Twitter is still growing in numbers of users and right now sits in excess of 19 million active members, generating billions of tweets per year allowing members to share experiences within a 140 character limit. Twitter has successfully created a symbiotic relationship that allows users to get involved in participatory events ranging from sports events to television programs. Organizations and celebrities alike are catching onto this and have begun to develop a social media presence to garner more publicity. Twitter is a live portrayal of how complements work and how they can act as ‘force multipliers’.

Take for example the Super Bowl, last year 24 million tweets were sent out about the competition, and nearly 45% of the commercials had some form of hashtag involved encouraging viewers to follow them on Twitter. Also, during the Breaking Bad finale a record setting 1.24 million tweets were created, topping out at 22,373 tweets per minute. Organizations such as the NFL may create tweets drawing attention to major plays, and letting people know that they can catch the game on their television network. Clearly, Twitter’s huge fan base coupled with the fact that there are roughly 1 billion smartphone users worldwide with access to the Twitter app and data is the ultimate form of a symbiotic relationship which is beneficial for advertisers, consumers, and Twitter.

Sources:

http://staceyhood.com/tag/digital-development/

http://www.vancouversun.com/entertainment/television/Twitter+tunes+into+chatter+sees+future/9008625/story.html

Everybody is aware of Apple’s slick designs and classic phones. They were known for pushing the market and being the first to create a sleek, simple, easy-to-use smartphone. Billions of dollars have gone into making Apple the technological powerhouse it is today, and they are a prime example of how image can prevail over innovation in the short run.

After every new iPhone release, Apple’s stock prices experienced a rise; however, after the 5S and 5C release Apple’s stock prices took an unexpected drop. Obviously, this came as a surprise to the public and to Apple as well. However, this should have been slightly anticipated as the 5C and 5S are hardly worth the upgrade from the regular 5, let alone the 4S. It is true that the 5 series of iPhones are better, but are they worth up to another $920?

At this point Apple is producing new phones at almost the same rate that Call of Dutys come out. But just like Call of Duty (it’s a video game), Apple products seem to be bought almost as a status symbol and because they are new, rather than because it is a major improvement. I guess the question is, is how long can a company get away with using their image to sell incrementally better products?

Sources:

http://www.imore.com/would-you-want-gold-colored-iphone-5s-poll

http://store.apple.com/ca/buy-iphone/iphone5s

http://ca.ign.com/articles/2013/09/11/apples-stock-prices-fall-after-iphone-5s-announcement

Recently, Blackberry has fallen into a slump after releasing their new touch-screen cell phone model the Z10. The failure of this phone has cost the company nearly $1 billion. The colossal failure of this phone nearly cost the company all of it’s quarterly revenue of $1.6 billion. Given the statistics, there is no way Blackberry provided sufficient time and funding into doing a forecast for the market.

Due to this oversight, Blackberry is now facing class-action lawsuits from shareholders claiming that they were misled by the company regarding it’s future. In addition to facing lawsuits, the company also had to lay off nearly 40% of the workforce; totalling roughly 4,500 people. After revealing the losses and labour cuts, Blackberry’s share price nosedived by 25%.

Although the current situation looks grim, Blackberry has high hopes for saving the company as it proposes to become privately-held. Tech-companies from Asia, and multiple private-equity companies from Canada and the US have considered bids for the waning company, but it is currently unclear if they are currently interested. Could this be the end of Blackberry as they are known? Or will being privately-held provide Blackberry with some breathing room for innovation? Only time will tell the future for this company, a precious commodity which they do not have.

Sources:

http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/business/2013/10/06/blackberry-faces-class-action-shareholder-lawsuit/2931455/

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303759604579093342883899478.html

http://www.engadget.com/2013/09/27/blackberry-loses-a-billion-dollars-on-z10-charge/