Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits - McGraw-Hill Introduction to Business

The Startup That Wants to Streamline Divorce

June 21, 2016

Few legal procedures are more emotionally charged than divorce. Former couples often bring the worst out in one another as they contentiously divide their assets in the presence of lawyers. According to the startup Wevorce, however, ending a marriage shouldn’t place such a large strain on anyone’s finances or feelings. Instead, the company hopes to transform divorce from a drawn-out legal nightmare into a civil, streamlined division of property and possessions.

For those who have experienced the devastating effects of Continue reading →

Ethics, Wevorce, Entrepreneurship, Startups, Legal, Divorce

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 6: Entrepreneurship, Chapter 14: Product and Price, Bonus Chapter A: Business Law, Bonus Chapter B: Technology and New Media

Ad Blockers Make a Dent in Online Profits

June 17, 2016

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For years advertising has been the central source of revenue for the online world. It’s also been a nuisance to many users for just as long. From early pop-up ads to the modern era of loud auto-playing videos, online ads have the irritating ability to distract web surfers from the content they were actually looking for. As a result, millions of users across the globe have installed ad blockers to remove these annoying images from their online experience.

In fact, Continue reading →

India, Global, Innovation, Ethics, Advertising, Mobile, Internet, Ad Blockers, Indonesia

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 3: Globalization, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 13: Marketing, Chapter 14: Product and Price, Chapter 15: Distribution, Chapter 16: Place and Promotion, Bonus Chapter B: Technology and New Media

Chinese Consumers Turn to Canned Air for Relief

June 14, 2016

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The rapid rise of Asian manufacturing has transformed nations like China and India into economic powerhouses as well as environmental nightmares. World health experts estimate that millions of people have died due to excessive air pollution in these two countries. So far government officials have done little to relieve their increasingly stifled citizens, leading many to turn to a variety of consumer products for help. Along with pollution masks and air purifiers, a growing number of people are also purchasing Continue reading →

Global, Sustainability, Pollution, Environment, Canned Air, China, Regulation

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 3: Globalization, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 13: Marketing, Chapter 14: Product and Price, Chapter 15: Distribution, Chapter 16: Place and Promotion, Bonus Chapter B: Technology and New Media

Shining a Spotlight on Predatory Debt Collectors

June 9, 2016

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For the millions of Americans who struggle with debt, paying back the money they owe can become a life-consuming ordeal. These overstretched individuals either take years to settle with creditors or end up defaulting entirely. Since most lenders want to avoid the latter option, they sometimes opt to sell off delinquent debt to a third party for pennies on the dollar. For instance, a bank might sell off $100,000 of debt to another institution for just $1,000. While the lender Continue reading →

Ethics, Regulation, Debt, John Oliver, Occupy Wall Street, Debt Forgiveness

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 20: Money and Financial Institutions, Bonus Chapter A: Business Law, Bonus Chapter D: Personal Finance

National Park Service Seeks Sponsors to Offset Costs

June 7, 2016

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For more than a century millions of visitors have marveled at the staggering beauty contained in America’s national parks. According to the writer Wallace Stegner, “National parks are the best idea we ever had. Absolutely American, absolutely democratic, they reflect us at our best rather than our worst.” Still, even these sublime sanctuaries face the same kind of bureaucratic headaches that afflict other government agencies. In fact, years of flat funding have left the National Park Service with an $11 Continue reading →

Regulation, Financing, Government, National Parks, Fundraising, Ethics

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 13: Marketing, Chapter 16: Place and Promotion, Chapter 18: Financial Management

Joe’s Crab Shack Scraps No-Tip Experiment

May 18, 2016

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For more than a century tipping has been the preferred method for American restaurants to pay their servers. The idea is that customers will tip more if they receive good service, thus giving employees incentive to do well. However, the system doesn’t always work out that way. Besides getting outright stiffed by diners, on slow nights servers can earn as little as $2.13 an hour, the legal minimum that tipped employees can be paid. Given these less than ideal outcomes, Continue reading →

Motivation, Minimum Wage, Food, Tipping, Human Resources, Joe's Crab Shack, Compensation, Restaurants

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 10: Motivation, Chapter 11: Human Resource Management, Chapter 13: Marketing, Chapter 14: Product and Price, Chapter 16: Place and Promotion

Chinese Movie Theaters Enjoy Box Office Boom

May 13, 2016

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American movie theaters have endured a rough couple of years as more consumers turn to the comfort of their living rooms as venues for entertainment. That’s far from the case in China, however. The Asian nation has become an increasingly important source of revenue for U.S. movie studios that have seen domestic receipts start to dwindle. In February Chinese theaters earned $1.05 billion at the box office, beating the American tally by nearly $250 million.

Still, China isn’t exactly an Continue reading →

Entertainment, China, Regulation, Global, Movies, Ethics, Fraud

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 3: Globalization, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 13: Marketing, Chapter 14: Product and Price, Chapter 15: Distribution

Cupertino Mayor Demands Apple Pay More Taxes

May 10, 2016

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A few weeks ago, a team of investigative journalists detailed the tax-avoiding habits of numerous rich individuals and organizations in a massive data dump called the Panama Papers. The release of these documents inspired debates in the media about corporate tax avoidance and whether the government should put stronger regulations in place to prevent it. While some politicians tried to avoid these arguments, at least one has thrown himself into the fray as a strong advocate for closing tax Continue reading →

Tax Avoidance, Cupertino, Ethics, City Services, Silicon Valley, Taxes, California, Apple

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Bonus Chapter A: Business Law, Bonus Chapter B: Technology and New Media

Gasoline Delivery Startups Launch with Few Regulations

May 5, 2016

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In our previous post, we explored the new crop of startups that are applying Uber’s on-demand business model to other markets. Although these spinoff services aren’t nearly as successful as the original, a number of entrepreneurs remain convinced that they can develop an Uber for everything. We already took a look at the parking service Luxe and grocery delivery app Instacart, both fairly straightforward and simple adaptations of the concept. But startups like Filld and WeFuel take the idea Continue reading →

Gasoline, Filld, Product Development, Ethics, Cars, Regulation, Uber, California, Safety, Petroleum

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 6: Entrepreneurship, Chapter 13: Marketing, Chapter 14: Product and Price, Chapter 15: Distribution, Chapter 16: Place and Promotion, Bonus Chapter A: Business Law, Bonus Chapter B: Technology and New Media

The Uber Model Stalls in Other Industries

May 3, 2016

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When Uber launched in 2009, its founders didn’t expect to revolutionize the car service industry. The company initially targeted a more upscale clientele by charging steep fees for its on-demand rides. As Uber expanded, however, its growing revenue allowed them to drop prices and offer their services to a broader base of consumers. Now valued at more than $60 billion, Uber has become a powerful competitor to taxis throughout the country as well as an increasingly credible alternative to car Continue reading →

Transportation, Uber, Product Distribution, Taxis, Product Development, Pricing, Cars

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 6: Entrepreneurship, Chapter 13: Marketing, Chapter 14: Product and Price, Chapter 15: Distribution, Chapter 16: Place and Promotion, Bonus Chapter B: Technology and New Media