For the first time ever, this June, the skies over the Atlantic will be crowded with WestJet Airlines Ltd. planes. The company is just dipping its toes in the European market by only offering flights to Ireland, in order to get a better understanding of the European market without risking too much investment. The decision will increase the competition on Air Canada’s Canada-to-Ireland routes, but full-blown competition with Air Canada would require wider-bodied aircraft.

While WestJet does have potential for international expansion, is this the right financial decision for the company? If the flights run under capacity it will cost WestJet hundreds of thousands of dollars, since costs from operating the plane stay the same but less revenue is being generated from ticket sales. On the other hand, by having airplanes fly to other continents, WestJet’s brand recognition will finally burst outside of the North American bubble.

In agreement with Danielle Yalouz’s comment, “If West Jet is successful, they could create a whole new name for themselves and finally compete with the other international airline companies”, it seems that many are skeptical about WestJet’s return on investment from Europe. The skepticism will be answered come June.

Imbedded Blog: https://blogs.ubc.ca/danielleyallouz/2013/11/17/should-west-jet-travel-overseas/

Source: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/westjet-goes-trans-atlantic-with-new-dublin-flight/article15455464/#dashboard/follows/

Source: http://www2.macleans.ca/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/090422_westjet.jpg

As a fellow ‘snap-chatter’ and in response to Keenan Manhas’ post “Snapchat Decides to Stand Alone After Rejecting Facebook’s Offer” it is safe to say that Snapchat is a far more entertaining, fresh way of connecting with friends. Facebook knows it too, and that’s why they recently tried to buy out the company, without success. As highlighted by Keenan’s blog, Facebook’s popularity is declining and in order to maintain competitive expansion is necessary. ‘Buying out’ seems to be the natural instinct for large online sites when they feel threatened by new entrants into the market, so it is no surprise that Facebook has offered billions for companies such as Vine and Instagram in the past. Huge returns on investment have been earned on buyouts, such as when Google bought Youtube, now the largest ever video sharing site.

Keenan’s blog brilliantly illustrates the competitiveness of the social media market and how a buyout can reduce that competition to an oligopoly or even a monopoly.

Embedded Blog: https://blogs.ubc.ca/keenanmanhas/2013/11/13/snapchat-decides-to-stand-alone-after-rejecting-facebooks-offer/

Source: http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2005/11/13/business/13buyout.583.gif

Netflix recently admitted that it analyses downloading trends in file-sharing websites to purchase the shows that will be most popular amongst its subscribers. As an example, the company purchased the series Prison Break because of its torrenting popularity, since then Prison Break is one of the most-watched shows on Netflix.

This blog draws attention to how inter-related different websites and companies can be when it comes to the internet. It seems that Netflix now depends on torrenting websites much in the same way that Facebook depends on Google to customize its advertisements. Not only is it interesting that Netflix admitted to using illegal sites for market research, but also that the company received praise from consumers on being creative. Perhaps the imbedded blog is foreshadowing a dark future on market research techniques. If companies are being supported for using illegal websites that governments have been trying to shutdown for years, then what other data-gathering techniques does the future hold?

External Blog Source: http://www2.macleans.ca/2013/10/10/pirate-raid-22/

Source: http://cdn2.mos.techradar.futurecdn.net//art/internet/VOD/Netflix/Netflix_mylist-578-80.jpg

Giant UK based retailer Tesco PLC is implementing surveillance cameras with face scanners in its gas stations to better target advertising to its customers. The cameras, which can estimate age and gender, will be installed at checkouts in 450 locations. Although it seems intrusive, the cameras cannot personally identify and the company won’t keep any of the images.

This innovative form of descriptive research could prove to be very useful to Tesco, and I would not be surprised to see them gain significant returns on their marketing investments. In knowing age and gender trends of consumers, managers will greatly reduce uncertainty in marketing decision processes. For example, the company may have previously thought that, being a gas station, no particular group was visiting more frequently. After using the technology, they may realize that young males are their target market and physically rearrange/restock the products in their stores, increasing revenue. As technology becomes increasingly more sophisticated, it’s inevitable that the rate of new marketing strategies will increase, pushing the personally boundaries of consumers. In a few years time, face scanners may be the norm, and then what will businesses try to analyze, consumer personalities?

Source: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/industry-news/marketing/tesco-rolls-out-face-scanners-to-deliver-targeted-ads/article15243513/#dashboard/follows/

Source: http://blog.seattlepi.com/thebigblog/files/library/camera_head.jpg

Many are underestimating the fact that smart machines could replace millions of middle-class jobs in the coming decades. One of the main factors behind the slow job recovery of the 2008 recession is that a growing number of robots have been replacing potential jobs. In fact, analysis shows that computers could replace 45 percent of American jobs within the next twenty years. Some studies show that the issue is current while others argue it is negligible until the distant future, regardless though all studies agree that robots will eventually make a widespread and deep impact on the North American job market.

But will it make financial sense for managers to invest in capital rather than labour? If the cost of capital is significantly lower than labour, chances are this idea is very probable. Capital is a much more reliable and efficient means of production, managers don’t have to deal with absenteeism, tardiness, “coffee breaks” or using incentives to motivate employees to their full productivity potential. In addition, managers could vastly reduce their variable costs by investing more on electricity instead of having to pay wages.

Source: http://www.cbc.ca/news/business/are-robotic-smart-machines-behind-the-jobless-recovery-1.2326104

Source: http://www.cooltanarts.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/robot.jpg