on the online platform. Besides, they also hired people who recognize the benefits of Web 2.0 applications such as social networking site Facebook, and Twitter, the so-called SMS of the Internet. The growing popularity of online news sites where readers can read for free is one reason decision-makers at traditional news organizations find it very hard to raise cover prices for their printing product. A drop in circulation numbers directly impacts the advertising rate which a publication commands. According to the On Media newsletter, the circulation numbers from Nielsen Media Research signified online news portals have not affected print newspaper that much though online readership has increased rapidly over the past year. At present, online news sites still do not enjoy the level of loyalty and commitment shown by readers to newsprint. Online readership tends to change based on economic, political and social events, said the newsletter. Based on Nielsen Media Research and Com Score, the newsletter concluded that readers spend less time reading online news than print. About three million Malaysians visited local online news portals daily in March this year, compared with 2.5 million in the same month last year according to ComScore Media Metrix, a digital marketing research company. The average daily readership for local news portals for that period was about 2.8 million. Malaysiankini led online English news sites average daily visitors over the past year. As for The Star Online was placing second. Utusan Malaysia Online led Malay-language online followed by Berita Harian Online. As for the Chinese-language online news portals, ChinaPress dotcom was the most popular. There are more on societal changes. Managing director of Omnicom Media Group, Andreas Vogiatzakis said that newsprint have little to fear from online news portals. He said that newspapers must learn to pull on their online portals to add value and enhance their offerings to the consumer. The industry has seen a decline in newspaper adex over the past three years, from 58% in 2006 to 54% 2008 said the Nielsen Co Malaysia executive director Andrea Douglas. She said that the reasons for these changes are difficult to said but some categories have changed their spending patterns. There has been a decline in residential ad spending due to the economic downturn and this category is almost fully print advertising. The web has introduced new advertising potential and new media that could be eroding the traditional print share. According to Nielsen Media Research, newspaper in Malaysia has a mainly younger readership, with 65 per cent below 40 and 35 per cent of its readers are above 40 years. Percentage of newspaper readership between 20-29 age is the highest while the age between 50-54 is the lowest percentage of newspaper readership. According to Nielsen Media Research, newspaper in Malaysia has a mainly younger readership, with 62 per cent below 40 and 38 per cent of its readers are above 40 years. Percentage of newspaper readership between 20-29 age is the highest while the age between 50-54 is the lowest percentage of newspaper readership. The readership of age above 55 years old in 2006 increases 3.5% compared with the readership of age 55 years old in 2005. The old generation between the age of 55 and above are still enthusiastic supporters of newspapers while the younger generation appear to be much in tune with computers and the internet. The newspapers are not only challenged by online websites but also the electronic media having regular updates in the news bulletin. Many youngsters enjoyed reading serious news on the internet rather than from the newspapers. Hence, newspaper publisher should focus on public from the age of 55 and above. According to a statistic from Department of Statistics, Malaysia, the population of Malaysia is increasing. The population of age 15 and below is decreasing every year. The decreasing rate of year 2002 to 2004 is 0.3% whereas the decreasing rate of year 2005 to 2008 is 0.2%. The population of age 64 and above is increasing every year by 0.1 % except for the year 2005 and 2006 which remain same at 4.3%. The same pattern of readership frequency could also be observed among the respondents with different educational backgrounds. According to The Public Awareness of Science and Technology Malaysia 2000, the frequency of newspaper readership continued to be the highest among those with tertiary education where 60.0% of them read the newspaper daily. This was followed by those with secondary education (44.1%) with the lowest frequency (28.1%) among those with primary or lower education. In terms of locality, The Public Awareness of Science and Technology Malaysia 2000 also revealed that 49.3% of the urban respondents read the newspaper daily compared to those in rural areas (39.8%). On the frequency of readership, the opposite situation could also be observed in the other categories (a few times a week, once a week, or seldom). For example, about one-third (32.1%) of the rural respondents and similarly about 34.4% of the urban respondents read newspapers only a few times a week. Identify the rivalry currently exists in the industry in which the company is operating. Are there many competitor or just a few competitor or no competitor? There are many competitors around Star Publication. For instance, Berita Harian, Guang Ming Daily, Sin Chew Jit Poh, The Sun Daily, Utusan Malaysia, and also New Straits Times. The largest Star Publication newspaper competitor is the New straits Times. The sell recommendation of analysts on Star Publications (M) Bhd are the countrys largest and most profitable print media group and as well as other media stocks, such as Media Chinese International Ltd and The New Straits Times Press (M) Bhd, shows the current negativity on the industrys earnings prospects in the coming quarters, if not years. The Nielsen Media Report shows that Stars gross adex dived 20.6% y-o-y in January. Citi Investment Researchs analyst Alyson Shin has noticed that the page count for classified advertisements, which make up 25% of Stars advertising revenue, has fallen 33% to 40 pages from 60 pages in better times. Alyson Shin mention that Star has raised its advertising rates by an average 4% for both classified and display advertisements for the heavier days which is Wednesday to Saturdays. However, this is unlikely to be sufficient to offset the drop in adex in FY (Financial Year) 2009. Factoring in the 4% ad rate hike, we still forecast adex to contract 12% in FY2009, Alyson Shin comments in a February research report. Over the past two decades, Star has grown by shooting up and bounds in terms of earnings as well as manpower, after its English daily, The Star, overtook its main rival New Straits Times. The groups fixed operating costs have blown up. Its total operating costs that inclusive of printing and the newsprint have been above RM600 million in the past three years. This ascend to RM651.2 million in FY (financial year) 2008 versus revenue of RM831 million and net profit of RM138.9 million. The high fixed cost structure is a blessing for the group when advertisers are fighting for space in the newspaper because of the profit margin is getting bigger as the advertisement relative amount rises. Star has been the case this for over the past 10 years. It is the countrys most profitable newspaper with a handsome pre-tax profit margin of 24.2%, compared with its rival NST (New Strait Times) which manages only 9.5%. NSTP lost much of its thump over the past 25 years, especially on two separate occasions. During Operasi Lalang in October 1987, Star Publications (M) Bhds licence was revoked under a plan to crack down on the opposition leaders and social activists. After Star got back its licence, its readership and circulation surged. According to Nielsen Media Research, as at end-2008, NSTPs flagship newspaper New Straits Times had a readership of 308,000 while New Sunday Times readership stood at 263,000. As at end-June last year, New Straits Times circulation, according to the Audit Bureau of Circulation, stood at 136,530 while that of New Sunday Times was 156,910. These figures cannot rival that of its main competitor, Star Publications, which had a readership of more than one million for both its daily and Sunday paper. Stars circulation was over 300,000 daily. Are the products/ services offered by company very much different from its competitors in terms of price/feature/others. KUNTUM An educational monthly in Bahasa Malaysia for children ages 6 to 12. In keeping with its Learning is Fun motto, the Kuntum Club organises many fun activities and ho