A Reliable and Cost-Efficient Auto-Scaling System for Web Applications Using Heterogeneous Spot Instances

Cloud providers sell their idle capacity on markets through an auction-like mechanism to increase their return on investment. The instances sold in this way are called spot instances. In spite that spot instances are usually 90% cheaper than on-demand instances, they can be terminated by provider when their bidding prices are lower than market prices. Thus, they are largely used to provision fault-tolerant applications only. In this paper, we explore how to utilize spot instances to provision web applications, which are usually considered availability-critical. The idea is to take advantage of differences in price among various types of spot instances to reach both high availability and significant cost saving. We first propose a fault-tolerant model for web applications provisioned by spot instances. Based on that, we devise novel auto-scaling polices for hourly billed cloud markets. We implemented the proposed model and policies both on a simulation testbed for repeatable validation and Amazon EC2. The experiments on the simulation testbed and the real platform against the benchmarks show that the proposed approach can greatly reduce resource cost and still achieve satisfactory Quality of Service (QoS) in terms of response time and availability

How to choose the agent construction mode in chinese government investment projects?

The complexity of managing government investment projects arrives, among others, from the fact it involves many stakeholders. Managerial problems in government investment projects resulting in inefficiencies, waste of resources, and delays often appear in China. Government departments used to control all the aspects of a project, including construction, investment, management, and use which result in waste and rent-seeking behaviors. On July 25, 2004, the state council published the document "Decision on Investment System Reform" which clearly put forward the requirements of using construction agents in non-profit government investment projects. Methods of selecting and managing construction agents are different in different regions in China. We adopted qualitative research methods. First, we analyzed the principal-agent relationships and the information asymmetry in construction agent models, and discussed the theory methods to abate information asymmetry and decrease the moral hazard problem. Then we investigated five construction agent modes in five regions of China, and analyzed the project process and management methods. We found that these modes could be split into two types of construction agent models: "market competitive agent" construction model and "administrative agent" construction model. Finally, we analyzed CIXI city’s construction agent model in non - profit government investment project, and found that CIXI also used an “administrative agent" construction model. Therefore, we thought that although market competitive construction agent model is better than administrative construction agent model in theory, the latter might be a contingent way to adapt to the environment in the transition economy period that China is living.A complexidade da gestão de projetos de investimento dos governosé inegável mormente tendo em conta os incontáveis “stakeholders” envolvidos. Na China sempre existiram problemas de gestãonos projetos de investimento do governo que motivaram ineficiências, desperdícios de recursos e demoras na concretização desses projectos. Dado que os departamentos do governo controlavam todos os aspectos relativos aos projetos, incluindo construção, investimento, agenciamento e gestão, o resultado consubstanciou-se em elevados desperdícios e na geração de comportamentos oportunísticos. Em 25 de julho de 2004, o Conselho do Estado da China publicou um documento acerca da gestão de investimentos governamentais - “Decisão sobre a reforma do sistema de gestão de investimentos”. Sob este novo sistema, claramente, o governo apresentou os requisitos de utilização de agentes de construção nos projectos sem fins lucrativos de investimento do governo. Contudo os métodos de seleção e gestão dos referidos agentes são diferentes nas várias regiões da China. Neste trabalho foi utilizado o método qualitativo de pesquisa. Primeiro, analisou-se as relações principal-agente e a assimetria de informação nos modelos de agênciaem construção civil. Além disso, discutiram-se os métodos teóricos para diminuir a assimetria de informação e o problema de risco moral. Segundo, investigou-se os cinco modos deagente naconstrução em cinco regiões da China, e analisou-se o processo de projeto e os métodos de gestão, tendo-se descoberto que estas formas podem ser divididas em dois tipos de modelos de agente na construção: o modelo de construção "market competitive agent" e o modelo de construção "administrative agent", conforme mencionado anteriormente. Finalmente, analisou-se o modelo de agente de construção da cidade de CIXI em projectos sem fins lucrativos de investimento do governo. Ficou evidenciado que o modelo de construção “administrative agent” também foi utilizado nesta cidade. Por isso, conclui-se que, embora em teoria o modelo de construção "market competitive agent" seja melhor do que o de construção "administrative agent ", o último pode ser uma solução contingente e intermédia que se adapta ao período da economia em transição da China

Entry mode selection for internationalization of giant Chinese state owned companies: The case of entrance in Africa of China communications construction company

Enterprise internationalization is an inevitable choice as open economies develop to a certain level. According to the direct investment development path theory of John Dunning, when the GNP Per Capita exceeds $3000, the net foreign investment will be positive. With rapid development over the past three decades, China’s international economic position and influence have significantly improved and its GNP Per Capita has surpassed$ 4000, it has entered the rapid growth stage for investment development as described in Dunning’s theory. At this stage, the market entry mode selection is the first issue to tackle for enterprise internationalization. This thesis takes China’s giant state owned construction companies as research object and the author analyzes the internal and external environments and the strategic selection for internationalization operation, and describes the conceptions, categories, internal attributes and factors of market entry mode selection for internationalization of construction companies. This thesis focuses on China Communications Construction Company Ltd (hereinafter referred to as CCCC), representative of giant Chinese state owned construction companies, sets up the SWOT analysis and weight system and conducts strategic positioning. Based on the above strategic positioning, the author takes into consideration the national background of these companies and puts forward three assumptions and their theoretical framework. The thesis takes CCCC’s entry into the market of Kenya and Angola as an example, verifies the effectiveness and application of the theoretical framework, and makes up the deficiency of the theory on market entry mode selection for enterprise internationalization, providing reference for enterprises’ market entry practice.Quando as economias abertas atingem um determinado nível de desenvolvimento a internacionalização das empresas torna-se uma escolha inevitável. De acordo com a teoria de investiemnto directo de John Dunning, quando o rendimento per capita excede $3000, o investimento estrangeiro liquido será positivo. Com um crescimento económico rápido nas últimas três décadas, a posição económica internacional da China e influência melhoraram significativamente e o seu rendimento per capita ultrapassou os$4000. Atingiu, deste modo, o estágio defendido por Dunning. Esta tese tem como objecto de pesquisa as empresas “gigantes” estatais Chinesas do ramo das obras públicas e o autor analisa a envolvente interna e externa e a escolha estratégica dos modos de internacionalização das mesmas. Esta tese foca-se na empresa chinesa – China Communications Construction Company Ltd (CCCC), representante das empresas gigantes estatais chinesas de obras públicas, descrevendo o processo de realização da análise SWOT. Tendo por base o posicionamento estratégico da empresa, o autor analisa o contexto em que esta empresa se desenvolveu e avança com três pressupostos no que concerne à sua internacionalização. A tese compara também os processos de entrada da CCCC em Angola e no Quénia

Mergers and acquisitions transactions strategies in diffusion - type financial systems in highly volatile global capital markets with nonlinearities

The M and A transactions represent a wide range of unique business optimization opportunities in the corporate transformation deals, which are usually characterized by the high level of total risk. The M and A transactions can be successfully implemented by taking to an account the size of investments, purchase price, direction of transaction, type of transaction, and using the modern comparable transactions analysis and the business valuation techniques in the diffusion type financial systems in the finances. We developed the MicroMA software program with the embedded optimized near-real-time artificial intelligence algorithm to create the winning virtuous M and A strategies, using the financial performance characteristics of the involved firms, and to estimate the probability of the M and A transaction completion success. We believe that the fluctuating dependence of M and A transactions number over the certain time period is quasi periodic. We think that there are many factors, which can generate the quasi periodic oscillations of the M and A transactions number in the time domain, for example: the stock market bubble effects. We performed the research of the nonlinearities in the M and A transactions number quasi-periodic oscillations in Matlab, including the ideal, linear, quadratic, and exponential dependences. We discovered that the average of a sum of random numbers in the M and A transactions time series represents a time series with the quasi periodic systematic oscillations, which can be finely approximated by the polynomial numbers. We think that, in the course of the M and A transaction implementation, the ability by the companies to absorb the newly acquired knowledge and to create the new innovative knowledge bases, is a key predeterminant of the M and A deal completion success as in Switzerland.Comment: 160 pages, 9 figures, 37 table

Q-Strategy: A Bidding Strategy for Market-Based Allocation of Grid Services

The application of autonomous agents by the provisioning and usage of computational services is an attractive research field. Various methods and technologies in the area of artificial intelligence, statistics and economics are playing together to achieve i) autonomic service provisioning and usage of Grid services, to invent ii) competitive bidding strategies for widely used market mechanisms and to iii) incentivize consumers and providers to use such market-based systems. The contributions of the paper are threefold. First, we present a bidding agent framework for implementing artificial bidding agents, supporting consumers and providers in technical and economic preference elicitation as well as automated bid generation by the requesting and provisioning of Grid services. Secondly, we introduce a novel consumer-side bidding strategy, which enables a goal-oriented and strategic behavior by the generation and submission of consumer service requests and selection of provider offers. Thirdly, we evaluate and compare the Q-strategy, implemented within the presented framework, against the Truth-Telling bidding strategy in three mechanisms – a centralized CDA, a decentralized on-line machine scheduling and a FIFO-scheduling mechanisms

Study on Development Strategies of a Small and Medium-sized Enterprise in Dynamic Environment

Master's thesis in Technology and Operation ManagementThe role of SMEs in promoting economic prosperity and solving employment has become increasingly evident. In the large-scale trade of industrial products, SMEs can also play their unique role and form a new impetus for economic development. SMEs are highly permeable, flexible and innovative, and can meet social demands from a more nuanced perspective. SME development is also a very valuable research topic. This paper is based on a small and medium-sized industrial enterprise, through the study of its development, sort out strategies suitable for SMEs. It provides theoretical guidance and practical reference of the development strategies for innovative SMEs, and promotes the sound development of SMEs. However, the survival and development of SMEs must first solve the marketing problem. Without purchase order, everything cannot be discussed. SMEs must avoid weaknesses and create innovative business models. Through market-based strategies, they can do market segmentation, market selection, and market positioning. Combine with product strategies, price strategies, channel strategies, and promotion strategies, they can survive in the gap between large companies; and to meet the special demands of customers and achieve sustainable development. In this paper, Company A is selected as a research case. As a small and medium-sized industrial trading company, company A is different from an industrial product manufacturing company. It faces greater pressure for survival in the fierce market competition but also has a wide range of opportunities for development. My work further clarifies Company A‟s market positioning and strategy selection, hoping by analyzing Company A's target-oriented markets and target market strategies to demonstrate Company A‟s 4P combination strategies including quality, service, brand and new product of Product strategy; going-rate, perceived value, market penetration, price mantissa, special customer, quantity discount and cash discount of Pricing strategy; conventional channels, website, social platform, local cooperation, channel member and international marketing of Place strategy; personnel promotion, network promotion, public relations and advertising of Promotion strategy. In order to guarantee the implementation of the development strategies of Company A, supporting measures are proposed by my work in terms of resource advantages, organizational structure, information management, financing channels, team building, and corporate culture. It also points out that SMEs face great opportunities for development. SME‟s development strategies should focus on customer value, continue to innovate, and make a good integration between products and markets

A Study on Consumers\u27 Learning Effect in the Price Reduction Auction: a case study of Gongtianxia

GongTianXia’s 7 days shot and 15 minutes shot is a very typical online price reduction auction. By studying the learning effect of consumers in this online price reduction auction, this paper hopes to provide some suggestions for the formulation of marketing strategy of GongTianXia. Through the research of related literature and the deep analysis of consumer purchasing decision theory, the research problem is divided into two aspects. First, with the increase in the number of participants, whether the proceeds of the auction goods are gradually increasing. Second, with the increase in the number of participants, whether the grasp of the timing is more and more accurate. Through the statistical analysis of the auction data of GongTianXia, this paper verified the existence of consumer learning effect in the price reduction auction

Renegotiation of concession contracts in Latin America

The authors construct a regulation model in which renegotiation occurs due to the imperfect enforcement of concession contracts. This enables the authors to provide theoretical predictions for the impact on the probability of renegotiation of a concession, regulatory institutions, institutional features, economic shocks, and the characteristics of the concession contracts. Then they use a data set of nearly 1,000 concessions awarded in Latin America and the Caribbean countries from 1989 to 2000 covering the sectors of telecommunications, energy, transport, and water to test these predictions. Finally, the authors derive some policy implications of their theoretical and empirical work.Environmental Economics&Policies,Health Economics&Finance,Administrative&Regulatory Law,Decentralization,Labor Policies,Health Economics&Finance,Environmental Economics&Policies,National Governance,Administrative&Regulatory Law,Public Sector Economics&Finance