EPIC GAMES
EPIC GAMES (LICENSING)
Every game has been developed through a game engine like, for example, the most anticipated game i.e., “Death Stranding” has been created on Decima, which was offered to Hideo Kojima by Guerrilla Games as they have good relations throughout the time. Therefore, Hideo Kojima was then able to create the game he dreamt of. Same can be said for the game “Until Dawn” which was also created on the same game engine. Hence, both of the games turned out to be a huge success. Now as Fortnite has developed their own engine i.e., “Unreal Engine”, I believe they are doing the right thing licensing their game engine to other developers as games like Gear of War and Final Fantasy are both developed on them that have led players to look forward to the games created by the above-mentioned games. Fortnite expanded beyond the core gaming audience, allowing Epic to introduce new avenues for promotional placement.
Video game industry (Internet)
In the early days games only consisted of either campaign mode, multiplayer or both. Recently, developers have started to mix both of them in their upcoming titles to make it more interesting for the gamers. As mentioned above, in “Death Stranding” Kojima introduced a new feature where the multiplayer mode would be covered in the campaign storyline as well. It was a new strategy and it succeeded. If we refer to other games like Assassin’s Creed, Ubisoft have made the game where you can choose if you’re either interested in playing the main storyline or multiplayer mode.
Video Game Value Chain
A significant part of the conventional value chain is the financing and investment of video games. Console and PC video game production is distinguished by high initial development costs, which are usually assumed by developers. The delivery and retail selling to the end consumer is carried out by agents who distribute the game in return for a sales-based fee. In addition, the important role played by technology providers that promote the production environments of both developers and publishers, hosting, game engines, graphics software and animation, etc., all vital elements for video game creation, should not be overlooked. King was acquired in early 2015 by Activision Blizzard. This newly formed corporation, adding their sales, is the world’s third largest public company by game revenues. This business utilizes small computer programs that optimize the game’s interface for innovation purposes; they are referred to as Add-ons. Contrary to physical product creation by the population of online users, the efforts of World of Warcraft players ideally suit their individual needs.
Monetization
Recently the developers “Visual gamers” have released NBA 2k20, how they have implemented monetization in it is by creating un skippable ads, which majority of the fans are upset about. Another example would be of DLC’s, after the development of Assassin’s Creed franchise, Ubisoft decided to introduce additional content, like updates and patches to make the storyline more interesting, which players needed to pay to gain access to it.
Esports
In the early days, Traditional sports used to be the one that people were interested in, and Esports wasn’t that much hyped. As technology advanced, it is the one dominating now. Dota, a product of Valve, Steam, introduced “The International Dota 2 Championships”, that is held every year where multiple teams from various countries come and compete together to win the prize pool. This event is held at different arena every year, in 2019 it was at Mercedez Benz Arena where many audiences came to watch it, and it was also broadcasted on platforms like HLTV and Twitch, approximately around 1.97 million audiences were present.
Streamers
Twitch was one of the most leading platforms where a number of famous streamers like Ninja, Valkyrae, Shroud, Dr DisRespect and a couple more content creators used to stream online games of different genre’s, including MMORPG’s, RPG’s, Action/Adventure/Survival etc. Recently a new Twitch policy has been implemented i.e., DMCA, meaning if any of their previous stream videos included a copyrighted song or music, they were told it would lead to the suspension/termination of their account. Most of the creators were reluctant to delete their previous saved streams, but with no choice in hand, they had to do it eventually. Even after deleting them some of the streamers still got their account suspended which led them to switch to another streaming platform that is YouTube, and is now dominating and signing contracts with the above-mentioned creators.
Competitive Landscape
It is true that Epic have been struggling with their competitors, but recently they have just acquired rocket league which was previously published on steam platform, due to agreements between Epic and Psyonix (developer of RL). Psyonix decided to switch their publisher, and as of this moment rocket league is unavailable on steam to purchase.
Cloud Gaming
There are plenty of cloud gaming platforms, but as of this moment GeForce Now and Stadia have been the one in the spotlight currently. The biggest advantage is that you don’t need to purchase a high-end PC to play your preferred games. Instead, the only thing you need is a high-speed internet connection and a machine to play it on, and it doesn’t matter what the specifications are. Another thing is that, even if you end up buying a high-end gaming machine, it might depreciate and won’t be able to play the future upcoming games.
Game Engines
As mentioned earlier, there are multiple game engines like Unity, Decima, Unreal Engine, REDengine, Fox Engine etc. Unity has been used by various developers, even by young individuals to make their own dream game and publish it on a platform called uptodown.com etc. Unity is basically used to create games for both mobile and PC. While the one’s I mentioned earlier Decima, REDengine and unreal engine are only used for console and PC. In my opinion these three will be the only one’s in future dominating as only these three engines are being used to develop the most anticipated games.
Kindle Fire Amazon’s Heated Battle for Tablet Market
The Emergence of E-Readers
The term Otaku is referred to an individual who is obsess with anime and manga. In Pakistan it recently has attracted most of millennials. The issue here is that Manga is not available here yet and won’t be anytime soon in my opinion, maybe someday it will be. So, having no option in hand they have to illegally download e-books from their preferred platforms.
The Amazon Kindle
The new Amazon Kindle Fire plan, in my opinion, is going well. Nowadays, gadgets are attached to the young generation and they prefer eBooks rather than books. Most tablets are sold at a loss or at very low margins, we may claim. The set of e-books, however, brings revenue to this massive giant after buying the tablets. The plan is intended to get consumers closer to Amazon’s broader entertainment revenues. The Kindle Fire approach obviously helps to safeguard the media-related revenues that produce revenue from Amazon. First of all, the company maintains that heavy use of the device does not affect the eyes and is safe to use. If a boy reads or prepares for paper through the computer and focuses more on the device, this practice should not damage the eyes, so Kindle should also develop the technology.
E-Book Ecosystem
Although Amazon can use price and process management for its competitive advantage, brand loyalty and product development/diversification should also be used by Apple. As its principal intensive growth strategy, Apple uses product production. To increase its market share and business efficiency, product development requires the company to develop attractive and profitable technology products. The company continues to grow brands such as the iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch. The company is growing in this intensive growth strategy because new products allow the company to generate more sales, for example by selling new iPhone models.
Barnes & Noble E-Readers
As it has more functionality and uses to bring clients, Kindle Fire faces strong competition from Apple’s Ipad. B&N Nook tablets would be a direct competitor as they, like Kindle Fire, are also selling their device as an e-reader.
Apple Introduces the iPad
The tablet market is a very highly competitive market, with almost half of it already conquered by Apple. Plus, all other tablet and e-reader manufacturers are making drastic efforts at this point to produce their product at a lower cost, meaning they have already dominated much of the resources available on the market. At this point, it is difficult for a new entrant to gain advantage at an effective cost over any resources required to be a tablet provider. At the same time, for any new entrants who are already making replacement items such as netbooks and laptops, there is no entry barrier.
Google Android Tablets
Google android Tablets can serve the same role as what the other tablet has to offer. Compared to these machines, the only benefit the tablet has is low cost, versatility and mobility.
Introduction of the Kindle Fire
More creative products such as cloud-based services continue to be provided by Amazon. This case focuses on one specific product, the Kindle Fire, from Amazon. In 2007, the Amazon Kindle was launched and went through several stages of product growth. Bezos thought that the e-book ecosystems will add many new revenue streams to Amazon, and therefore Amazon Kindle sold at cost. Instead of a tablet, Bezos put the Kindle Fire as an e reader. In spite of the reality that it has the functionality of a tablet, it has been positioned as an e reader. It is a smart decision by Bezos as it allows the business to get rid of any direct competition from Apple, which is a tablet leader.
MP3 Portable Audio Players and the Recorded Music Industry
The Rise of The Internet and Emergence of MP3 Players
WinAmp 5.541 is a free freeware which has basic functions for playing music and videos. However, with the right plug-in we can turn the WinAmp music player into a multipurpose program for exchanging music on the Internet, copying CDs, operating the TV, and other jobs. Nothing is impossible, and all for free. For all the needs above, you don’t need to change the player.
The Apple iPod and The Significance of software infrastructure
With the tools provided on the WinAmp site, we can extend WinAmp 5.0 with many other functions. Unlike players from Microsoft or Apple, WinAmp relies on open standards, so it can be developed at will. With certain tricks and tools, WinAmp can rip to MP3, become a music exchange tool on the Internet, and even works with iPods.
Modularity Impact on Music Distribution
The standardization of the music file format (MP3) and digital component interfaces such as hard disk drives and flash memory. Putting together the MP3 player was a somewhat different job than assembling a portable CD player or Sony Walkman. Conversion of the MP3 file back to the music signal, amplifier and headphones. MP3 players can also use USB to connect to the PC, so that users could switch songs between the player and the PC. The effect of modularization was to unleash competition at the sub-system level, which decreased costs and showed an increase in annual cost efficiency.
Mobile Handsets and Future Market Evolution
Traditional incumbents, such as Sony, were dramatically replaced. Apple focused on a well-designed integrated system strategy and succeeded in gaining market leadership. Competition from mobile phone manufacturers, especially Lg, Samsung and Sony Apple, could move beyond Apple’s iTunes and paid download, evolution began when, a social network that provides advertising-supported streaming music, offers music free at the point of distribution to customers. The store was launched by Amazon with around 3 million songs. Amazon said that it was a more flexible format that was not locked to a single player.
Netflix Inc — The Disruptor Faces Disruption
The ability to access digital content directly from the internet represents a revolutionary breakthrough in the DVD-by-mail sector of Netflix, as it immediately meets the demands of customers. Consumers were more in charge of what they wanted to see and when they wanted to watch it. The production of software culminated in customers wanting their requirements met immediately. DVD-by-Mail became obsolete quite soon with the ability to download digital content. The advantages of convenience have now been met by customers and their requests have been met directly.
At the end of the case, what to do with the DVD rental division was one of Reed Hastings’ main choices. Is Netflix going to spend more in its original content? He had to test and assess whether these investments were feasible and would be a positive investment gain for Netflix.
It incurred liabilities by obtaining loans from the financial institutions to be profitable in content accessing. When presenting anticipating digital content, it is vital to attract users. Netflix required a huge sum of loan from financial institutions so that they could invest on its platform from popular creators. This was a gamble, since if the material bought was not in good value, they would be in liability with a danger of going out of business. They had to estimate well the cost on introducing new online media.
As per Ms. Clayton, “disruptive innovations” reflect innovative goods or services that reframe the entire sector or market. These developments typically take place at the cost of businesses in the market who do not respond to changes in demand and are usually not quite creative. When they fall, the business that is known as “disruptive innovations” monopolizes the share of the market up for grabs.
Netflix’s DVD-by-mail was a “disruptive innovation” for retail outlets such as Blockbuster, but at the time of Netflix’s entrance into the industry, many of these retail outlets were already stuck pursuing the expectations of tapes vs DVDs, the latest revolutionary offering that customers desired. Netflix has launched a new pricing plan for limitless paid streaming rentals. The late payment costs for this framework, which was very appealing to customers, were also removed. This along with the option to get the DVDs shipped straight to the consumer’s home pitch advantage of convenience.
Netflix Inc — The Mouse Strikes Back
A dominant Player
Of any streaming service, Netflix has the most size. They have the most users, the most content, and the highest budget for content. The size advantage benefits their company in several respects. Getting the most subscribers helps Netflix, on a per user basis, to purchase content cheaper than its rivals. The cost of a new show is distributed over the 139 million paying subscribers of Netflix, while their rivals have to spread the same cost to a much smaller base of membership. All things being equal, Netflix will pay more for a piece of content than its rivals and yet get the same, or better, return on their investment. This factors in Netflix being able to deliver the films catalog at a price that is compatible with its rivals-which is potentially the cheapest for the amount of content you receive, and since spending on content is a fixed cost and the cost of servicing a new customer is effectively zero, as the business expands, this advantage can continue to scale.
Netflix- Part 2
Netflix’s Cinematch software technology,, which was able to include every time they a user visit, subscribers will get personalized movie recommendations Web Platform from Netflix.
A New Range of Business Models
The limited content and choices on the platform will force its subscribers to compete, which is the third biggest challenge for Netflix. There are plenty of streaming platforms somewhat similar to Netflix in today’s digital age that can provide broader content and additional services (such as the ability to rent movies on the platform) and as soon as audiences know that there are many alternatives out there, Netflix will risk losing its crown as the pioneer in online streaming distribution for the same price and for the same content.
Spotify — Face the Music (2019 Update)
· This case deals with the music industry as it is presented to the world today. It will also be shown how the illegal distribution of music comes about through the Internet and which competitors are in the music industry. First of all, today’s nature of the music industry will be examined below.
· In order to counteract critical developments, the music industry is constantly looking for ways to sell its products. The first thing to do is to secure income for the individual artists. In doing so, they are increasingly concentrating on new distribution channels such as paid music downloads or streaming. With the Internet and digital mp3 technology, the separation of music recordings and physical sound carriers came about for the first time in 1992, which made it easier to distribute digital music recordings. This development caused a sharp drop in sales in the music industry. Music piracy has also got a boost from the internet and mp3 technology. Since the end of the 1990s, the level of sales has almost halved; in 2010, when converted to track level, almost 900 million songs were illegally downloaded in Germany; this number had never been reached before this year. The burning of CDs and DVDs has decreased continuously over the years, but storage media such as external hard drives or USB sticks have raised the copying of music to a new level. The music industry describes itself as one of the hardest hits by the digital revolution. As a result of digitization, they were the first and hardest to feel the consequences of illegal media use, but the Brenner study also hit them hard the development of new playback devices, such as mp3 players and smartphones, has made it possible to store, play and stream music anywhere, anytime. These devices have more capabilities than the older analog or CD player technologies. For example, with a digital music player, the user can carry his entire music collection with him at all times and not just the 60 to 90 minutes of a typical CD. Users can easily search and play any song, and save and display information such as the song title, band name or genre. You can create playlists of your favorite tracks and easily move music between the player and your computers. All in all, these players have features that make listening to music more user-friendly. Portable digital players quickly became very popular. Later, the massive use of smartphones further increased the user base and the capabilities of devices that can play digital music.
· The music industry used this development for new sources of income by selling licenses to the streaming services. A further compensation of falling income from the sale of sound carriers takes place through the so-called “360-degree contracts”, with which the sound carrier industry can participate in all further income of its artists. So, for example, Sony Music has only signed such all-round contracts with new artists since 2008.21 Numerous new, digital distribution channels for music have been added to the sound carriers in the music industry. There is not just one or two central media for music, but a large variety of download or streaming services that store the consumers’ music in the cloud; all existing services want the listener to use music according to their personal preferences Enable preferences. The internet and the digitization of products and sales channels in the music industry caused a radical upheaval in previous market structures, sales opportunities and forms of production. New players and competitors emerged in the battle for customers and users. The traditional business models no longer worked without restrictions. Content that had previously only been offered for a fee was now available for free, and new content was created.
· Apple Music offers a free trial for three months. A subscription costs 9.99 euros per month. The family subscription costs 14.99 euros per month for up to six people. The student subscription is available for 4.99 euros per month. Compared to Spotify, however, Apple Music does not offer a free version.
· Apple Music is particularly suitable for users who already have a large library on iTunes themselves or are simply enthusiastic about Apple. The media library has more than 50 million music titles. These can be accessed with MacOS, Windows, iOS or Android. Themed playlists are also created to make it easier for users to discover new music.
· In the test, however, there were also disadvantages compared to other providers. The app for iTunes is a bit old-fashioned and complicated and could use some innovations. If the user has a smart loudspeaker that is not from Apple but from Google, for example, then the user cannot simply play the music through the loudspeaker. Instead, the user has to set up Apple Music on their smartphone and establish a connection to the speaker via Bluetooth in order to be able to stream music.
· This case explains the business concept of Spotify using the Business Model Canvas. Each individual area is explained in detail so that the reader gets a comprehensive picture of the business concept of Spotify at the end of this chapter.
· The cooperation with various record labels enables Spotify to record a large number of songs by different artists in the music library and make them available to customers. The record labels can use Spotify as a platform to market lesser-known artists. The two best-known cooperation partners are Sony Music and the Universal Music Group.
· This case deals with the music industry as it was presented in 2018. It will also be shown how the illegal distribution of music comes about through the Internet and which competitors are in the music industry.
· In the following explanations, the individual competitors are Deezer, napster, apple music and amazon unlimited.
