Innovation at cirque du soleil Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Innovation at cirque du soleil - Essay Example This Circus has differentiated itself from its fellow circuses in that it added a touch of innovation in its entertainment services. Through this it managed to shift the traditional circus attendants from children to adults. This paper seeks to evaluate the external environment of Circus du Soleil by conducting a PEST and Porter’s 5 forces analysis of its circus industry. Potter’s five forces Analysis of External Environment This analysis tool is the most powerful tool of understanding where power really lies within the organization. A clear understanding of where power really lies in the organization enables an understanding of the current competitive position the company is in and the strength of the position it wants to move to. This approach assumes that five major forces that determine a businesses competitive power exist. In relation to the circus industry where Cirque du Soleil operates in, the following can be realized; the threat of new entry, power of supplier s, power of buyers, competitive rivalry, and the threat of substitutes. 1. Threat of entry There is a threat of new entry into the circus industry given the fact that Circus du Soleil has been performing well in the industry. Circus du Soleil reinvented the circus industry and through this it was able to create a new market space through challenging the conventional assumption that existed. This assumption was that circuses were meant for children. This company taught the industry how to compete by adding innovation by drawing strengths from the theatre industry, the opera industry and so forth. The new companies have seen how Circus du Soleil has made huge profits and amassed large customer bases and have been attracted to this industry. The greatest threat is that profitability and sales level for Circus du Soleil will decrease but on the other hand the industry’s competitiveness will increase. 2. Power of suppliers The suppliers to the circus industry have changed from the traditional wild animals, acrobats, and funs tuff for youngsters. The circus industry is seeing the use of more mature forms of entertainment to suit the older and high spending customers. The change in customer has called for a change in suppliers, for purposes of profitability of the industry. In addition the customers have fragmented to reduce their bargaining power. 3. Threat of substitutes This threat comes from alternative entertainment forms offered theaters, cinemas, and operas among others. Competition becomes intense when these services are offered at generally lower prices. 4. Competitive rivalry Competitive rivalry to this industry comes from the alternative entertainment services offered by theaters, cinemas, amusement parks, kid’s fun centers, and opera’s among others. 5. Power of buyers The revolution of the circus industry by Cirque du Soleil has seen the entrance of new buyers who are the mature and high spending adults. The traditional buyers were ch ildren and youngsters. This brood of new buyers has increased the profitability of this industry. PEST Analysis PEST refers to the analysis of the environment in terms of political, economical, sociological and technological manner. In relation to the Cirques du Soleil circus industry, the following can be realized; 1. Political aspect The current regulations do not

Umbrella Clauses in Bilateral investement Treaties & Comparison Essay

Umbrella Clauses in Bilateral investement Treaties & Comparison between ICSID, UNCITRAL and ICC - Essay Example Put another way, the main question is whether or not the umbrella clause renders a breach of an investment contract a treaty claim.3 A review of previous arbitration decisions on the issue have produced mixed results. It would appear that with contradictory rulings on the matter, umbrella clauses can sometimes be effective for resolving disputes arising out of investment contracts concluded under the authority of BITs. Wong argues however that, contradictory rulings only serve to nullify umbrella contracts and thus render them ineffective as a means of resolving disputes arising out of an investment contract.4 This paper evaluates umbrella clauses with a view to determining whether or not a rule of law can be identified in the jurisprudence pointing to the when and how umbrella clauses can be used effectively to resolve disputes arising out of an investment contract. Case Law Consistency in arbitration decisions is an allusive concept due to the fact that arbitration panels are forme d specifically for a case. As a result, panels do not sit consistently and therefore they do not have the persistent experience and consistency that court appointed judges may have and usually accumulate. Moreover, international arbitration does not have a hierarchal structure in which appeals can be heard by a higher arbitration panel for the purpose of establishing or clarifying a rule of law. In the meantime, arbitration decisions are usually heard in private, and where they are published and shared, publication is delayed and highly selective. For example, the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) only publishes 12% of its cases and even then, the case is only reported three years after the award is given (Guillaume, 2011).5 Therefore in evaluating case law in international commercial arbitration, it is difficult to know with any degree of reasonable certainty, what the actual jurisprudence is on a particular legal matter. The cases that are available reveal only limited juris prudence and any evaluation is therefore qualified by the fact, that a complete analysis of the legal rule is not possible. This analysis of the effectiveness of the umbrella clause for the resolution of disputes arising under an investment contract can only be determined on the basis of the available published arbitration cases. The first case of note is the 2003 case of SGS Societe Generale de Surveillance S.A. v Islamic Republic of Pakistan. This case involved a dispute which arose under a contract between Pakistan and Swiss company for the latter’s services as a shipment inspection agency. Pakistan terminated the contract later on and the Swiss company, relying on the BIT between Switzerland and Pakistan submitted the matter to arbitration and claimed that in addition to breaching the terms of the contract, Pakistan also violated its obligations under the BIT and especially the umbrella clause. Pakistan argued however that the dispute arose under an investment contract an d therefore the panel did not have jurisdiction over the matter.6 The arbitral panel ruled that the investment contract between Pakistan and the Swiss company predated the BIT and the applicability of the umbrella clause must be viewed in that light. In this regard, unless there was clear