Strategic interactions with competition authorities in the UK alcoholic beverages industry

This central question addressed by this thesis is how and to what extent firms in a mature industry can pursue a corporate growth strategy through sequential mergers and acquisitions of competitors by influencing the outcome of competition authority enquiries to their benefit. First, by either ensuring that mergers and acquisitions are not referred to the competition authorities at all or second, if they are referred, that they transact subsequently with minimal requirement for adverse remedies. The UK alcoholic beverages industry was examined in detail over the period 1969 2006 during which time there were 40 significant mergers and acquisitions, 26 of which were proposed in the UK the remaining 14 being cross-border deals in the US and/or Europe. Each of these transactions produced a rich array of quantitative and qualitative data. Discriminant analysis, a technique that has not traditionally been used in competition policy issues was applied to this data. The findings of the discriminant analysis were then tested using two case studies that examined i. the emergence of Scottish & Newcastle, the smallest of the national brewers in 1969, as the largest UK brewer and one of the largest brewers in Europe and ii. the emergence of Diageo, formed by the merger of Grand Metropolitan and Guinness in 1997 as the dominant global spirits producer with a wide portfolio of leading brands in Scotch whisky, gin, vodka and liqueurs. Both case studies combined a descriptive analysis ofthe long tenn impact of the anti-trust enquiries that shaped the two respective segments of the industry and short term event analysis' surrounding the specific mergers that created the leading firm in each industry. The case studies suggest that these two firms did influence the competition policy process to their advantage and, moreover, that this was an essential and deliberate component oftheir corporate strategy. The analysis reveals that firms were able to maximise their chances of success in furthering their growth strategy through mergers and acquisitions by i merging with and or acquiring firms in markets where they had no previous dominant share, ii exploiting the political landscape, iii pursuing 'agreed' rather than 'hostile' bids and iv presenting 'upfront' competition remedies before or during the referral process. Collectively, the analysis reveals that over a period of 35 years the UK alcoholic beverages industry was transformed from a fragmented national industry into one that is now dominated by two firms in their respective segments of international spirits and UK brewing. The success of Scottish & Newcastle and Diageo in achieving their merger and acquisition goals depended heavily on their ability to repeatedly and successfully interact with competition authorities. At the same time their major UK competitors, Allied Domecq, Bass and Whitbread were less successful at the key stages in their history in pursuing mergers and acquisitions. This led, within a matter of years to all those firms either exiting the alcoholic beverages industry completely or being subsumed into other firms

Social networking and the social and emotional wellbeing of adolescents in Australia

Technology and social networking tools and sites are changing the way young people build and maintain their social connections with others (Boyd & Ellison, 2008). This study utilised a new measure, The Self in a Social Context, Virtual Connectedness subscale (SSC-VC subscale), to examine the effects of social networking tools and sites on social and emotional wellbeing among 1,037 Australian young people aged 11-18 years. A maximum likelihood factor analysis identified three strong factors: Fit In ( = .81), Public Self ( = .79) and Connected Self ( = .83). Significant main effects were revealed for the number of times students checked their Facebook F(12, 2415) = 13.8, p < .001, and for gender, F(3, 913) = 10.8, p < .001, but no interaction effect was found. Univariate tests also revealed a significant difference for Frequency of checking Facebook, F(4, 915), = 4.98, and for Gender, F(1, 915), = 46.92, p < .001 on the dependent variable of Emotional Difficulties. These findings suggest that social networking sites, though used differently by males and females, provide an important forum for building social connections across groups

Varieties of capitalism, competition policy and the UK alcoholic beverages industry

This article informs a key aspect of the business-government interface; the evolution of competition policy and how firms adapt to it. Drawing on an extensive portfolio of inquiries, what constitutes ‘the market’ and the boundaries of the firm within it is described through the experience of the UK alcoholic beverages industry. In situating competition policy in its historical socio-economic context, this study traces three overlapping eras; family ownership and control, network and conglomerates organisation, and specialisation and financialisation. Issues emerge that inform wider debate, notably the nature of portfolio and network effects, a central and contested theme in contemporary competition policy

Strategic interactions with competition authorities in the UK alcoholic beverages industry

This central question addressed by this thesis is how and to what extent firms in a mature industry can pursue a corporate growth strategy through sequential mergers and acquisitions of competitors by influencing the outcome of competition authority enquiries to their benefit. First, by either ensuring that mergers and acquisitions are not referred to the competition authorities at all or second, if they are referred, that they transact subsequently with minimal requirement for adverse remedies. The UK alcoholic beverages industry was examined in detail over the period 1969 2006 during which time there were 40 significant mergers and acquisitions, 26 of which were proposed in the UK the remaining 14 being cross-border deals in the US and/or Europe. Each of these transactions produced a rich array of quantitative and qualitative data. Discriminant analysis, a technique that has not traditionally been used in competition policy issues was applied to this data. The findings of the discriminant analysis were then tested using two case studies that examined i. the emergence of Scottish & Newcastle, the smallest of the national brewers in 1969, as the largest UK brewer and one of the largest brewers in Europe and ii. the emergence of Diageo, formed by the merger of Grand Metropolitan and Guinness in 1997 as the dominant global spirits producer with a wide portfolio of leading brands in Scotch whisky, gin, vodka and liqueurs. Both case studies combined a descriptive analysis ofthe long tenn impact of the anti-trust enquiries that shaped the two respective segments of the industry and short term event analysis' surrounding the specific mergers that created the leading firm in each industry. The case studies suggest that these two firms did influence the competition policy process to their advantage and, moreover, that this was an essential and deliberate component oftheir corporate strategy. The analysis reveals that firms were able to maximise their chances of success in furthering their growth strategy through mergers and acquisitions by i merging with and or acquiring firms in markets where they had no previous dominant share, ii exploiting the political landscape, iii pursuing 'agreed' rather than 'hostile' bids and iv presenting 'upfront' competition remedies before or during the referral process. Collectively, the analysis reveals that over a period of 35 years the UK alcoholic beverages industry was transformed from a fragmented national industry into one that is now dominated by two firms in their respective segments of international spirits and UK brewing. The success of Scottish & Newcastle and Diageo in achieving their merger and acquisition goals depended heavily on their ability to repeatedly and successfully interact with competition authorities. At the same time their major UK competitors, Allied Domecq, Bass and Whitbread were less successful at the key stages in their history in pursuing mergers and acquisitions. This led, within a matter of years to all those firms either exiting the alcoholic beverages industry completely or being subsumed into other firms.EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceEconomic and Social Research Council (Great Britain) (ESRC)Warwick Business School (WBS)University of Warwick (UoW)GBUnited Kingdo

Black Carbon Contribution to the Aerosol Phase and its Scavenged Fraction in Mixed Phase Clouds at the High Alpine Site Jungfraujoch (3580m asl)

The mass fraction of black carbon (BC) in the atmospheric aerosol and its mixing state are important for the direct aerosol climate effect. These properties also determine if BC is incorporated into cloud hydrometeors (i.e. droplets and ice crystals) and are important because the microphysical and optical properties of the cloud are altered (indirect aerosol effect). Measurements were performed during several Cloud and Aerosol Characterization Experiments, in winter 2004 (CLACE3), summer 2004 (CLACE3.5), winter 2005 (CLACE4) and summer 2005 (CLACE4.5) at the high Alpine research station Jungfraujoch (3580 m asl)

Litigation and Lobbying in Support of the Marque: The Scotch Whisky Association, c. 1945–c. 1990

We examine the Scotch Whisky Association’s (SWA) role in protecting “Scotch whisky” between c. 1945 and c. 1990. Using new archival evidence, we demonstrate that the SWA intensively lobbied the UK government to achieve coordination between domestic and European regulations governing Scotch whisky and whisky. The SWA’s nonmarket activities were consonant with some trade associations but in other respects they were atypical. The SWA extended its activities to supranational bodies and engaged in extensive domestic and foreign litigation. The key message from this article is that the SWA built the world-renowned appellation “Scotch whisky” even though this marque was not registered as an appellation until the late twentieth century

Students at risk of delinquency

This market leading, Australian text gives students a broad understanding of the principles of inclusive education, and the ways in which teachers can accommodate the differing learning needs of their students. It has been written with the particular aim of teaching students how to apply the ideas that have been presented in each chapter. [from publisher's website

Impulsivity in juvenile delinquency: Differences among early-onset, late-onset and non-offenders

The present research investigated differences in levels of impulsivity among early-onset, late-onset, and non-offending adolescents. 129 adolescents (114 males, 15 females), of whom 86 were institutionalised (M age=15.52 years) and 43 were regular school students (M age=15.40 years) participated. Each participant completed the Adapted Self-Report Delinquency Scale, Stroop Colour and Word Test, Time Perception task, Accuracy Game, Risk-Taking Game, and the Eysenck Impulsiveness Questionnaire. Results suggest that adolescents who display rapid cognitive tempo, poor mental inhibitory control, and high impulsivity are more likely to be early-onset offenders. Offender and non-offender groups showed significant differences on several measures of impulsivity, which may suggest that late-onset offenders acquire or exacerbate impulse-related problems through social mimicry of early-onset offender peers. Potentially important implications for our understanding of delinquency and the design and provision of prevention programs are highlighted

Self-efficacy and academic achievement in Australian high school students: The mediating effects of academic aspirations and delinquency

Studies have shown that self-efficacy, aspirational, and other psychosocial influences account for considerable variance in academic achievement through a range of mediational pathways, although no research to date has tested the mediational relationships identified. The present research investigated the structural relations among self-efficacy, academic aspirations, and delinquency, on the academic achievement of 935 students aged 11-18 years from ten schools in two Australian cities. The Children's Self-Efficacy, Scale, Adapted Self-Report. Delinquency Scale (Revised), and Children's Academic Aspirations Scale were administered to participants prior to academic achievement being assessed using mid-year school grades. Structural equation modeling was employed to test three alternative models for the relationships from academic, social, and self-regulatory efficacy on academic achievement. A partial mediation model showed the best overall fit to the data. Academic and self-regulatory efficacy had an indirect negative effect through delinquency and a direct positive effect on academic achievement. Academic and social self-efficacy had positive and negative relationships, respectively, with academic aspiration and academic achievement; however, the relationship between academic aspiration and academic achievement was not significant in the final model. (C) 2008 The Association for Professionals in Services for Adolescents. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved

Cytoplasmic Dynein Heavy Chain 1b Is Required for Flagellar Assembly in Chlamydomonas

A second cytoplasmic dynein heavy chain (cDhc) has recently been identified in several organisms, and its expression pattern is consistent with a possible role in axoneme assembly. We have used a genetic approach to ask whether cDhc1b is involved in flagellar assembly in Chlamydomonas. Using a modified PCR protocol, we recovered two cDhc sequences distinct from the axonemal Dhc sequences identified previously. cDhc1a is closely related to the major cytoplasmic Dhc, whereas cDhc1b is closely related to the minor cDhc isoform identified in sea urchins, Caenorhabditis elegans, and Tetrahymena. TheChlamydomonas cDhc1b transcript is a low-abundance mRNA whose expression is enhanced by deflagellation. To determine its role in flagellar assembly, we screened a collection of stumpy flagellar (stf) mutants generated by insertional mutagenesis and identified two strains in which portions of the cDhc1bgene have been deleted. The two mutants assemble short flagellar stumps (<1–2 μm) filled with aberrant microtubules, raft-like particles, and other amorphous material. The results indicate that cDhc1b is involved in the transport of components required for flagellar assembly in Chlamydomonas