MP3 Player Marketing Strategy

Michael E. Porter's competitive strategy framework provides an excellent basis for analyzing the marketing strategy requirements of any industry. Porter, a business administration professor at Harvard Business School, is an expert on business strategy with a facility for formulating strategy in the realm of technology. Strategy is a universal concept, not necessarily linked specifically to technology, but since technology changes frequently, marketing strategies are often updated frequently. However, Porter points out that "Technology changes, strategy doesn't" (Hammonds 150). Porter "is fed up with CEOs who claim that the world changes too fast for their companies to have a long-term strategy" (Hammonds 150). His answer for them is categorical: "If you want to make a difference as a leader, you've got to make time for strategy" (Hammonds 150).

Virtually any industry could benefit from Porter's astute marketing strategies, and the trendy digital-music MP3 industry is no exception. MP3 has been revolutionizing the way people listen to music ever since it came out (Wang). There are more than 300 digital music services worldwide, and there were 40 million MP3 players sold in 2004 alone, so this industry is flying to the top of the charts leaving forecasters to wonder whether it will ever plateau (Wang). Furthermore, the number of different MP3 players available to consumers in the market has undergone a huge increase in the pas

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many content sites are now offering MP3 streams as an alternative to other streaming formats (Jones). The MP3 industry is one that is still expanding and that offers the potential for incredible growth. The success of the MP3 industry is not limited to the United States, either; it spans the globe. In China, for example, MP3 players are rapidly replacing traditional CD players ("The Chinese Portable Audio, Video and Digital Imaging Markets in Transition"). As the table below illustrates, the percentage of Chinese consumers planning to purchase an MP3 player over the next 12 months registers at 27% in contrast with 6% in the American market (Wang): Since consumers purchasing MP3 players are downloading music to them from the Internet, sales of the players will increase in step with "increasing worldwide Internet-access penetration levels" (Paxton). Not only that, the popularity of MP3 technology will continue to increase as "manufacturers integrate it into other electronics devices" (Paxton). Samsung already offers a cell phone with a built-in MP3 player, Good Technology has designed a portable music player module that fits in the back of a Handspring Visor PDA, and Casio manufactures a combination wristwatch/MP3 player (Pa

Category: Business - M