The Hippies: A Rebellion against the Vietnam War

The Origin and Label By the mid-sixties, the beats, follies, surfers, and psychedelics reached their peaks. This, together with the baby-boomers' coming-of-age, set the perfect basis for the hippie counterculture to start. The Beats contributed a detachment of mainstream society; the Follies gave them a vision of simple, pre-longitudinal, rural life; the Surfers donated zestful hedonism, and a respectful link with nature; the Psychedelics brought mind-expansion, and said that LSI could be used as a escapism from the dreariness of modern life. Grew up against a backdrop of compulsory military service-?at least in the LLC.S. , where the movement had its roots. Culture and Festivals They believed in open use of marijuana, which could also be linked to their ideal of â€Å"back to nature†. Other things that went with this are, letting their hair grow, not bathing, some of them even walked around naked. *use of patchouli oil they dressed In natural fabrics like cotton and linen. *1 967 â€Å"summer of love† Woodstock Festival – the 1 969 Woodstock Free Festival of Music and Arts Is the biggest, one-of-Its-kind festival of all times, with a crowd of about half a million people.There's a movie and two albums trying to recreate the mood of Jim Hendrix, Janis Joplin, The Who, and others performing in the same event. By the end, this festival turned out to be bigger than the music – it became a symbol for everything connected with hippies, the flower children, and the â€Å"love generation. † Also, most hippies developed on the craft of tie-dying. Fashion and Influences Although it was a political and moral movement rejecting Western materialism and the money-grabbing â€Å"rat-race†, the hippies set the tone for most of the fashion In the late ass.They went with the attitude of â€Å"anything goes† , mixing up elements of ethnic and psychedelic Influences. Male dressing was becoming more and more feminine with loose, floun ce, printed pants, neck scarves, and beaded belts. They wore Tolling roe Ana long loose anal – changeling society's Ideas AT masculinity muff can't tell the boys from the girls† was the outraged response to this dressing style. Jim Hendrix was one of the main fashion icons of this culture in the ass, with his exotic, colorful shirts, waistcoats, and wide-brimmed hats.He also wore lots of jewelry, which inspired a lot of designers to start a men's Jewelry collection, which were to be worn over loose shirts and wide-bottomed velvet trousers. In complete contrast to the â€Å"space age† look with geometric patterns and clean lines, the Hippies decorated everything, including painting their body. The past views of psychedelic, ethnic, and romantic all came together, and the hippie-woman would not wear a teasing mint-skirt, but a full-length flow skirt, with love beads and bells.Everyone started to grow their hair long. By 1969, even the well-groomed model Twiggy want ed her hair to her waist. Even the Paris designers got into this new mood with great enthusiasm. The hippies' cheap flamboyant clothes were transformed into expensive designer wear, as the ready-to-wear collections of 1967 was filled with Oriental touches, striped decal bas, harem dresses, tent dresses, rajah coats and Nehru Jacket, in fine wools and silk.Most designers began to follow the hippie ideal of â€Å"doing your own thing†, and Vogue reported that â€Å"the length of your skirt is how you feel this moment. The last collection of the ass were filled with micro skirts, maxis, and the compromised midis. Anti-fashion had triumphed in a round-about and trickle-up way, became the biggest fashion, and nothing would be quite the same ever again! Conclusion The original hippies living in San Francisco would have never imagined that their crazy way of dressing would have become a high-fashion trend by the end of the decade.Theirs was an anti-style that rejected the Western w ork ethic, along with the conformist clothing it encouraged. The Hippies had shocked and intrigued with their communal lifestyle, belief in free love, and experiments with drugs. Some thought they were â€Å"strange beings† in sandals and kaftans, handing out flowers as symbols of love and peace. Others talked of â€Å"alternative society' and their establishment of self-supporting rural communities of like-minded people.

Infancy and Early Childhood Development Paper – Week 2

Infancy and Early Childhood Development PSY/375 January 21, 2013 Infancy and Early Childhood Development During development from infancy to early childhood many changes take place. There are many factors that affect the development at each stage. Family dynamics can have a profound effect on how a child matures and develops as he or she grows older. There are three parenting styles brought forth by Diana Baumrind that influence development in a particular way. These styles are founded on four central dimensions (Berger, 2011, p. 273). Early childhood education has a significant role in cognitive development.The early years in a child’s life can influence the development of certain skills that allow a child build upon what he or she has already developmentally acquired. There are many aspects that influence a child’s development throughout life. Family Dynamics Affecting Early Childhood Development Family dynamics can have a vital role on the development of infants and y oung children. Children born into an abusive household stand a bigger risk of being affected developmentally than those born into a non-abusive family. Abuse can mean emotional or physical and abuse.Children emotionally abused can have a self-image issue where the individual may feel worthless and this can affect the way a child learns. Physical abuse can result in mental defects that can be associated with poor cognitive ability if the abuse were on or about the head of the child. Another way family can affect the development of infants and young children is through language. During infancy children learn by listening and mimicking what they observe. If a parent talks to his or her child or infant the infant is more likely to pick up on words and develop a speech pattern.It is said that most parents the world over are outstanding teachers (Berger, 2011, p. 172). Other theories regarding development of language in children come from the basis that humans are inherently social creatu res and rely on each other for happiness and the ability to survive. Infants are also thought to teach themselves. Berger  (2011)  stated, â€Å"Noam Chomsky (1968, 1980) and his followers felt that language is too complex to be mastered merely through step-by-step conditioning† (p. 174).LAD (language acquisition device) allows young children to obtain the guidelines of grammar faster and more successfully from speech heard each day, whether it is in their native language or another language. Parenting Styles Influence on Development Baumrind’s three styles of parenting include authoritarian, permissive and authoritative parenting. Authoritarian parenting means that the parents have the final word and their word is law. This means that the child obeys the parents’ instructions, requests and commands. Parents who have this type of parenting style might be considered unaffectionate toward the children.Authoritarian parenting teaches a child not to question aut hority and to follow orders. The next parenting style is permissive. Parents who use this style are often referred to as indulgent. This means that they often â€Å"give in† to their child’s wants and needs. Unlike the authoritarian style that can bring about stern penalties permissive parents use little discipline on their children. Permissive parents are encouraging and tolerant. The third style of parenting is known as authoritative. Authoritative parents have rules and guidelines in place for their children.Parents with this style of parenting are not afraid to enforce the rules and handout punishment that â€Å"fits the crime. † An authoritative parent is usually more willing to forgive a child than punish. This type of parent views him or herself as a parent and not an authority or a friend as in the first two styles of parenting (Berger, 2011). My Choice of Parenting Style The parenting style that I view as most effective is the authoritative parenting st yle. Authoritative parenting seems to be the middle ground between authoritarian and permissive.Whereas authoritative parents are usually ready to forgive, I believe that they are also willing to use discipline when needed. Authoritative parenting styles take a little of authoritarian and permissive and use it to benefit the child. This style that sets limits and also allows the child to have his or her voice heard that in turn lends to maturity. Being flexible and allowing the child to have his or her say can also teach children to respect each other as well as others. Authoritative parenting allows the children to make their own decisions because the rules and guidelines are set.The decision to abide by the rules or break the rules is completely up to the child. The authoritarian parenting style is too strict and structured while the permissive parenting style is too lenient. The middle ground would firmly be authoritative parenting by my views in the subject. Effects of Early Chi ldhood Education on Cognitive Development Early childhood education can have a profound effect on the cognitive development of a child. Early childhood education allows a foundation for children to add to and learn more throughout life.Early childhood education includes skills such as alphabet, numbers, beginning to read and recognize site words. There are many programs around set forth to improve a child’s cognitive development, some even run by our government. Children begin learning as soon as they are born and there are stages where important information can be taught to a child. It is important in early education that the children be stimulated and challenged. In early childhood development young children will go through stages where they will first need to feel secure, experience exploration.This occurs when the child becomes mobile (crawling or walking). Then, the child will want to develop a sense of identity and become more independent. The second stage is considered the preschooler years. This is the time when the child develops better motor skills and balance and also there is an increase in verbal acuity. The final stage occurs when the child hits the primary age group. Reasoning skills, problem-solving skills increase along with written communication develops quickly (Grisham-Brown,  2003-2009). ConclusionIn summation, family dynamics can affect the development of infants and young children in numerous ways. In many cases, depending on the status of a family can affect how well a child learns or comprehends information. The three parenting styles widely in use today are authoritarian; do not question the parents’ word. Permissive is where the parent is very indulgent toward the children and lacks any discipline. The third parenting style is authoritative; the parent is flexible but there are rules and guidelines set in place. Early childhood education is imperative to cognitive development.Early childhood education sets the groundw ork for the later years. Early education gives the children the tools so he or she can build upon the knowledge that was acquired early in life. Reference Berger, K. S. (2011). The developing person through the life span [University of Phoenix Custom Edition eBook]. New York, New York: Worth. Retrieved from University of Phoenix, PSY375 – Life span human development website. Grisham-Brown, J. (2003-2009). Education. com. Retrieved from http://www. education. com/reference/article/early-childhood-development/

A Study On The Adkar Model Management Essay

A Study On The Adkar Model Management Essay The purpose of this report is to understand the change management and the models which the organisation faces now. The report will also provide the recommendations for the organisation that can makes the organisation become less destructive while carry out the change and provide the tools of change. The structure of the report will consist 3 parts which are literature review, case study, and recommendation. Literature Review: Kurt Lewin know it’s important to form an integrated approach to bring about change at the group or organizational levels and contribute a 3-step change models. Lewin (1947a) stated that change process involved three steps in order to change efficiency and they are stage 1 (unfreezing), stage 2 (moving), and stage 3 (refreezing) (Lewin, 1947). Unfreezing step means make the correct situation for change to happens (London Management Centre, n.d.). Lewin argued that the stability needs to be weakened which means unfrozen (take away the old behaviour can be that lead to a new behaviour successfully adopted). Schein (1996) argued that the key for unfreezing is to recognise the individual or group level change and it were a profound psychological dynamic process’. Moving stage is to create inspiration to learn but does not essentially control or predict the direction (Schein, 1996). Organisation should find out all the forces at work and identify and evaluate in order to get all the available options from trial or error basis (Lewin, 1947a). However, Lewin (1947a) also recognized that, without reinforcement, change will not last forever. The last stage of the model is refreezing. This stage is to recreate a stable atmosphere and elevates comfort levels by reconnecting people back into their familiar place (London Management Centre, n.d.). This is important as changes to individual behaviour will not be sustained unless group norms and routines are also been transformed and set. Therefore, it often requires changes to organization al norms, culture, practices and policies (Cummings and Huse, 1989). 3 steps model gives manager a framework that how to implement a change efficient, which can make the change process carried out fluently. The Kurt Lewin model can help a leader do the following three steps that helps to minimize the disruption of the structure’s operations, make a radical change, and make sure that the changes is sustainable (Morrison, 2010). Many have is argued that Lewin’s planned approach is too simplistic and mechanistic as organizational change happens everyday and open-ended process nowadays (Dawson, 1994 &e Garvin, 1993). Lewin is seen as advocating a top-down, management approach to change and ignore the situations that require bottom-up change (Dawson, 1994). Lewin’s 3 steps change model can be used if there is a short term goals to meet and celebrate (Kotter, 1996). This is because people will start to resist to change if there is no short term wins. Lewin stated that organisations should establishing the goals and objectives. Organisation should reward people that involved with recognition, promotion or money (Kanter, 1993). 3 steps change model is more construct than content driven, describing competence using language such as team working, problem solving, and effective communication (French, 1999).

Discussing the concept of the Ecological Footprint, as well as your Essay

Discussing the concept of the Ecological Footprint, as well as your score. Be sure to address whether or not you think it accurately affects your impact on the environment - Essay Example As per my score, if the whole world starts to imitate my lifestyle, it would require 4.52 earths to sustain it. This realization was indeed an eye opener. Most of us tend to lead consumption oriented lifestyles, being totally oblivious of the impact it may have on the environment. If the humanity continues to pursue such ecologically irresponsible lifestyles, it will have debilitating consequences for the generations to come (Low 156). The questions posed in the quiz were based on my day to day consumption patterns like energy consumption and dietary preferences. Thus it was easier for me to relate to the quiz. I certainly plan to introduce at least some small and simple changes in my lifestyle like recycling my garbage and waste, turning off the lights when not in room, purchasing energy efficient gadgets, using more of public transport,

Prpperties of an element Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Prpperties of an element - Essay Example On the Word file, the links (hyperlinks) to your references must be hot! 4) Neatly typed narrative description (500 words minimum, i.e., about one page minimum) of the uses, importance, biological significance (if any) historical information, and any additional interesting information for the element. This should be written in paragraph format with proper grammar and spelling. Outlines or lists will not be given credit. Information must be properly cited (see #5). Plagiarism will result in a zero grade for this project with no chance to earn the lost points through other means. Your in-text citation to a printed source should hyperlink to the reference in your bibliography. Your in-text citation to an online source should also hyperlink to the reference in your bibliography. However, the hyperlinks from each of your references should be to the specific webpage(s) where you obtained the

C. Wright Mills Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

C. Wright Mills - Essay Example Mills is known for his masterpieces like "The New Men of Power: America's Labor Leaders" (1948) which is basically a study of the Labour Metaphysics and how labour leaders have cooperated with the business officials to the disadvantage of the worker,while the workforce stays happy with mere "bread and butter" and has assumed a rather subordinate to role to such leaders. Another one of his classics is the book White Collar: The American Middle Classes (1951) which continues his stance against the officials and the bureaucracy who he accuses of suppressing the common individual by the tactic of overworking him and charging him a large amount of taxes. The immense work pressure on the worker causes him to suffer from alienation and imposes upon him a robot like existence in return for financial remuneration. His other important works include The Sociological Imagination (1959) in which he has tried to demonstrate a link between history biography and sociology. Other works include The Causes of World War Three (1958), Listen, Yankee: The Revolution in Cuba (1960), and The Marxists (1962). Academics have argued over whether Mills was a Marxist or a follower of liberalism. He felt more comfortable as a humanist Marxist than being called a follower of Max Weber. Mills was in agreement with other Marxist sociologists that the American suffers from the great divide between the weak and the powerful. The weak are suppressed and they feel alienated. He has made some interesting observations in his works like the one below; When, in a city of 100,000, only one man is unemployed, that is his personal trouble, and for its relief we properly look to the character of the man, his skills, and his immediate opportunities. But when in a nation of 50 million employees, 15 million men are unemployed, that is an issue, and we may not hope to find its solution within the range of opportunities open to any one individual. ( The Sociological Imagination 1959). The Power Elite Coming to one of his most prominent works, in 1956 he wrote the book The Power Elite (1956) in which he has analysed the US structure of power in its three forms i.e. the political, military, and economic elite whom he accuses of sharing similar views which are aimed at suppressing the working classes. The book was tremendously influential when it came out and even today it is a source of inspiration in socio-political academics. He has focused on the power structure of the US politics and military in the post World War II era. The Power Elite reflects a kind of trilogy of the US society and it was a follow up to his other books like The New Men of Power (1948) and White Collar (1951).Like all masterpieces it attracted much negative academic and political controversy at the time of its publication. Mills brazenly accused the elitists as "the warlords," "the higher immorality," "the power elite," "crackpot realism," and "organized irresponsibility,". The book was so well researched that it had 47 pages of Notes and was a full scale study of the structure and distribution of power in the United States. It was

Local lawsuit Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Local lawsuit - Essay Example In one of such incidents, Monsanto had incorrectly advertised its herbicide as being biodegradable and further asserted that it left the soil clean. The event happened in the year 2009 and it had to pay a fine of 15000 Euros (BBC, 2009). It has also been identified that the senior manager of Monsanto ordered one of the consulting firms which is in Indonesia to offer a bribe of $50000 to a top bureaucrat working with environment ministry of Indonesia in the year 2002. Therefore, in this regard, Monsanto had to pay a fine of $1.5m (BBC, 2009). Risk Management Strategies Companies often face with lawsuits as they tend to violate the governments’ requirements or tend to break the criminal laws. Once the companies have identified the risks, it becomes significant to minimize the risks and thus manage them to a greater extent. The company needs to ensure that there is better supervision and therefore there must be clear communication of the policies. The key to reduce the risks of w orkplace related lawsuits is to be proactive. It becomes significant for the companies to execute policies and trainings which are designed to avoid the lawsuits (Pakroo & Pakroo, 2011). Risk management can be identified as a procedure meant to prevent any sort of physical, financial and time loss in an organization (Chan, 2010). Monsanto should not have advertised wrongly since doing so not only leads to lawsuits but also ruins the reputation of the company. The company could have ensured that the staffs are made aware of the problems of such illegal activities and therefore should have provided the staffs with proper information on risks and consequences of such illegal activities. Such risks could have as well been avoided if Monsanto was capable of identifying the critical point in the business processes where such illegal activities are likely to occur. The company could as well designate internal structures so that the staffs can report problems, risks and people those are sus pected with such activities. If all these strategies were adopted by Monsanto previously, then lawsuits could have avoided. Ethical Considerations Reflected In the Laws Applicable To This Case The case is related to fraudulent trade practices and bribery. Therefore, the laws related to these two illegal trade practices need to be considered. The ethics and anti-bribery rules try to raise the problems of ethical and moral attitude towards both bribery and corruption. In the ethical considerations related in the laws, offering bribes is as offensive as receiving it (Sosnow & Narayanan, n.d.). According to US law of deceptive advertisement, it is unethical if any company communicates a deceptive claim to 20-25 percent or greater than this amount of the target audience. Deceptive advertising is considered as wrong since it harms competitors, consumers as well as society as a whole. Deceptive advertisement is considered as wrong since the person practicing it tends to violate the need of morality (Carson, 2002). Sources of Law The cases are related to bribery and deceptive advertising practices. Therefore, bribery law of US has been demonstrated under 18 U.S. C. Â § 201 (United States Office of Government Ethics, 2011). It has been found that both the state and federal laws are responsible to regulate deceptive advertising. It is the Lanham Trademark Act that controls false advertising at the federal level. The Federal Trade Commission and state consumer protection agencies are mainly

Critique Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 13

Critique - Essay Example The change in the behavior of Zambrano’s participants is systematic and proves his claim that personal roles often change behaviors. Behaviors arise from people’s interaction with their immediate societies. As such, the roles coupled with the beliefs that the society has on such roles systematically influence the behavior of the people playing the role as the discussion below portrays. Both Plato and Zimbardo create an illusionary society by removing their subjects from the society to a new restricted space. While in the spaces, the perceptions of the subjects change based on their understanding of the surrounding. Zimbardo for example sought to establish whether the brutality in American prisons was a result of the guard’s sadistic personality or arose from the prison environment. He therefore recruits his subjects randomly from the society. The participants were normal individuals but without any prior engagements with prisons. As the participants spent more time in the prison environment, their behaviors began to change with the guards becoming increasingly aggressive in their behavior and brutal as they handle the prisoners. The prisoners on the other hand become increasingly submissive to the authority.in his study, Plato criticizes political structures and their effects in indoctrinating people thus influencing their beliefs and social understanding. â€Å"On the other hand, The Allegory of the caves is a discussion of politics: The Republic, from which it is taken, is a treatise on justice and the ideal government† (Plato 2). The limited space in the prison restricts the mindsets of both the prisoners and the guards especially when within the premises. The prisoners spent most of their time talking about the prison and prison life. Additionally, their prior understanding of prisons influenced their stories. The same is the case with the guards who

Reflective paper 3 Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Reflective paper 3 - Assignment Example I am not in the favor of premarital sex because I uphold old values and customs. But if a couple wants to have a marriage like relationship before the actual marriage then it is up to them. However, I am totally against sleeping around and the derogatory term of ‘casual sex’. If there is a bond that exists between the couple then it is more acceptable than ‘one night stands’ and hooking up under the influence of alcohol. I would tell him that it is better to be safe than sorry. Couples get carried away in the heat of things, and they regret it later. I would tell my boy he is mature enough to make his decisions in life. He is knocking at adulthood. I cannot be his supervisor anymore. But it would make me glad if he abstains from sleeping around. It will make me even happier if he upholds the sanctity of marriage and relationships. Such topics are always careful with girls. Parents are more concerned and protective of them. Men are physically stronger and can take advantage of a vulnerable girl. Parents have this inborn protective instinct to protect their daughters from sexual predators. Naturally, a conversation about premarital sex will be more serious with my daughter. I would tell almost the same things to my daughter as I would tell my son on this topic. But there will be more concern and emotion in my voice. I would try to get her perspective first. I would tell her about the honor and value of the marital bond. I might seem old fashioned, but these customs do give an acceptable structure to the society. If such values are disregarded then the whole family system can collapse. People would only meet each other to satisfy their lust. Marriage would become meaningless and an old forgotten custom. For this reason, I would want to get her take on this subject first. The way my 15-year-old can make her decis ions, so can my daughter. I cannot be around her all her life, nor do I want to. Ultimately she has to

Case study of HRD within an organization Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Of HRD within an organization - Case Study Example Any department facing a shortage of employees is expected to contact the HRD so that the necessary action can be taken. Therefore, it can be argued that the HRD constitutes the engine of an organization in that it plays the central role in ensuring effective coordination of the employee. In order to expound more on the HRD and acquire some essential lessons, we focus on a case study of HRD within the Coca-Cola Company. The Coca-Cola Company operates a hierarchical organizational structure where staff members are grouped in terms of ranks. The sequence of command has several stages since the company bases its operation in many countries around the world. The company has more than 200 offices in different countries of the world. Each office is accountable for the coordination of activities within the country or region in which it is located (Griffin, 2011). The offices in the different countries are ended by business operational managers. The operational managers in the respective countries and regions coordinate the work of other departments. Each operational manager coordinates about eight departments including the human resource department. However, the management and staffing of HRD must be done according to the guidelines provided by the head office located in Atlanta Georgia in the United States. The HRD is headed by a human resource manager who coordinates all the activities involving recruit ment, remuneration, and promotion of employees. The human resource manager works with a team of staff to enhance transparency and accountability. The HRD of the Coca-Cola Company works in close conjunction with other departments for the better performance of the company. For instance, before the recruitment of new employees is done, the HRD must liaise with the finance department to identify whether there are enough funds to facilitate the recruitment exercise. In addition, the HRD works with all departments of the company to

Roman Empire Essay Example for Free

Roman Empire Essay Between 100 CE and 600 CE, the Roman empire underwent a change politically as the empire collapsed due to chaos inside it’s empire. Culturally, influence of Christianity grew. The Eastern Roman empire, Byzantines, proved to keep a continuity of the empire. The most dramatic change that the Roman Empire had was its collapse in the late classical period. Han China and Gupta India, also struggled with a collapse in their own empires at the same time. In the year 100 CE, the Mediterranean, and majority of Europe, was in the middle of the Pax Romana. In 180 CE, Rome’s decline was viewed as a decline because of a faulty leadership and outside invasions, this was due to, lack of strong leadership. This caused Rome’s collapse to speed up. Other factors blocked it’s ability to prosper, but without effective leadership, they could not grow as an empire. As the size of the Roman Empire and its trading grew, taxes on the peasants became more difficult to overcome for the lower class. Free peasants usually fled the intimidating taxes by selling their land and becoming workers for other things. From this it led to Germanic soldiers guarding the frontiers of the empire. This caused the final injury to the empire. Germanics spread plagues which lead to population decreasing. In 476, Rome was attacked, and the Roman Empire was ended. The downfall of this is due to, in 100CE Rome had started to fall and by 476CE fell because of plagues and political changes . Another important change to the Roman Empire during the late classical period was the growing of Christianity. The spreading of religion in the Roman Empire was similar to the spread of Buddhism in China while the Han dynasty was falling. In 100 CE,many Romans still stayed in their original religion , even though these years are after the death of Jesus. Christianity attracted poor Romans because of its teachings of class not determining your fate. This led to, Emperor Constantine converting to Christianity. From this one can infer that Christianity then spread more easily. Christianity grew to be very common. After Rome fell, the organization of the Christian church usually provided help for people in a time of political problems. This led to Christianity gaining more converters.

Unilateral Decision Making in Human Resources

Unilateral Decision Making in Human Resources Human resource management is a series of activities which first enable working people and the organisation which uses their skills to agree about the objectives and nature of their working relationship and secondly, ensure that the agreement is fulfilled Torrington and Hall (2002: 13). There has been an argument about who are the decision makers in the organisation. Is it the Management who are responsible for strategy forming and implementing the strategy or is it the employees who are the life line of the organisation who have the knowledge about the product. Who are best capable of making the decisions? In the essay there is the discussion about the various perspectives and the way decisions are taken. A brief introduction of three types of perspective: Unitary Perspective: A Unitary perspective has one source of authority and one focus of loyalty, which is why it suggests team analogy. Each accepts his place and his functions gladly, following the leadership of the one so appointed. Fox (1966) ( pg 2). Pluralistic Perspective: A Pluralist frame of reference recognises that the legitimacy and justification of trade union in our society rests not upon their protective function in labour markets or upon their success, real or supposed, in raising the share enjoyed by their members, but on social values which recognise the right of interest-group to combine and have an effective voice in their own destiny. This means having a voice in decision making. Marxist Perspective: the Marxist perspective sees the process and institution of joint regulation as an enhancement rather that reduction in managements position; at best they provide only limited and temporary accommodation of the inherent and fundamental division within capitalist based work and social structure. In the essay we would be concentrating more on unitary perspective and pluralistic perspective as they have closer relevance to the statement/argument. The essay gives the outline of how various perspectives effect the decision making process. The effects of various factors on factors like employee relations, employee contract, job regulations, and perspectives have been discussed representing them with a few examples. The corporation is the master, the employee is the servant. Because the corporation owns the means of production without which the employee could not make a living, the employee needs the corporation more than vice versa. Peter Drucker Business Capitalism Work Management regards its own unilateral decision-making over Human Resource issue as legitimate and rational; any opposition to it, either internal or external to the organisation, is seen as irrational. Managements unilateral decision making over Human Resource issue is legitimate and rational can be accepted only if the employer and employee feel that they are one big family (unitary perspective). As fox has summarised that the unitary perspective can be justified when employees and employers have a common goal and objective i.e., to maximise the success of the organisation and workers willingly accept to obey the decision taken by the management. Armstrong (1999) says that the philosophy of Human Resource Management with its emphasis on commitment and mutuality is based on the unitary perspective.fox also states that in unitary perspective there are no teams. Nor are they any outside it; the team stands alone, the members (employees) have an obligation of loyalty to their leader Fox (1966) (p.03). Therefore from the above references it is clear that the decision taken by the management is legitimate and rational and its the duty of the employees to follow it without opposing it. The employers are responsible for the effective running of the organisation and they would have a long term plans of the organisation and the decisions would be taken according to the company vision and objectives. The employees need to understand that the employers would always think to better the company and maximize the profits, opposing decisions taken by them would not only be disloyalty shown towards the organisation but also unethical practise to go against the people who have provided them with food and shelter which are the basic needs (Maslows hierarchy). The above statement is very strong in countries like India where the trade unions have more political view than the welfare of the members of the trade unions. The trade unions go on strikes just to overpower the management. States like West Bengal where the trade unions have the upper hand to the management. That is the main reason why no multinational company wants to set up their base in west Bengal. Whereas states like Karnataka where the unions are discouraged have come up because the IT industry does not encourage trade unions. It may not affect the Industry, but there would be change in the perception and image of the industry if trade unions are introduced. We must seriously consider whether it is the right time to have trade unions in the IT sector. It might hurt the industry Kris Gopalakrishnan, CEO MD, Infosys Technologies (Forbes rated Infosys among the 5 best performing companies in the software and services sector in the world). The success of the organisation has been unitarist approach. Unitary perspective also overcomes the problems of disputes between rivalry unions. In this method the accountability becomes clear because everyone is assigned a responsibility. Unitary perspective approach towards job regulation is unilateral in internal regulations. A unitary approach manager takes all the decisions without the consultation of the employees as the employer would know best for the employees. If the decision would be put forward to the employees there would be conflicts of interest. For example during the recent recession period, when the companies had to lay off employees it would not be advisable for the organisation to consult its union about whom and how many are to be removed. The union which is formed for the welfare of the employees would not agree to such decisions and hence it would result in strikes (Jet Airways employees calling for a strike because 150 of its employees were given the pink slip. The organisation was going through huge losses and the only way it would reduce its loss would be by reducing its man power which was not accepted by the Union, hence it resulted in strike). Therefore it is necessary for an organisation to limits the powers of trade unions in decision making. When the Theory X and Theory Y- Mc Gregors is taken into consideration it proves that employees of Theory X would oppose any decision taken by the management as the employees under theory X dislike work and do not care about the organisation goals. Thereby it becomes necessary for the management to take the decisions and employees opposing it are seen as irrational. But the organisation does not have any control over the external Job Regulations because external job regulation consists of forces which are partially outside the enterprise. Therefore, the organisation does not have complete control over the external job regulation. In context with the labour contract, the unitary perspective manager recruits the employees for a particular assignment and when an employee enters into a contract with the employer its his/her duty/responsibility to follow instructions given by the employer, as the statement refers anyone opposing it is seen as irrational would be true because when an employee goes against the contract it is irrational or not fulfilling the terms of the contract. The method of negotiations and bargaining is not encouraged in unitary perspective because the organisations face the problem of firstly recognizing the right union (multiple numbers of unions in an organisation has increased). Therefore the only way to solve this problem would be non recognition of unions. If the management needs to make unilateral decisions which has to be accepted by the employees the decision makers need to have a few traits in them. Firstly they should have a problem solving ability and how they can fit into the wider scheme. Secondly they should have a strong desire to achieve the goals, they should be self confident and self disciplined, they should have the ability to listen and communicate effectively. Finally they should be analytical and intelligent (not to intelligent). Robert.H. David Wilson. Managing organisations. (Pg198) When Unitarism is related to the labour process it becomes clear that the management has the whole authority to make all the decisions because in it is perceived that all the raw materials, means of production and the product of labour belongs to the management. Therefore the decisions taken by the management are legitimate and rational as they own everything and anyone opposing would be considered as irrational. The statement holds true in this situation because once a person/organisation is the owner of a particular thing, he/they should have the freedom to do what he/they want to do with it, without anyones interference. When there is a problem with the organisation it is the management that is held responsible for it. For example even if an employee has faulted in his work and the customer may have some problem with it is the organisation that has to pay the compensation to the customers not the employee. The statement is only applicable for a unitary approach organisation but it has its own draw backs which are low employee morale, low productivity and absenteeism, negative attitude towards work/ job, management rivalry, disagreement, incompatibility, incongruence. There may be various reasons for the following. But to avoid the following there has to be a two way communication between the employee and the employer. The above theory can be accepted but to a certain extent as the external factors cannot be controlled by the organisation. Factors like supply, demand, government policies all play a major role in the working of an organisation. Therefore external factors cannot be considered as irrational. The organisation needs to be flexible and change accordingly to the change in external factors. According to Dunlop (1950) industrial relations system consists of three agents management organizations, workers and formal/informal ways they are organized and government agencies. The Du nlops model gives great significance to external or environmental forces. In other words, management, labor, and the government possess a shared ideology that defines their roles within the relationship and provides stability to the system. The Dunlops theory projects that all the actors have to a common understanding; they cannot work without each others support. The effect of a decision taken will have an effect on the other actors; therefore considering there interference is irrational will not help in the smooth running of the organisation. This is the reason why trade unions were formed which represents the employees. Trade unions have been recognised by all the governments. In a free market unions are encouraged as it is a symbol of democracy which allows the employees the right of expression. In the modern day business there are new techniques like Delphi method; Quality Circles are introduced for the betterment of the organisation. This shows employee participation in the de cision making process of the management has become very important; therefore the management considering any opposition from the employees as irrational will be wrong. A unitary approach becomes really hard when the company is a Multi National Company, because the business market would be different in different countries therefore having a unilateral approach may not suite the organisation. To gain a competitive edge the organisation needs to make the best use of its resources and there are more chances of mis communications in unitary approach, which may result into conflicts. A pluralistic perspective completely agrees with the above said statement as a pluralistic manager believes conflicts are inevitable. It is something that cannot be avoided. The only way the conflicts can be solved is by collective bargaining. In a collective bargaining, its a Win-Win situation for both the employers and the employees. It keeps the morale high and even the productivity high. Therefore considering any interference of the employees of the organisation as irrational cannot be justified, its the right of the employee to have a say in the decision taken by the employer as it will be the employees who would be following those decisions. Ex. If an employer decides to extend the shift (working hours) it has to be consulted with the employees as it will be them who would be working for long hours. If the decision is taken without consultation it would result in conflicts. Every organisation has a member representation of the employees because the organisations have understood the importance of employee satisfaction. Therefore the above statement cannot be agreed on if the organisation follows pluralistic approach. Workers in various countries have been opposing the unilateral decision making process. They feel the managers have been mis using their powers. Even though the management owns the organisation it can only buy the labour power it cannot buy labour because labour is not saleable, therefore the management can restrict its decisions to labour power not labour. Therefore any decision taken which affects the labour can be opposed and it would be considered as rational. When pluralism is related to job regulation as stated by Bean (2000) (p.370) it is generally conceded in the liberal democratic world that working people should have the right to participate in the making of decisions that critically affect their working lives. From the above quote it shows the importance of employee involvement in the decision making process. The employers need to understand that employees play a major role in functioning of the organisation, by involving them into the decision making process not only increases the motivation of the employees but also increase the productivity of the employees. In the modern techniques there are various methods adopted like to increase employee participation in the organisation. It may sometimes result in new fresh ideas which may work in favour of the organisation. Therefore considering ideas from the employees while making decision can be very useful. Sometimes these ideas may contradict the decisions of the management, the manage ment needs to analyse the suggestion and implement it if it is for the betterment of the organisation. The management cannot consider these ideas as irrational. While making rules for the organisations various factors influence them, factors like State, the availability of labour. Supply and demand etc. play a crucial role and none of them can be considered as irrational when they oppose the decisions made by the organisation. The draw backs with pluralistic approach would be rivalry between the trade unions, it makes it hard for the organisation to negotiate when there are more than one trade unions and hence the unions and the management would loose valuable time and money in negotiating the problems. It is the duty of the unions to act as a mediator between the employees and management, but the unions have become so political that they just see how the party(the political) party they represent is benefitted. Example. TATA Nano project was shifted from Singhur (West Bengal, India) to Gujarat (India) because the opposition party wanted to put the ruling government down. There was loss of employment for the state (west Bengal) when the company made the decision to move out, and the union did not achieve any gain out of it. Therefore it can be concluded that the unions no longer work for the welfare of the employees, they have diverted themselves to work for the political party that is supporting them. The Marxist approach states that the management makes profit by exploiting the labourers, i.e. by paying them low wage compared to the work they have done. Conclusion From the above arguments and analysis it becomes clear that the argument is an Management regards its own unilateral decision-making over Human Resource issue as legitimate and rational; any opposition to it, either internal or external to the organisation, is applicable only in Unitary Perspective but this can be implemented in very Public/Private sectors. Some organisations have been successful after adopting such approach but this method cannot be adopted in all sectors as in this fast growing business world and the rate of attrition increasing it becomes very essential for an organisation to take care of its employees and other concerns which are attached to the company, considering their opposition as irrational can be very easily be a reason for the downfall of the organisation. An organisation may enjoy supreme authority when they have a unitary approach but the organisation to decide its transfers and promotions very carefully. It would play a major role because if a manager is recruited from outside the organisation may not be able to adapt to the organisations culture and there would be regular oppositions for his decisions. From the above essay we can argue that no one type of perspective is suitable for all organisations. Some companies may adopted a particular perspective and been successful but it does not confirm that all companies will be successful by following such a perspective. An organisation may have both Theory X category employees and even Theory Y category employees, it is the responsibility of the managers to use the resources available and make the best use of them. To conclude from the above essay it can be concluded that an organisation needs to be flexible but also needs to have authority over its employees. The management needs to take suggestion from its employees but the final decision needs to be taken by the management and its the duty of the employees to follow the decisions as they are under contract/agreement with the employer to render there services to the organisation. The management can have complete control over its internal part of the organisation and anyone opposing it would be going against the contract therefore can be considered as irrational but this can be said the same towards the external forces, the management does not have complete control over them, and considering their opposition as irrational would not be appropriate. Both the perspectives have their own advantages and disadvantages, its the responsibility of the management to balance their business and make profits after all- The only and only social responsibili ty of a business is to make profits- Milton Friedman (Noble Prize in economics).

Technology plays a major role in modern life

Technology plays a major role in modern life Introduction: Technology plays a major role in modern life that affects all the aspect of human activities. Therefore our societies get a lot of benefits from modern technology. Universities and colleges for example have so many facilities. Such as labs with sophisticated computer devices, internet connections with high speed, projectors and smart boards. Using these developed tools can help students in many ways; first, students can study and understand their subjects well when they use audio-visual technology. Second, students may pass their exams online. Third, they can access a lot of resources like libraries, websites, and scientific papers online. These facilities may help students master their subjects, save time, and stay in touch with the new world. History: A Scale chart for using Technology since 1780 to 2011 The History of Computers, and the History of Computers in Education 1780   Early public schools adopt the teacher/manager model with the teacher as the primary manger of instruction and assessment in a single classroom. 1946   First vacuum tube-based computers developed; universities help in computer development effort; technology used in war effort. 1951   Little technology used in schools, primarily TV; baby boom begins with resulting increases in class size; first-generation Univac computer delivered to the US census bureau. 1954   General Electric is the first business to order a computer. Early rock and roll music, based on the rhythm and blues tradition, gains a little in popularity. 1955   IBMs first commercial computer is sold; the cold war results in use of technology in aircraft design and in weapons control. Russia developing the technology for the first spacecraft. 1956   Eisenhower elected president; Elvis Presley records Hound Dog; school overcrowding growing; school dropout rate rapidly declining toward zero; schools still based on the teacher/manager model in individual teacher-controlled classrooms; the cold war continues with technology playing an important role and is intensified when Russia sends up their Sputnik space vehicle to demonstrate their lead in technology. 1958   As cold war continues, National Defense Education Act brings some new money and some new technology into schools, but primarily in vocational education. Mainframe host computers are not widely accepted in schools that are still using the si ngle classroom, teacher/manager method of delivering information to students. 1959   Transistor-based computers in use; the cold war continues with public support for the development of technology needed for space exploration. 1960   COBOL business-oriented, high-level programming language created; Kennedy elected president with campaign promises to put more money into education; crime rate doubles in one decade; Gary Powers shot down in hi-tech spy airplane; 70,000 invo lved in civil-rights sit-ins. 1962   Airlines begin to use a computerized reservation system. President Kennedy diverts more money into education. The cold war continues and results in a confrontation with Russia as hi-tech spy planes discover missiles in Cuba; George Wallace campaigns for governor of Georgia pledging segregation forever. 1963   Vocational Education Act passes with new money supporting the use of technology in schools; however, the mainframe and minicomputers in use at this time are using batch processing methods that do not fit well with the single teacher-as-manag er-of-learning methods in use in most schools; BASIC, a simple high-level programming language is developed, mostly for use in universities to train programmers; IBM 360 family of computers is developed; most computers still using host methods with punche d cards as the primary input device; line printers are still the primary output device; the cold war and the competitive space exploration effort continues with President Kennedys call for the science to be developed that could put a man on the moon. 1964   Johnson elected president; the Beatles rapidly rise to stardom; Bob Dylan writes songs that give voice to the protest movement; the Gulf of Tonkin incident results in the first confrontation between the US and the government of North Vietnam ; the civil rights movement grows including a one-day civil-right protest absence of 464,000 students in New York; China explodes a test Atomic bomb. 1965   Elementary and Secondary Education Act brings new money into schools for technology. mainframes and minicomputers are put into place in some schools, but most are used for administration or for school counseling (databases for information a bout and for students); the cold war continues as President Johnson expands the war, with 125,000 American troops in Vietnam; ; hi-tech weapons are used in bombings of North Vietnam; 50,000 Americans killed in traffic accidents. 1967   High-level programming languages such as Fortran are being taught are in universities. School vocational training programs begin to include computer maintenance; Stokely Carmichael declares a need for SNCC to move from civil rights to black power; Mohammed Ali refuses army induction for religious reasons bringing national attention to both the black power movement and the anti-Vietnam movement; student strikes on many campuses related to protest over both civil rights and the policy in Viet nam; acid rock and protest rock grow in popularity; centers of dissidence like Haight-Ashbury in San Francisco develop; anti-war protests grow, especially on college campuses; 380,000 US troops in Vietnam. 1968   Nixon elected president; riots in many cities break out over civil rights issues; the cold war continues with a rapid expansion of the war in Vietnam 9,419 dead in Vietnam; some programs designed to bring money for technology into schools ar e canceled; host computers are not widely adopted in schools because they are seen as appropriate for use with the teacher/manager model of learning (they dont fit into the single classroom, but instead are accessed remotely by sending batches of data).   1969   Neil Armstrong arrives on the moon; the Woodstock rock concert in upstate New York draws hundreds of thousands; the cold war and the war in Vietnam continues; many students, religious leaders, civil rights leaders, and ordinary citizens begi n to speak out against the war in Vietnam.   1970   Pascal created; the US bombs Cambodia; Kent State antiwar students killed by Army reserve troops; mainframes and minicomputers in use in some schools, but very little use in the delivery of instruction. 1971   Intels first microprocessor developed; the first microcomputers (PCs) are developed; mainframes and minicomputers are in wide use in business; a few software companies begin to develop mainframe and minicomputer- based instructional program s; 18-year old given the vote.   1972   Five men working for President Nixons re-election caught in the Democratic partys headquarters in the Watergate hotel complex; Nixon re-elected president and orders the bombing of North Vietnam. 1974   President Nixon resigns and is given a full pardon by his successor, President Ford; a gasoline embargo creates lines at gas stations; Patty Hurst kidnapped; Hank Aaron breaks Babe Ruths lifetime home run record; Apple I computer is sold in kit form. 1975   Some Apple 1 PCs are donated to schools; some schools have adopted mainframes and minicomputers and refuse to consider PCs; four Nixon administration official convicted in Watergate cover up; The war in Vietnam ends and the government of Nor th Vietnam invades and takes over South Vietnam. 1976   Carter elected president; the cold war continues; Iraq holds hostages, rampant inflation; the Apple I computer gains popularity in small business. 1979   15 Million PCs estimated to be in use worldwide; PC-based spreadsheets developed, mainframes and minicomputers still in wide use. 1980   Reagon elected President, the cold war continues with Reagon declaring Russia to be the evil empire; the TI 99 which uses a television screen as the monitor is the worlds most popular PC. 1981   IBM is the first mainframe manufacturer to develop a PC; drill and practice CAI gains acceptance in schools; the cold war continues. The first educational drill and practice programs are developed for personal computers. 1983   IBM PC clones proliferate; Sperry Corporation is the second mainframe manufacturer to develop a PC (actually developed by Mitsubishi in Japan); the Apple II computer finds widespread acceptance in education because PCs better fit the teacher /manager model of instructional delivery (PCs can be used to support the ongoing teaching in the single classroom). Simple simulation programs are developed for personal computers. 1984   Reagon re-elected; 31 states use 13,000 PCs for career guidance, but there are still relatively few computers in classrooms; the Apple Macintosh computer is developed; computer-based tutorials and learning games are developed by commercial software manufacturers.   1986   25 % of high schools use PCs for college and career guidance, K-8 schools buying mostly Apple II and Macintosh computers, high schools buying mostly DOS-based clones. 1988   Bush elected President; 60 % of all workers in the US use computers, laptops are developed; Gorbachoff proposes an end to the cold war;. 1990   Multimedia PCs are developed; schools are using videodiscs; object-oriented multimedia authoring tools are in wide use; Simulations, educational databases and other types of CAI programs are being delivered on CD-ROM disks, many with animati on and sound; the US crime increases dramatically; the cold war ends. 1992   Clinton elected President; for the first time, police and prison budgets begin to surpass education budgets; schools are using Gopher servers to provide students with on-line information. 1994   Digital video, virtual reality, and 3-D systems capture the attention of many, but fewer multimedia PCs than basic business PCs are sold; object-oriented authoring systems such as HyperCard, Hyperstudio, and Authorware grow in popularity in schools; most US classrooms now have at least one PC available for instructional delivery, but not all teachers have access to a computer for instructional preparation. 1995   The Internet and the world wide web began to catch on as businesses, schools, and individuals create web pages; most CAI is delivered on CD-ROM disks and is growing in popularity. 1996   The Internet is widely discussed as businesses begin to provide services and advertising using web pages. New graphics and multimedia tools are developed for the delivery of information and instruction using the Internet; many schools are rewiring for Internet access; a few schools install web servers and provide faculty with a way to create instructional web pages. 1997-2007   The growth of the internet expands far faster than most predicted. It soon becomes the worlds largest database of information, graphics, and streaming video making it an invaluable resource for educators; but marketing-oriented web pages, computer viruses hidden within downloadable programs and/or graphics, and spam (widely disseminated email-based sales pitches) threaten its usefullness. Search engines such as Google and Yahoo constantly develop new ways to find information within the ever-growing number of web pages. Web sites that offer individuals a place to put personal information become popular, as does internet-based publishing and discussion forums. Voice recognition slowly enters the computing mainstream, but its development is slowed by an unacceptable frequency of errors. Some computers incorporate TV input, but it is not as common as many predicted. Educational software becomes more useful and interesting to students as graphics and video are incorporated. Larger computer storage capacity and the growing prevalence of CD-ROM and DVD drives in personal computers make it easier for educators to store large graphic and video and sound files for educational applications.   2008 and beyond I only copied this paragraph just to provide what kind of technology was used and to explain that as much as we have been developed and the technology improved that we didnt reach the end and we will not reach it as will, and this changes will keep going and all of these to make the education more comfortable and to make it easier to study and understand what they are learning to keep going this circular system. What kind of Programs that the students can use it in the universities life and can be used in studying, and projects things The programs are : 7zip : with is using for extracting high compressed files AutoCad : used for drawing without using pencil and papers Adium : used for messaging but using Mac operating system only Amanda : for Network disk Msn Messenger : communication with the students and their instructors Azureus: Peer to Peer programs which is being used mostly in the dorms to exchange files and things like Videos , pictures , etc. SQL : DataBase program Microsoft Office : Excel , Access, Word , PowerPoint and Outlook Audios and Videos Programs https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBjwiUdWz94RcnfhURwhzjPQF7Irm0brKyn2FGJtSuKx8V-H3uQ5whgODvoIALsNMhvMLhaXDOzUGdrLEax_4IlKx7Cq4bdmYc2mfD0wYEM_YAqgmnrPMwHLabDZykEMtxxkFESCdvl3E/s400/osdm_startup.JPG http://www.limewireworld.info/images/azureus.jpg https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKnE0jETG95whNHZk2kV9MN4RC73SaOye8LGxp56KusFioY6f33GMxdmu7rWyBUkgNGe3Y0xh5O5x69iqQLcJjWx5FF3OPHSoLSTRLJ11d-erU7uTTDPdF11sVY9apkpZK5WtFKXbGPSQ/s1600/Microsoft%20Office%202007.jpg http://www.qortuba.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/msn-mac.jpg Advantages and disadvantages of Technology in Education: The technology facilities that we have today has offered a lot of information and ideas to students, which saves great potential for learning, today we have so many procedures and way to present data and information for different learners whatever their learning style is, and make them benefit from the material. And this doesnt only include the web world and internet, but also includes many technological facilities such as projectors and smart boards. There are some conditions that may prevent some students from getting benefits from the technological facilities during their studies, so they may not be able to have computers or laptops due the socio-economic status, some of the students may live in a place without a computer, some other students might be attending a school in a poor district that doesnt offer more devices or a school that offers limited number of devices, this will lead these students to a disadvantage in learning and practicing the technology, in addition we all know that poor cities have less chances to receive new technological facilities. This new generation depends on computers and technology, we cannot even doubt this. Technology taken a very important role in our studies, but it is very important to know that it can really give some improvement to the traditional methods of learning but it cannot replace it, finally the quality of the class relies on the knowledge of the instructor and not on the technology available. Reference : ( http://www.ehow.com/about_4815039_advantages-disadvantages-technology-education.html ) as technology can be more helpful in the classroom for students and teachers, there is a chance that it might be a source of distraction and confusion for both students and teachers, experts are required to be available in schools and colleges to fix the hardware and software problems because some teachers doesnt have enough knowledge to do that, supporting the purchased technology is necessary to avoid the useless and disadvantage of it. Technology always needs frequent check to avoid the damage. Reference: ( http://www.ehow.com/about_5435887_disadvantages-technology-classroom.html ) It is incredible and useful to use online education because it can be accessed at anytime and from anywhere, and this advantage allows the students to give time for their daily lives while concentrating in their learning objectives. Traditional methods of learning have more specific places and specific times. Online classrooms are very convenient in connecting students to each other and to their instructors, so that they can meet at anytime of the day or night with no difficulties. In opposite communication and interaction in physical classrooms can occur only during classroom hours.

Death and Regeneration in Walt Whitmans Poem, When Lilacs Last In The

Death and Regeneration in Walt Whitman's Poem, When Lilacs Last In The Dooryard Bloom'd Whitman in 1865 wrote an elegy for President Lincoln entitled "When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloom'd." The "Lilacs" elegy is an outpouring of the deep sense of loss that Whitman felt after the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln. The President's death was a great shock to the poet; it overwhelmed him in a very personal way. Whitman recognized Lincoln's excellence and importance. When Whitman first heard of the assassination, it was the spring of the year and the lilacs were in bloom. The poem is heavily symbolic. In this first section, Whitman introduces two of the three central symbols used in development. The poet appears in company with the "Lilac blooming" and the "drooping star." The lilac represents love as well as resurrection and rebirth. The star symbolizes the slain Abraham Lincoln and comes to symbolize, also, the poet's heavy grief for him. The star, or Lincoln, once celestial and shining like a strong guide to those beneath it, has now "droop'd early." Lincoln i...

Curriculum and Cultural Capital relating to Social Justice and Educatio

Education is the process of skills, the acquisition of knowledge and understanding that all children acquire through learning in an institute of education, every individual has an equal right to an education and as a result, an entitlement is provided to all children. However, there are a proportion of children that are at a disadvantaged due to cultural and social indifferences, consequently, for all pupils, education can be seen as the means of a socialising process, which generates a set of principles that may affect many of its learners, Thus the National Curriculum was initiated as an opportunity of equality in addition to an inclusive education, which would provide all its pupils regardless of socio economic backgrounds. However, for a few of the heterogeneous group, the National Curriculum, on the grounds of fairness and opportunities created a socialisation process, which simultaneously is the possibility of why some children achieve, in addition to those who do not. Thus, th e entirety of its pupils has its advantages together with its disadvantages by dividing numerous children into a catalogue of academically able, with the addition of the view being reversed given that this is achieved through the process of social reproduction. Each class has its own cultural background, knowledge, dispositions, and tastes that are transmitted through the family (Bourdieu 1984) which is the predispositions of each student achieving in education. Thus, this essay will consider the ways into which, and how the extent of social justice and education is influenced through cultural capital and the National Curriculum. Cultural capital to some degree is whom you know and what you know. To characterize cultural capital, it is indicated thro... ...al and Cultural Development. London: Continuum. Carr, W. and Hartnett, A. (1996) Education and the Struggle for Democracy. Buckingham: Open University Press. Matheson, D. and Grosvenor, I. (1999) An Introduction to the study of Education. London: David Fulton Publishers. Bartlett, S. and Burton, D. (2007) Introduction to Education Studies. 2nd ed. London: SAGE Publications Ayers, W. Quinn, T. and Stovall, D. (2009) Handbook of Social Justice in Education. New York: Routledge. Bates, I and Riseborough, G. (eds). (1993) Youth and Inequality. Buckingham: Open University Press, pp. 142-43. Selfe, P. (2000) Education, Training and Policy. London: Hodder and Stoughton. Payne, G (ed.) (2000) Social Divisions. London: Macmillan. p. 160. BBC NEWS(2001) School test results 'useless' say critics. [online].[ Available] http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/1684247.stm

The Burden of a Guilty Conscience :: essays research papers fc

In Karen Horney’s essay, â€Å"The Distrust Between the Sexes,† she demonstrates how the expectations we have when we are in love can often lead to disappointment. â€Å"An almost unavoidable source of disappointment and distrust in our normal love life derives from the fact that the very intensity of our feelings of love stirs up all of our secret expectations and longing for happiness, which slumber deep inside us (361).† Simply, projecting our desires, expectation and sometimes guilt upon our lover can lead to disappointment. Love, in this way, can be a hugely unsatisfying because our expectations for it can be contradictory in nature and sometimes unrealistic. Ideally we would want a partner who possesses desirable traits. We want a partner who possesses both strength and weakness, who is pure and wicked, and additionally someone who will love us as deeply as we do them. However, it is very rare that someone will find that perfect partner who fulfills all of their desires. In my opinion, men and women usually project their guilt in ornate behaviors that lead to a breakdown in trust. For example, many people who are unfaithful often accuse their partner of cheating due to their own guilty conscience. Also, we can project our insecurities on our relationships; we do this unconsciously when we feel that we are not good enough or unable to fulfill our partner’s expectations in the relationship, and do this in many different ways. I once was in a situation, one I’m confident most of us have been in, where my partner accused me of cheating and was very adamant about this. In addition, there seemed to be no way to assure her of any other reality. I later came to find out that she was the one being unfaithful during this period of time. Shortly afterward I came to the conclusion that she was projecting her guilt on our relationship, and that was the reason why she was convinced that I was being unfaithful.

Horizontal Integration

Competition DG Information, communication and multimedia Media Vertical and horizontal integration in the media sector and EU competition law Miguel Mendes Pereira* â€Å"The ICT and Media Sectors within the EU Policy Framework† U. L. B. -SMIT (Studies on Media, Information and Telecommunications) CEAS-Norwegian School of Management, Oslo Telenor Broadcast Brussels, 7 April 2003 OUTLINE Introduction I. Convergence and integration 1. Technical convergence 2. Economic convergence 3. Efficiencies II. Competition issues 1. The competitive arena 2.Foreclosure 3. The dominance test III. Vertical integration 1. 2. 3. 4. The gate-keeper issue Foreclosure of input markets Leveraging Network effects IV. Horizontal integration 1. General assessment 2. The Newscorp/Telepiu case 3. The EMI/Time Warner case V. Remedies 1. The balance between efficiencies and foreclosure 2. Remedies in the Newscorp/Telepiu case 3. Remedies in the cases Vivendi/Seagram/Canal Plus, Vizzavi and AOL/Time Warner Conclusion * Administrator, European Commission/DG Competition/Media Unit. Lecturer at the Law School of the University of Lisbon.The opinions expressed are purely personal and only engage the author. â€Å"Vertical and horizontal integration in the media sector and EU competition law† – M. Mendes Pereira Ladies and Gentlemen, I wish first of all to thank the SMIT Center and Telenor for inviting me to speak here today. I intend to give you a brief overview of the competition issues raised by vertical and horizontal integration of companies in the media sector. I will start by referring to the convergence trend in the media and telecommunications sectors and its link to the concentration wave we have witnessed during these past three years.I will then highlight the main competition issues which this type of operations raise from a theoretical point of view. I will subsequently address the issues linked specifically to vertical as well as to horizontal integration, and c onclude by illustrating how the European Commission has dealt with these problems by means of remedies accepted as a condition for the approval of this type of concentrations. In so doing, I will refer to a number of cases recently assessed by the Commission such as AOL/Time Warner, EMI/Time Warner, Vizzavi, Vivendi/Seagram/Canal Plus and, decided just last week, Newscorp/Telepiu.I. CONVERGENCE & INTEGRATION Convergence has become all too familiar to most of us as one of the main driving forces behind the recent changes occurred in the media and telecom industries. However, as it so frequently happens with notions that turn into â€Å"buzzwords†, the many meanings attributed to the term â€Å"convergence† are often ambiguous and, as such, unhelpful in order to describe the evolution of the media and telecom industries. Let me therefore turn, first of all, to the two meanings of the term â€Å"convergence† that I consider to be most relevant from a competition la w point of view. . Technical convergence Technical convergence mainly concerns the possibilities offered by digital technology. Those possibilities are reflected, for example, in the infra-structures required to deliver contents like movies or music. With the current digital technology, huge amounts of data may be transmitted to a high number of users through different networks (mobile networks, Internet, satellite). This allows for the dematerialization of media products traditionally sold as physical products (newspapers, films, CD’s) by transforming them into packages of bytes.At the same time, digital technology allows for the convergence of traditionally separate media into a single product, putting together text, sound, video and voice in what has become known as multimedia. Access to TV broadcasting, or rather webcastig, on the Internet is already nowadays a reality and listening to an MP3 music file on a cellular phone is nothing new. 2. Economic convergence Audio-vis ual products were never cheap but the growing competition induced by the proliferation of TV channels has inflated production costs. For example, the by now famous saga â€Å"The Lord of the Rings† has had reported costs of â‚ ¬ 278 million.In order to have an idea of the recent increase in the price for audio-visual contents it is sufficient to compare, for example, the price paid for broadcasting rights of the Football World Cups of 1990, 1994 and 1998 – 241 million ECU – with the price paid for the same rights in respect of the World Cups of 2002 and 2006 – 1,7 billion Euro. Only large companies seem to be able to afford such astronomical costs. 2 â€Å"Vertical and horizontal integration in the media sector and EU competition law† – M. Mendes Pereira In face of economic barriers of such dimension, media companies have shown a trend towards concentration. . Efficiencies What appeared to be particularly new about these alliances and mer gers in the media industry was the search of not only the traditional economies of scale but, above all, the search of economies of scope. This translated into an attempt to use the same product in a number of different ways: pure entertainment and telecommunication, or entertainment and information, or information and telecommunication. From an economic point of view, economies of scope basically translate in lower Average Total Costs as a result of producing a wide range of products.The main feature of this type of concentrations is the vertical integration of the different levels of production and distribution of media products that leads to companies which are able to, for example, produce films or music, register them in DVDs or CDs and distribute them not only to â€Å"brick and mortar† shops but also through the cable, satellite or mobile telephony networks they own. Vertically integrated companies are in a position to exploit their products at every single level of th e value chain. „Create Once, Place Everywhere! seemed to be the motto for the media industry during the Internet bubble, illustrating the need for media producers to place their products in the largest possible number of different platforms. This was the underlying reason for alliances and mergers between companies which are active in sectors of the economy that used to be separate like television and telecommunications. Operations like AOL/Time Warner, Vivendi/Universal, Vivendi/Vodafone for the setting up of portal Vizzavi or the acquisition of Dutch entertainment producer Endemol by the Spanish telecom company Telefonica clearly illustrate this trend.It should be said that, to a large extent, the ratio underlying some of these operations was a deep faith in the Internet potential and a strong belief in the synergies resulting from cross-supply between different technical platforms belonging to the same vertically integrated company. The burst of the â€Å"dotcom bubbleâ₠¬  showed how some of these expectations were possibly premature. We now start seeing some of the vertically integrated groups selling off some of their units (AOL/TW or Vivendi/Universal) and witness consolidation caused by heavy losses incurred during these past few years.Such is the case of the pay-TV industry, as illustrated by the merger in Spain of the platforms Canal Satelite and Via Digital and the merger in Italy between the platforms Stream and Telepiu, approved by the Commission just last week. After a period of extensive vertical integration, we now witness a reflux of horizontal integration dictated to some extent by financial reasons. II. COMPETITION ISSUES 1. The competitive arena Turning now to the competition issues raised by integration of companies, the first step required in order to understand the forces at play is to determine the perimeter of the competitive arena.What do media companies compete for, whom do they try to sell their products to and how do they intend to do it? Media companies compete for – essentially – three things. First, they compete for content, which is what they will ultimately sell to their customers. Access to content produced by third parties or the establishment of production facilities is a sine qua non condition for entering or staying in business. Secondly, they compete for the best way to deliver such content to customers. Access to delivery channels owned by third parties or 3 â€Å"Vertical and horizontal integration in the media sector and EU competition law† – M.Mendes Pereira the possibility to establish their own paths to the customer is what allows media companies to distribute their output. Finally, they compete for the obvious ultimate addressee of all this competition: the customer. But this is a contest which goes beyond the obvious competition for a onetime sale. Some of the businesses in the media & telecom sector (e. g; pay-TV, Internet access), like most IT-driven b usinesses, are based on a durable relationship with the customer. An established customer basis allows for the progressive development of new services and products and for the consequent increase in ARPU1.Access to potential clients managed by third parties or the build-up of their own client basis is the ultimate target of media companies. 2. Foreclosure Foreclosure of the competitive arena is a central concern of EU competition policy in relation to vertical agreements and mergers. Restricted access to input markets (copyrights or contents) or to sales markets (customers, at retail level) may limit inter-brand competition. The extreme example is where a company, as a result of a vertical or horizontal integration, succeeds in simply barring the access to a given market to its competitors.However, in real life foreclosure does not arise in such simplistic terms and mostly materialises by indirect means. For example, by raising rivals’ costs, by raising barriers to entry or b y engaging in tying/bundling. Tying is particularly relevant in the media and telecom sectors given that it is often present in explicit (and in most cases, legitimate) commercial offers: for example, a bundled offer of pay-TV and Internet access, or both plus fixed telephony (so called â€Å"triple play†). The ability to raise rivals’ costs may easily arise where a dominant firm is in a position or acquires such position as a result of a concentration) to control the access by competitors to a given infra-structure or input (a technology or a copyright) and where it has the possibility to charge supra-competitive prices for such access. In the media sector one could think about, for example, access to a satellite platform for TV distribution or to a proprietary standard for Conditional Access System. A company in these circumstances is commonly referred to as a â€Å"gate-keeper†. A central element in the assessment of market power of a company and its possibil ity of foreclosing a given market is the concept of barriers to entry.Where entry barriers do not exist, easy entry will quickly eliminate the problem, even where the incumbent holds large market shares. Entry barriers might be described as â€Å"the advantages of established sellers in an industry over potential entrant sellers, these advantages being reflected in the extent to which established sellers can persistently raise their prices above a competitive level without attracting new firms to enter the industry†2. Although in most cases barriers to entry will indeed have an economic nature, they may in some cases assume other forms.Regulation may function as an entry barrier when it provides for the establishment of special rights, for example when only a limited number of licenses is foreseen. This is the case of terrestrial TV and/or radio broadcasting due to spectrum scarcity. 3. The dominance test Most competition law issues related to vertical and horizontal integrat ion in the media sector have been dealt with by the European Commission under the Merger Regulation, i. e. in respect of concentrations notified under the EC Merger Regulation3. As 2 3 1 Average Revenue per User.J. Bain, Barriers to Competition, H. U. P. 1965, p. 3. Council Regulation (EC) No 4064/89 of 21 December 1989 on the control of concentrations 4 â€Å"Vertical and horizontal integration in the media sector and EU competition law† – M. Mendes Pereira you know, pursuant to Article 2 (3) of the Merger Regulation, â€Å"a concentration which creates or strengthens a dominant position as a result of which effective competition would be significantly impeded in the common market or in a substantial part of it, shall be declared incompatible with the common market. The test applied by the Commission when assessing these operations was therefore a dominance test. The concept of dominance used under the Merger Regulation is equivalent to the one defined by the Court o f Justice in Article 82 cases: â€Å"The dominant position (†¦) relates to a position of economic strength enjoyed by an undertaking which enables it to prevent effective competition being maintained on the relevant market by giving it the power to behave to an appreciable extent independently of its competitors, customers and ultimately of its consumers†4. (†¦) such a position does not preclude some competition, which it does where there is a monopoly or quasi-monopoly, but enables the undertaking which profits by it, if not to determine, at least to have an appreciable influence on the conditions under which that competition will develop, and in any case to act largely in discard of it so long as such conduct does not operate to its detriment. †5 III.Vertical integration The reason why vertical integration is a particularly relevant competition issue in the media sector is because many media companies have during these past years actively sought to take vert ical integration as far as possible. This has been a constant between undertakings, OJ L 395/1, 30. 12. 1989, as amended by Council Regulation (EC) No 1310/97 of 30 June 1997, OJ L 40/17, 13. 2. 1998. ECJ, United Brands, case 2/76, ECR [1978] 207. ECJ, Hoffman-La Roche, case 85/76, ECR [1979] 461. eature of the concentrations in the media sector assessed by the Commission. The multiplication of the presence of a company throughout a number of markets along the value chain of the product concomitantly multiplies the possibilities for such a company to foreclose one or more of the corresponding markets where the company possesses market power. In these circumstances, vertical integration may in itself raise barriers to entry. A number of recurrent competition issues has arisen in the cases dealt with by the Commission, and I propose to address the most significant ones. 1.The gate-keeper A gate-keeper role is played by a company possessing a certain infra-structure, technology or know -how allowing it to exert a significant degree of control in respect of the access to a given market. This degree of control is relevant from a competition point of view only where the market power of the gate-keeper is significant and where the infrastructure is a crucial gateway to the market or where the technology at stake is an essential input for any potential new entrant. A gatekeeper will be able to engage in exclusionary practices vis-a-vis its competitors and/or excessive pricing vis-a-vis its customers.A clear gate-keeper issue arose in the recent Newscorp/Telepiu case6, concerning the merger of the two Italian pay-TV platforms Stream and Telepiu. As a result of the merger, the new entity would become the gate-keeper in respect of the access to the only satellite platform in Italy for the provision of pay-TV distribution services. Furthermore, it would become the gate-keeper in respect of a number of technical services associated to 6 Case COMP/M. 2876 Newscorp/Telepiu. S ee prior notification notice in OJCE, C255, 23. 10. 2002, p. 20; press release IP/02/1782 of 29. 11. 2002; press release IP/03/478 of 02. 4. 2003. 5 4 5 â€Å"Vertical and horizontal integration in the media sector and EU competition law† – M. Mendes Pereira pay-TV such as Conditional Access Systems, set-top boxes and Electronic Programme Guides. A gate-keeper issue also arose in the AOL/Time Warner merger7 approved in the year 2000. AOL was the leading Internet access provider in the US and the only provider with a presence in most EU Member States. Time Warner, on the other hand, was one of the world’s largest media and entertainment companies with interests in TV networks, magazines, book publishing, music, filmed entertainment and cable networks.The Commission found that the new entity resulting from the merger would have been able to play a gate-keeper role and to dictate the technical standards for on-line music delivery, i. e. streaming and downloading of music from the Internet. Consequently, AOL/TW could end up holding a dominant position on the emerging market for on-line music delivery. This could happen in two ways. First, AOL/Time Warner would be in a position to develop a closed proprietary formatting technology for all the downloads and streaming of Time Warner and Bertelsmann tracks.The formatting language of AOL/Time Warner could become an industry standard and competing record companies wishing to distribute their music on-line would be required to format their music using the new entity’s technology. Because of its control over the relevant technology, the new entity would be in a position to control downloadable music and streaming over the Internet and raise competitor’s costs through excessive license fees. Alternatively, AOL/Time Warner could format its music (and Bertelsmann’s) to make it compatible with its own software Winamp nly, ensuring at the same time that Winamp could support and play di fferent formats used by other record companies. By formatting its music and the music from Bertelsmann to make them compatible with its own software Winamp only, the new entity would cause Winamp to become the only â€Å"player† in the world capable of playing virtually all the music available on the Internet. By refusing to license its technology, the new entity would impose Winamp as the dominant music player as no other player would be able to decode the proprietary format of TW and Bertelsmann music.As a result of the merger, the new entity would control the dominant player software and could charge supra-competitive prices for it. 2. Foreclosure of input markets A given company may hold a significant degree control over the source of the different businesses at stake in the relevant markets, i. e. of the primary input at the top of the value chain of the product. In the media industries, this will generally refer to the company producing the audio-visual product (films, music, TV-programmes) and/or holding the corresponding copyrights.The control exerted at the source will become relevant from a competition law point of view where the amount or breadth of products and/or copyrights is such as to allow the company to gain a competitive advantage by means of exclusionary or discriminatory practices vis-a-vis its competitors. In AOL/Time Warner, for example, the combined entity would not only possess one of the largest music libraries in the world (Warner Music is one of the 5 music majors) but would also, due to contractual links, have preferential access to the library of Bertelsmann Music Group, also part to the group of the 5 music majors.This would result in the combined entity controlling the leading source of music publishing rights in Europe. 6 7 Case COMP/M. 1845 AOL/Time Warner, decision of 11. 10. 2000, OJ L 268/28, 9. 10. 2001. â€Å"Vertical and horizontal integration in the media sector and EU competition law† – M. Mendes P ereira The problem was aggravated due to the simultaneous notification of the projected merger between EMI and Time Warner8. The preferential access by AOL/Time Warner to the music copyrights of EMI, Warner and Bertelsmann would have put in the hands of the new entity half of all the music content available in Europe for on-line delivery.A similar problem arose in the Vivendi/Seagram/Canal Plus9 merger in respect of both music and films. Vivendi was a leading company in the telecommunications and media sector, with interests in mobile telephony networks, cinema production and distribution, and pay-TV services. Seagram was a Canadian company which, among other interests, controlled the Universal music and filmed entertainment businesses. In terms of content, the merged entity would have the world’s second largest film library and the second largest library of TV programming in the EEA.It would also be number one in recorded music combined with an important position in terms of publishing rights in the EEA. The position of Vivendi/Universal concerning music rights became particularly relevant in respect of the Vizzavi portal, a portal run by a joint-venture between Vivendi and Vodafone. The Vizzavi joint-venture10 had itself been notified to the Commission just some months before the Vivendi/Universal merger. 3. Leveraging A classic competition concern is the leveraging ability of the parties, i. e. their ability to transpose their market power in a iven market into a neighbouring market, thereby creating or strengthening a dominant position. This problem may become particularly acute in cases where the parties extend their activities into different product or services markets, something that is explicitly sought for by media companies wishing to distribute their products across different platforms. In the Vizzavi case, the creation of the jointventure raised concerns in respect of the ability of the parties to leverage their market power in the market fo r mobile telephony into the market for mobile Internet access.The stated purpose of the Vizzavi portal was to create a â€Å"horizontal, multi-access Internet portal†, providing customers with a range of web-based services across a variety of platforms (PCs, mobile phones, TV set-top boxes). As regards Internet access via mobile phone handsets, the issue arose in respect of the significant market position of Vodafone in the market for mobile telephony in a number of European countries (and of Vivendi in France). Vodafone and Vivendi already had a very significant customer basis in these countries and therefore a solid path to the future customers of the JV was already established.On the basis of their client basis for mobile telephony services, the position of the JV-parties in the market for mobile Internet access would be strengthened by the Vizzavi branded and integrated approach to Internet across various platforms, which would allow for cross-selling and bundling of offe rs. This would allow the new entity to leverage a strong position in the mobile telephony market into a dominant position on the mobile Internet access market.As regards Internet access via TV set-top boxes, a similarly solid distribution channel was also owned by Canal+ in respect of its customer basis for pay-TV services. A similar concern therefore arose in respect of the ability of Canal+ leveraging its strong market 7 Case COMP/M. 1852 Time Warner/EMI, see Press Release IP/00/617 of 14. 06. 2000. 9 Case COMP/M. 2050 Vivendi/ Seagram/ Canal Plus, decision of 13. 10. 2000, OJ C 311/3, 31. 10. 2000. 10 Case COMP/JV. 48 Vodafone/Vivendi/Canal Plus, see Press Release IP/00/821 of 24. 07. 2000. 8 Vertical and horizontal integration in the media sector and EU competition law† – M. Mendes Pereira position in the pay-TV market into the market for Internet access via set-top boxes. The overall concern therefore arose in respect of the ability of both Vodafone and Canal+ to m igrate their customer basis from the mobile telephony and pay-TV markets to the Internet access markets by using the already existing distribution channels. Another clear vertical leveraging issue arose in the Vizzavi case, as regards the buying power of the J-V parties.Already before the operation, Canal+ was an important buyer of content for pay-TV, such as TVprogramming, sports and films. Furthermore, it had a large customer basis accustomed to pay for content. The Vizzavi portal would combine a powerful new Internet access mechanism with paid-for content. Given the dominant position that the parties would acquire on the Internet access markets which I mentioned before, the operation would allow the parties to leverage their market power in the markets for Internet access into the market for the acquisition of paid-for content for the Internet.Moreover, the structural link between Vivendi and Canal+ and AOL France (55%) made the concern in respect of the increase in the bargainin g power of the parties even more serious. The leverage allowed for by the operation would naturally work in detriment of the parties’ competitors in the markets for mobile telephony and pay-TV. The concerns identified in the Vizzavi operation were strengthened when Vivendi and Canal+ notified some months later their acquisition of Seagram, the Canadian company owning the music and film business of Universal.The Commission considered that Canal+ would further increase its dominant position on a number of European pay-TV markets at national level. Already before the operation Canal+ enjoyed an almost monopolistic position in respect of the acquisition of the exclusivity on Hollywood films produced by the major studios (in France, Spain and Italy). The acquisition of Universal Studios would further strengthen Canal+’s position as purchaser of Hollywood films, not only in respect of Universal itself but also in relation to other studios due to underlying financial links.Du e to the vertical integration of Universal and Canal+, Canal+ would be able to leverage its position in order to secure the renewal of the exclusive agreements for pay-TV with all of the Hollywood studios and in fact also to enter into new deals. The bargaining power of Canal+ vis-a-vis the film studios would therefore be increased, allowing Canal+ to further foreclose the payTV markets where it already was active. 4.Network effects Let me now turn to another issue that often arises in media cases, most notably since convergence with the telecom industry became a reality: network effects. A network effect may, in simple terms, be described as the self-multiplying power of a network. In economic terms, a network effect occurs when the benefit of an individual who is linked to the network increases with the accession of other individuals. In AOL/Time Warner, the Commission found that the distribution strength of AOL combined with the content of Time Warner and Bertelsmann would create network effects n respect of both content providers and consumers: – for content providers, the AOL Internet community would become an essential outlet for the distribution of their products; – on their side, consumers, would be deprived of any incentive abandon AOL. The network effects would work both ways: more subscribers would bring more content and more content would bring more subscribers. Newcomers would also be attracted to AOL community because the 8 â€Å"Vertical and horizontal integration in the media sector and EU competition law† – M. Mendes Pereira arger the community, the more the possibilities to chat and communicate through AOL. The reason for this lies at the critical mass of content owned by Time Warner and Bertelsmann (namely their huge music library) combined with the huge Internet community formed by AOL subscribers and the members to its Instant Messaging services. The critical mass of content owned by TW and Bertelsmann would att ract further music from other record companies. Competing record companies would feel obliged to distribute their products through AOL’s online outlet, which would end up having access to all the available music.Furthermore, AOL would be able to bundle TW and Bertelsmann music content (or filmed entertainment content) with Internet access and other proprietary services and give its subscribers preferential access to that content, allowing for instance its subscribers to access new releases before they were made public through other distribution channels. Attractive content such as music or films could also be used as promotional tools or loss-leaders in order to subscribe to Internetaccess services.Consequently, the more subscribers AOL would attract, the more important it would become as a carrier for content providers seeking to secure maximum distribution. First mover advantages are particularly strong in network industries. It comes as no surprise that, for example, mobil e telephony companies give away, or strongly subsidise, mobile handsets to their customers such as to quickly establish a significant customer basis leading to increasingly stronger network effects.This circumstance justifies a particular attention by the Commission when assessing concentrations in the media & telecom industries. The combination of network effects with a strong market position may significantly raise barriers to entry and consequently lead to market foreclosure. IV. Horizontal integration Competition problems which are specific to the media sector are more likely to be found in cases of vertical integration than in cases of horizontal integration.I would argue that in cases of horizontal integration, the competition issues arising in the media sector are equivalent to the ones to be found in any other sector. The issue basically concerns classic market power and the required exercise translates into measuring such market power with the help of the traditional analyt ical tools: market shares, barriers to entry, etc. Furthermore, there haven’t been that many examples of problematic cases of horizontal integration in the media sector dealt with by the Commission.The two most significant examples are probably EMI/Time Warner and the recent Newscorp/Telepiu. 1. The Newscorp/Telepiu case This concentration was notified to the Commission on 16 October 2002 and was cleared on 2 April 2003, further to the submission by the parties of an extensive package of undertakings. Newscorp, the acquiring firm, is a global media company, which is active in the film and TV industries, publishing (newspapers and books) and a number of other areas.It controlled the Italian (satellite) pay-TV platform Stream jointly with Telecom Italia. Telepiu, the acquired firm, was controlled by Vivendi Universal, itself a global media group. Telepiu is the dominant pay-TV operator in Italy. Its platform started operating via analogue-terrestrial means in 1991 and went on s atellite in 1996. The markets affected by the operation were: a) the market for pay-TV services; b) the markets for the acquisition of contents, namely: 9 Vertical and horizontal integration in the media sector and EU competition law† – M. Mendes Pereira G G G G premium films; football events; other sports; TV channels. parties’ music recording publishing11 businesses. and music It should be underlined that experience shows that some of this content, namely premium films and football, is crucial for the success of any pay-TV operation. The notified operation would give rise to significant horizontal overlaps and would have a very strong impact on actual competition.In more concrete terms, the operation would lead to: a) the creation of a near monopoly in the Italian market for pay-TV; b) the creation of a near monopsony in the markets for the acquisition of rights Furthermore, the characteristics of the markets at stake would cause entry barriers to rise signific antly. 2. The EMI/Time Warner case This concentration was notified to the Commission on 5 May 2000. It never materialised given that, further to a statement of objections issued by the Commission, the parties withdrew their notification.Time Warner is a global media company, with interests extending from film production and distribution to TV production and broadcasting, cable systems operation, magazine publishing, book publishing, recorded music and music publishing. EMI is a company incorporated in the UK, its main activities being music recording and publishing world-wide. The notified concentration involved the combination of the There were serious doubts as to the compatibility of the proposed operation with the common market due to the significant horizontal overlaps in the relevant markets.The assessment carried out by the Commission showed a very high likelihood of the operation resulting in a single dominance of the merged entity in the music publishing business and collec tive dominance, jointly with the other four remaining music â€Å"Majors†, in the market for recorded music. V. Remedies Having gone through some of the competition problems raised by vertical and horizontal integration in the media industry, let me now conclude by explaining how the Commission has tried to solve these problems.The Commission had to achieve a balance between two somehow conflicting elements: – on the one hand, the Commission was aware of the reasons that lead companies to seek further integration, namely where these reasons were related to clear efficiencies; – on the other, it became aware of the serious competition problems to which some of these concentrations gave rise, namely the risk of foreclosure of the affected markets. The approach taken by the Commission was therefore not to prohibit most of these operations but rather approving them on the basis of strict undertakings proposed by the parties and accepted as a condition for the approv al.However, the Commission can only accept commitments by the parties when the 11 Music publishing consists of the acquisition by publishers of rights to musical works and their subsequent exploitation upon remuneration, mostly in the form of a commission charged by the publisher to the author on the revenues generated by the commercial exploitation of musical works. 10 â€Å"Vertical and horizontal integration in the media sector and EU competition law† – M. Mendes Pereira competition problems are effectively solved.In fact, the underlying objective of any remedy package should be to create the conditions for actual competition to subsist and/or for potential competition to emerge. This aim must be achieved by lowering barriers to entry in the affected markets and through the creation of competitive constraints which effectively operate as a disciplining and restraining factor of the dominant player. The main concern of the Commission in media-related cases was to ens ure access, access to the relevant markets or access to those crucial elements allowing for new entrants to establish themselves in those markets.In parallel, the Commission has often imposed divestitures or the severance of structural links that aggravated the foreclosure problems. 1. Remedies in the Newscorp/Telepiu case In Newscorp/Telepiu, the undertakings accepted by the Commission can be divided in three major groups: a) access to content, via namely a reduction in the duration of exclusivity agreements with premium content providers and the establishment of a sub-licensing scheme through a wholesale offer; b) access to infra-structure, i. . access to the satellite platform for pay-TV distribution as well as to the technical services associated with pay-TV; c) withdrawal from terrestrial broadcasting activities. As regards access to content, with respect to ongoing exclusive contracts, a unilateral termination right shall be granted to film producers and football clubs. Furthe rmore, the new entity will waive exclusive rights with respect to TV platforms other than DTH12 (terrestrial, cable, UMTS, Internet etc. ).The parties shall also waive any other protection rights as regards means of transmission other than DTH. With respect to future exclusive contracts, the new entity shall not subscribe contracts exceeding two years with football clubs and three years with film producers. The exclusivity attached to these contracts will only cover DTH transmission and would not apply to other means of transmission (for example, terrestrial, cable, UMTS and Internet ). Furthermore, the parties shall waive any protection rights as regards means of transmission other than DTH.Lastly, the merged entity shall offer third parties, on a unbundled and non-exclusive basis, the right to distribute on platforms other than DTH any premium contents if and for as long as the combined platform offers such premium contents to its retail customers. Such wholesale offer will be mad e on the basis of the retail minus principle and will imply an account separation and cost allocation between wholesale and retail operation of the platform. The beneficiaries of the wholesale offer shall be free to determine their own pricing policy.As regards access to the infra-structure, the merged entity shall grant third parties access to its satellite platform and access to the application program interface (API) and conditional access system (CAS), according to a fair non-discriminatory pricing formula. The new entity will also have the obligation of entering into simulcrypt agreements in Italy as soon as reasonably possible and in any event within 9 months from the written request from an interested third party. As regards the withdrawal from terrestrial activities, the merged entity shall divest of Telepiu's digital and analogue terrestrial 2 Direct To Home satellite. 11 â€Å"Vertical and horizontal integration in the media sector and EU competition law† – M . Mendes Pereira broadcasting assets and commits not to enter into any further DTT activities, neither as network nor as retail operator. The frequencies will have to be acquired by a company willing to include pay-TV broadcasting of or more channels in its business plan for the operation of the divested business after the switchover from analogue to digital terrestrial television broadcasting in Italy. . Remedies in the Vivendi/Seagram/Canal Plus, Vizzavi and AOL/Time Warner cases In Vizzavi, the project of the parties provided for the Vizzavi portal to be the default portal on Vodafone and SFR mobile phone customers, as well as on Canal+ set-top boxes. The Commission imposed the possibility of customers changing the default portal on their devices, as well as the possibility of competing telecom operators accessing the customers’ devices.This commitment by the parties prevented them from bundling their offers on a fully exclusive basis and prevented them consequently from l everaging their market power in a way such as to gain dominant positions in the markets for Internet access and Internet portals. In Vivendi/Seagram/Canal Plus, the parties undertook to grant access to Universal’s music content to any third party on a nondiscriminatory basis, therefore reducing the concerns in respect of the Internet portals market and the on-line music market.The parties also undertook not to offer more than 50% of the Universal’s film production to Canal+, thereby reducing the concerns in respect of the foreclosure by Canal+ of the pay-TV markets. As regards the severance of structural links, Vivendi undertook to divest from BSkyB in which it held a 25% stake. The severance of this link to Fox, namely through their joint venture UIP for the distribution of films in Europe, significantly reduced the impact of the acquisition of Universal.In AOL/TW, you may recall that the competition concerns started at the source, due to the breadth of music copyrigh ts that the new entity would control. Warner Music, combined with Bertelsmann music due to crossed shareholdings, and in addition the EMI library (should the EMI/TW merger be approved), would put in the hands of the new entity a huge amount of content that rendered the gate-keeper role played by AOL in respect of music player software and the network effects resulting from the AOL community as serious competition concerns. The abortion of the EMI/Time Warner merger already reduced significantly the competition concerns.Therefore, the attention of the Commission was focussed on the structural link between AOL and Bertelsmann in AOL Europe and AOL France. In this respect, AOL undertook to put in place a mechanism pursuant to which Bertelsmann would exit from AOL Europe. Once solved the problem at the source, the other concerns were partially dissipated. As regards online music delivery, AOL also undertook not to take any action that would result in Bertelsmann music being available on line exclusively through AOL or being formatted in a proprietary format that was playable only on an AOL music player.Conclusion If I had to sum up the Commission’s approach in three words as regards competition in the media markets, they would certainly be: access, access and access! No matter how far media companies integrate, vertically or horizontally, access is crucial. Access to inputs, access to contents and access to infra-structure remains fundamental in order to ensure the freedom of choice by the ultimate addressee of competition policy: the consumer. Thank you for your attention. 12