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Launching a new product on the market requires intensive marketing research to
define the specific needs of the customers. Marketing research methods using brain
imaging with fMRI are able to predict consumer behavior and subconscious feelings
towards a brand. Compared to ordinary marketing research methods, results of
brain scans can convert emotions with regards to consumers’ preferences into
marketing strategies.
This study evaluates consumers’ preferences for a new milk drink on the Finnish
market using methods of brain imaging and survey taste tests. The results are
applied in a marketing concept recommended in the conclusion to the case
company of the project, Valio Ltd. The study is part of the research project
Neuroservice, which operates at Laurea University of Applied Sciences and is
funded by the Finnish agency for Innovation, TEKES.
The research covered a sample of 31 people and found out that the milk drink is
valued higher in the product category of juices based on emotional values, brain
scans and the results of taste tests. The results of the analysis were compounded
to conclude a marketing concept to the case company, which recommends a repositioning
of the product into the category of juices.
Keywords: Marketing Research, Neuromarketing, fMRI, Brain Imaging, Consumer
Preferences, Marketing Concept
Abstract
The purpose of this paper is twofold: first, to identify the strategic intentions of pharmaceutical companies engaging in mergers and acquisitions (M&A), and second, to determine whether corporate takeovers executed in the pharmaceutical sector create value. In this respect, the industry’s key developments are analysed to ascertain what has led to substantial M&A activity since the mid-1990s. The paper finds that patent expirations on blockbuster drugs, declining research and development (R&D) productivity, enhanced buyer power, heightened competition from me-too, follow-on and generic medicines, and the emergence of biotechnology firms have caused pharmaceutical deals to be primarily motivated by the need to replenish R&D pipelines and drastically cut costs through economies of scale and scope. Other, less obvious, but equally important rationales for big pharma M&A are diversification, market power and tax inversion. Despite these rather benign intentions, the majority of studies conclude that, on average, pharmaceutical transactions generate gains for the target company but not the acquirer; overall they create little or no value. As these studies usually provide detailed evidence regarding the short-term impact but generally fail to adequately investigate the long-term outcomes, the author applies a dual quantitative approach consisting of an event study and ratio analysis to comprehensively assess whether the acquisition of U.S. biotech firm Genentech by Swiss pharmaceutical giant Roche completed in March 2009 has generated benefits in both the short and long run. The results reveal that in the short term Roche’s acquisition of Genentech, which has been scarcely explored so far, created substantial value for the combined shareholders; on a stand-alone basis, though, the takeover gains accrue entirely to Genentech. In the long term, Roche’s post-acquisition performance is largely disappointing: neither sales nor cost synergies have been achieved in the six years following the takeover, calling into question the overall effectiveness of pharmaceutical M&A.
Abstract
The inclusion of statistic moments of a higher order than mean and variance into the Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM) has been the subject of economic discussion since empirical research had shown that the majority of asset returns from several stock markets are not normally distributed. To adequately describe asset returns it seems appropriate to consider skewness and kurtosis of return distributions. Theoretical extensions of the CAPM have been developed that include skewness (three-moment CAPM) and skewness along with kurtosis (four-moment CAPM).
Most empirical investigations that test these models have been examined for the U.S. American stock market. In this master thesis research has been conducted for the German stock market (HDAX). Thereby, weekly asset returns from 2000 to 2015 form the basis of the analysis as other studies commonly use monthly data. It is investigated whether the explanatory power of the CAPM becomes better when higher moments are included. The investigation procedure follows the methodology by Fama and MacBeth (1973). The results of the cross-sectional analysis reveal that no variable has a statistically significant influence on asset returns. The explanatory of all models, even the traditional CAPM, is not satisfying, but becomes slightly better when skewness and especially kurtosis are added.
Das Bali-Paket im Rahmen der Entwicklungsagenda der WTO - Potentielle Chancen und Risiken für Indien
(2015)
Projektcontrolling eines international agierenden Beratungsunternehmens in der Start-up-Phase
(2015)
Abstract
China has experienced an outstanding economic growth after opening up its market to the world economy. At the same time, China has attracted large volumes of FDI and ranks among the major recipients of FDI. This paper aims at clarifying the role of FDI in the Chinese economy and identifies the effects of FDI contributing to China’s economic development. Preliminaries to the subject are initially presented, followed by general effects of FDI on host countries, before the case of China is evaluated in detail. The paper finds that China’s economy has benefited from FDI, particularly through the diffusion of technology and increased productivity, the stimulation of foreign trade as well as boosted economic growth. The establishment of special economic zones and the policy framework regarding FDI have contributed positively to the impact of FDI on China’s economic