Case Study Description of Blizzard v. bnetd.org: Managing Intellectual Property (A)
Personal computer game maker Blizzard filed a lawsuit in 2002 against the developers of the bnetd project. The bnetd project was a volunteer effort of game enthusiasts and programmers frustrated with difficulties encountered playing Blizzard's personal computer games on its 24-hour Battle.net online gaming service. Via reverse engineering of Blizzard's software, the bnetd developers created and disseminated a free open source software program that mimicked the Battle.net playing experience while improving on some of its deficiencies. Blizzard, one of the world's most successful PC game publishers and a part of international media conglomerate Vivendi Universal, charged the bnetd developers with breach of contract and various counts of intellectual property infringement. The defendants maintained that U.S. law, in an effort to spur innovation in the United States, protected their activities. Describes the events leading up to a court-ordered mediation session between the two parties in October 2003. Students are asked, as business managers, to determine the legal and non-legal alternatives available to Blizzard and the bnetd developers, and to decide which strategy to pursue from each party's perspective. http://www.gsb.stanford.edu/multimedia/flv/100618-Case-Blizzard1.html
Swot Analysis of "Blizzard v. bnetd.org: Managing Intellectual Property (A)" written by V. Brian Viard, Pamela Yatsko includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Bnetd Blizzard facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Blizzard v. bnetd.org: Managing Intellectual Property (A) case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Intellectual property, Internet, IT, Regulation and Strategy & Execution.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Blizzard v. bnetd.org: Managing Intellectual Property (A) casestudy better are - – increasing transportation and logistics costs, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , increasing commodity prices, technology disruption, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models,
wage bills are increasing, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Blizzard v. bnetd.org: Managing Intellectual Property (A)
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Blizzard v. bnetd.org: Managing Intellectual Property (A) case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Bnetd Blizzard, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Bnetd Blizzard operates in.
According to Harvard Business Review, 75% of the managers use SWOT analysis for various purposes such as – evaluating current scenario, strategic planning, new venture feasibility, personal growth goals, new market entry, Go To market strategies, portfolio management and strategic trade-off assessment, organizational restructuring, etc.
SWOT Objectives / Importance of SWOT Analysis and SWOT Matrix
SWOT analysis of Blizzard v. bnetd.org: Managing Intellectual Property (A) can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Blizzard v. bnetd.org: Managing Intellectual Property (A) case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Bnetd Blizzard
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Strategy & Execution field.
4. Making a Strategy & Execution topic specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Bnetd Blizzard
Strengths Blizzard v. bnetd.org: Managing Intellectual Property (A) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Bnetd Blizzard in Blizzard v. bnetd.org: Managing Intellectual Property (A) Harvard Business Review case study are -
Successful track record of launching new products
– Bnetd Blizzard has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Bnetd Blizzard has effective processes in place that helps in exploring new product needs, doing quick pilot testing, and then launching the products quickly using its extensive distribution network.
Organizational Resilience of Bnetd Blizzard
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Bnetd Blizzard does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Training and development
– Bnetd Blizzard has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Blizzard v. bnetd.org: Managing Intellectual Property (A) Harvard Business Review case study by analyzing – employees retention, in-house promotion, loyalty, new venture initiation, lack of conflict, and high level of both employees and customer engagement.
High brand equity
– Bnetd Blizzard has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Bnetd Blizzard to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Analytics focus
– Bnetd Blizzard is putting a lot of focus on utilizing the power of analytics in business decision making. This has put it among the leading players in the industry. The technology infrastructure suggested by V. Brian Viard, Pamela Yatsko can also help it to harness the power of analytics for – marketing optimization, demand forecasting, customer relationship management, inventory management, information sharing across the value chain etc.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Bnetd Blizzard has highly efficient outsourcing and offshoring strategy. It has resulted in greater operational flexibility and bringing down the costs in highly price sensitive segment. Secondly the value chain collaborators of the firm in Blizzard v. bnetd.org: Managing Intellectual Property (A) HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Digital Transformation in Strategy & Execution segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Bnetd Blizzard digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Bnetd Blizzard has successfully integrated the four key components of digital transformation – digital integration in processes, digital integration in marketing and customer relationship management, digital integration into the value chain, and using technology to explore new products and market opportunities.
Innovation driven organization
– Bnetd Blizzard is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Blizzard v. bnetd.org: Managing Intellectual Property (A) Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Bnetd Blizzard has innovation driven culture where significant part of the revenues are spent on the research and development activities. This has resulted in, as mentioned in case study Blizzard v. bnetd.org: Managing Intellectual Property (A) - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Bnetd Blizzard is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Blizzard v. bnetd.org: Managing Intellectual Property (A) are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Bnetd Blizzard has built up over years in its products and services combo offer has resulted in high retention of customers, lower marketing costs, and greater ability of the firm to focus on its customers.
Learning organization
- Bnetd Blizzard is a learning organization. It has inculcated three key characters of learning organization in its processes and operations – exploration, creativity, and expansiveness. The work place at Bnetd Blizzard is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Blizzard v. bnetd.org: Managing Intellectual Property (A) Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Weaknesses Blizzard v. bnetd.org: Managing Intellectual Property (A) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Blizzard v. bnetd.org: Managing Intellectual Property (A) are -
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Bnetd Blizzard has not been able to do capital spending to the tune of the competition. This has resulted into fewer innovations and company facing stiff competition from both existing competitors and new entrants who are disrupting the industry using digital technology.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Bnetd Blizzard has a high cash cycle compare to other players in the industry. It needs to shorten the cash cycle by 12% to be more competitive in the marketplace, reduce inventory costs, and be more profitable.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Blizzard v. bnetd.org: Managing Intellectual Property (A) has high operating costs in the. This can be harder to sustain given the new emerging competition from nimble players who are using technology to attract Bnetd Blizzard 's lucrative customers.
High dependence on existing supply chain
– The disruption in the global supply chains because of the Covid-19 pandemic and blockage of the Suez Canal illustrated the fragile nature of Bnetd Blizzard supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Blizzard v. bnetd.org: Managing Intellectual Property (A), it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Bnetd Blizzard vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Bnetd Blizzard needs to come up with a strategy to reduce the workers concern regarding automation. Without a clear strategy, it could lead to disruption and uncertainty within the organization.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, V. Brian Viard, Pamela Yatsko suggests that, Bnetd Blizzard is facing high bargaining power of the channel partners. So far it has not able to streamline the operations to reduce the bargaining power of the value chain partners in the industry.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Blizzard v. bnetd.org: Managing Intellectual Property (A) HBR case study still accounts for major business revenue. This dependence on star products in has resulted into insufficient focus on developing new products, even though Bnetd Blizzard has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study Blizzard v. bnetd.org: Managing Intellectual Property (A), it seems that company is thinking about the frontier risks that can impact Strategy & Execution strategy. But it has very little resources allocation to manage the risks emerging from events such as natural disasters, climate change, melting of permafrost, tacking the rise of artificial intelligence, opportunities and threats emerging from commercialization of space etc.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Bnetd Blizzard is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Strategy & Execution segment. Bnetd Blizzard needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Bnetd Blizzard to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Bnetd Blizzard has created an environment where the organization is dominated by functional specialists rather than management generalist. This has resulted into product oriented approach rather than marketing oriented approach or consumers oriented approach.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Blizzard v. bnetd.org: Managing Intellectual Property (A), in the dynamic environment Bnetd Blizzard has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Bnetd Blizzard has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Opportunities Blizzard v. bnetd.org: Managing Intellectual Property (A) | External Strategic Factors
What are Opportunities in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The opportunities highlighted in the Harvard Business Review case study Blizzard v. bnetd.org: Managing Intellectual Property (A) are -
Developing new processes and practices
– Bnetd Blizzard can develop new processes and procedures in Strategy & Execution industry using technology such as automation using artificial intelligence, real time transportation and products tracking, 3D modeling for concept development and new products pilot testing etc.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Bnetd Blizzard has spent a significant amount of money and effort to integrate analytics and machine learning into its operations in the sector. This continuous investment in analytics has enabled, as illustrated in the Harvard case study Blizzard v. bnetd.org: Managing Intellectual Property (A) - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Bnetd Blizzard to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Bnetd Blizzard to conduct training and development for its employees across the world. This will result in not only reducing the cost of training but also help employees in different part of the world to integrate with the headquarter work culture, ethos, and standards.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Bnetd Blizzard to increase its market reach. Bnetd Blizzard will be able to reach out to new customers. Secondly 5G will also provide technology framework to build new tools and products that can help more immersive consumer experience and faster consumer journey.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Bnetd Blizzard can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Bnetd Blizzard operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Strategy & Execution sector.
Loyalty marketing
– Bnetd Blizzard has focused on building a highly responsive customer relationship management platform. This platform is built on in-house data and driven by analytics and artificial intelligence. The customer analytics can help the organization to fine tune its loyalty marketing efforts, increase the wallet share of the organization, reduce wastage on mainstream advertising spending, build better pricing strategies using personalization, etc.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Bnetd Blizzard in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Strategy & Execution segment, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Bnetd Blizzard can still utilize the low interest rates to borrow money for capital investment. Secondly it can also use the increase of government spending in infrastructure projects to get new business.
Buying journey improvements
– Bnetd Blizzard can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Blizzard v. bnetd.org: Managing Intellectual Property (A) suggest that firm can provide automated chats to help consumers solve their own problems, provide online suggestions to get maximum out of the products and services, and help consumers to build a community where they can interact with each other to develop new features and uses.
Changes in consumer behavior post Covid-19
– Consumer behavior has changed in the Strategy & Execution industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. Bnetd Blizzard can take advantage of these changes in consumer behavior to build a far more efficient business model. For example consumer regular ordering of products can reduce both last mile delivery costs and market penetration costs. Bnetd Blizzard can further use this consumer data to build better customer loyalty, provide better products and service collection, and improve the value proposition in inflationary times.
Reconfiguring business model
– The expansion of digital payment system, the bringing down of international transactions costs using Bitcoin and other blockchain based currencies, etc can help Bnetd Blizzard to reconfigure its entire business model. For example it can used blockchain based technologies to reduce piracy of its products in the big markets such as China. Secondly it can use the popularity of e-commerce in various developing markets to build a Direct to Customer business model rather than the current Channel Heavy distribution network.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Bnetd Blizzard has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Bnetd Blizzard to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Blizzard v. bnetd.org: Managing Intellectual Property (A) case study. Bnetd Blizzard can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Bnetd Blizzard can make experimentation a productive activity and build a culture of innovation using approaches such as – mining transaction data, A/B testing of websites and selling platforms, engaging potential customers over various needs, and building on small ideas in the Strategy & Execution segment.
Threats Blizzard v. bnetd.org: Managing Intellectual Property (A) External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Blizzard v. bnetd.org: Managing Intellectual Property (A) are -
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Bnetd Blizzard has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Strategy & Execution industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Bnetd Blizzard needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Strategy & Execution sector. According to Mckinsey study top managers believe that the adoption of technology in operations, communications is 20-25 times faster than what they planned in the beginning of 2019.
Backlash against dominant players
– US Congress and other legislative arms of the government are getting tough on big business especially technology companies. The digital arm of Bnetd Blizzard business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Bnetd Blizzard is facing in Strategy & Execution sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Capital market disruption
– During the Covid-19, Dow Jones has touched record high. The valuations of a number of companies are way beyond their existing business model potential. This can lead to capital market correction which can put a number of suppliers, collaborators, value chain partners in great financial difficulty. It will directly impact the business of Bnetd Blizzard.
Technology disruption because of hacks, piracy etc
– The colonial pipeline illustrated, how vulnerable modern organization are to international hackers, miscreants, and disruptors. The cyber security interruption, data leaks, etc can seriously jeopardize the future growth of the organization.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Bnetd Blizzard can face lack of demand in the market place because of Fed actions to reduce inflation. This can lead to sluggish growth in the economy, lower demands, lower investments, higher borrowing costs, and consolidation in the field.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Bnetd Blizzard with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Blizzard v. bnetd.org: Managing Intellectual Property (A), Bnetd Blizzard may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Strategy & Execution .
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Bnetd Blizzard high dependence on third party suppliers can disrupt its processes and delivery mechanism. For example -the current troubles of car makers because of chip shortage is because the chip companies started producing chips for electronic companies rather than car manufacturers.
Increasing wage structure of Bnetd Blizzard
– Post Covid-19 there is a sharp increase in the wages especially in the jobs that require interaction with people. The increasing wages can put downward pressure on the margins of Bnetd Blizzard.
Environmental challenges
– Bnetd Blizzard needs to have a robust strategy against the disruptions arising from climate change and energy requirements. EU has identified it as key priority area and spending 30% of its 880 billion Euros European post Covid-19 recovery funds on green technology. Bnetd Blizzard can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Strategy & Execution industry.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Bnetd Blizzard in the Strategy & Execution industry. The Strategy & Execution industry is already at various protected from local competition in China, with the rise of trade war the protection levels may go up. This presents a clear threat of current business model in Chinese market.
Aging population
– As the populations of most advanced economies are aging, it will lead to high social security costs, higher savings among population, and lower demand for goods and services in the economy. The household savings in US, France, UK, Germany, and Japan are growing faster than predicted because of uncertainty caused by pandemic.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Blizzard v. bnetd.org: Managing Intellectual Property (A) Template, Example
Not all factors mentioned under the Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities, and Threats quadrants in the SWOT Analysis are equal. Managers in the HBR case study Blizzard v. bnetd.org: Managing Intellectual Property (A) needs to zero down on the relative importance of each factor mentioned in the Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities, and Threats quadrants.
We can provide the relative importance to each factor by assigning relative weights. Weighted SWOT analysis process is a three stage process –
First stage for doing weighted SWOT analysis of the case study Blizzard v. bnetd.org: Managing Intellectual Property (A) is to rank the strengths and weaknesses of the organization. This will help you to assess the most important strengths and weaknesses of the firm and which one of the strengths and weaknesses mentioned in the initial lists are marginal and can be left out.
Second stage for conducting weighted SWOT analysis of the Harvard case study Blizzard v. bnetd.org: Managing Intellectual Property (A) is to give probabilities to the external strategic factors thus better understanding the opportunities and threats arising out of macro environment changes and developments.
Third stage of constructing weighted SWOT analysis of Blizzard v. bnetd.org: Managing Intellectual Property (A) is to provide strategic recommendations includes – joining likelihood of external strategic factors such as opportunities and threats to the internal strategic factors – strengths and weaknesses. You should start with external factors as they will provide the direction of the overall industry. Secondly by joining probabilities with internal strategic factors can help the company not only strategic fit but also the most probably strategic trade-off that Bnetd Blizzard needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
