The Evolution of the Sofa - TV in the New Digital Scenario

The traditional television is now at a turning point because the introduction of digital technology has changed the competitive context: it has modified the bargain power of the traditional players by offering new opportunities to the new entrants and imposing new strategies to the existing ones. This paper, basing on 32 case studies and the census of Sat TV, DTT and IPTV offerings, aims at describing the current state of channel offerings, individualizing the principal players and identifying their strategies, thus allowing us to give a few predictions as to the possible future changes in the industry. The analysis will have a general applicability, as the considerations made are not particularly country-specific, although performed within the Italian context, one of the most advanced in the development of digital TV platforms.digital technology, competitive, strategies

Sofa-TV: The New Digital Landscape

Television is attracting an enormous amount of attention from both researchers and managers, due to the profound changes that are taking place thanks to the diffusion of digital technology. The study of the digital landscape of television, including the players competing in its arena and their strategies, is well worth the effort. This paper, based on 32 case studies and the census of the Sofa-TV (Sat TV, DTT, and IPTV) offerings, aims at describing the current state of channel offerings, individualizing the principal players, and identifying their strategies, thus allowing us to give a few predictions as to the possible future changes in the industry. The analysis will have a general applicability, as the considerations made are not particularly country-specific, although performed within the Italian context, one of the most advanced in the development of digital television platforms

A strategic Analysis of the European Companies in the ICT Sales Channel

The strategic role of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) is growing in various companies. Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) adopt ICT solutions to support their processes and to improve their products and services. Because of SMEs’ scarce resources and inadequate ICT competencies, they need support from ICT suppliers in the ICT adoption process. Little attention has been paid to the business models and strategies of ICT suppliers in the academic and professional literature, and SMEs find it difficult to determine the characteristics of available ICT suppliers and to choose the supplier that best responds to their needs and aims. The goal of this paper is to provide a detailed picture of the ICT sales channel and its players in the European market. A classification framework is proposed and eleven different business models are identified. The paper is based on a case study methodology that included 53 semi‐standardized interviews with CEOs (Chief Executive Officers) and marketing and communications managers at leading European ICT suppliers coupled with the literature review

Towards a More Inclusive Society: The Social Return on Investment (SROI) of an Innovative Ankle–Foot Orthosis for Hemiplegic Children

Hemiplegia is a form of disability that affects one side of the body and has a prevalence of 0.5–0.7 per 1000 live births. It has consequences not only at the medical level but also on psychological, cognitive, and social aspects, and it prevents children from social participation, especially in sports settings. The studies demonstrating the social impact of sports on the hemiplegic population and, in particular, children, are limited. In addition, previous evaluations of healthcare sports initiatives in the hemiplegic population are not available, and traditional methods of evaluation, which are mostly focused on economic outcomes, are not applicable. Thus, this article employs the social return on investment (SROI) methodology, which is able to determine the socio-economic impacts of an initiative, to evaluate the impact of an innovative ankle–foot orthosis (AFO) for hemiplegic children that was created to promote the possibility of “sports for all”. The model was designed with the involvement of stakeholders in all the phases and with mixed methods to assess the input, outcomes, and impact indicators. The final SROI, computed for a time horizon of three years and with a focus on the Lombardy Region, was equal to 3.265:1. Based on this result, the initiative turned out to be worthy of investment

Standard-setting strategies in the multimedia sector

In many hi-tech sectors one of the most important competitive weapons is standardisation. It is particularly true in network markets where users would like to buy products compatible with those bought by others. Different processes may lead to standard setting. Sometimes there are fierce standardisation wars, whereas in other cases competitors are able to agree on a common standard before the introduction of a new technology on the market. Quite often a single firm is not able to adequately sponsor the adoption of its technology as a standard. Therefore, partners supporting the standard-setting process have to be found and collaborations have to be formed. In this paper, the reasons that may lead firms to co-operate or not cooperate are first analysed and then the different typologies of collaborations are described together with their motivations and critical success factors. Finally, the dynamic of the standard-setting process will be investigated and discussed. The paper is based on the study of ten cases in the multimedia sector