Social Responsibility of CE Companies

For this blog, I went to different companies' mission statements and Corporate Responsibility Reports. One can clearly see the company's values throughout both of these things. In Sony's mission statement they express: "Sony is committed to developing a wide range of innovative products and multimedia services that challenge the way consumers access and enjoy digital entertainment. By ensuring synergy between businesses within the organisation, Sony is constantly striving to create exciting new worlds of entertainment that can be experienced on a variety of different products." From this mission statement, one can see that Sony is always striving to advance, and that they want to please their customers.

IBM states that its corporate responsibility efforts "are tightly aligned with [their] strategic business priorities, and integral to all [their] relationships-with clients, employees, and communities worldwide". In addition, they list that "IBM is committed to environmental leadership in all of its business activities, from its operations to the design of its products and use of its technology". From the corporate responsibilities listed on IBM's website, one can see that their values are for the best interest of their clients and for the environment.

By looking at these company's mission statements, their values can be seen very clearly. Both of these companies show the relationship between their business and society. It is important to have a strong corporate responsibility report and a strong mission statement so that the consumers can trust the company.

Works Cited:

http://www.sony-europe.com/article/id/1178278971157

http://www.ibm.com/ibm/responsibility/?re=1brf2

Philips buys Indian appliance maker Preethi

This article may seem very insignificant, however, when you look deeper into what Philips did, it tells you something important about this company. A company has to be alert at all times and take advantage of anything that could benefit their business. In this instance, Philips buying the Indian appliance maker Preethi shows how aggressive Philips is. There is no room to just get by while in the business world with the hundreds/thousands of companies competing over wealth and prosperity. This comes to show that Philips, while known for its consumer electronics, is flexible when there is a chance to prosper on a company such as Preethi. As stated in the article, the purchase of Preethi makes "Philips the clear leader in this specific fast-growing segment within the Indian domestic appliances market." This transaction shows that Philips is on the top of its game and is willing to do whatever is possible to benefit the most and take in the most profit.

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-industry/cons-products/electronics/philips-buys-indian-appliance-maker-preethi/articleshow/7353284.cms

Top Ten Mission Statements

This website gives their opinion on top mission statements throughout all the industries. Because some of these companies have very different goals, their mission is different for every situation. One thing I think that is so great about all these mission statements is the fact of how simple some of them are. For instance, Health Net, a large health insurer, has the mission statement, "To help people be healthy, secure, and comfortable." Eight words creates an idea for the entire company. Now the statements don't have to be this short, but being concise definitely helps in their case. I know what Health Net wants to do with their company.

More specifically inside the Consumer Electronics realm, Sony creates a pretty good mission statement. Their goal is to, "To experience the joy of advancing and applying technology for the benefit of the public." I know what I'm getting when I buy from these companies. All across the industry companies create solid mission statements. Although a mission statement is something that may be overlooked, it can definitely impact a customers idea of whether to use the company or not. These companies have created solid mission statements that really show what they want to do.

Chris

Works Cited: http://www.samples-help.org.uk/mission-statements/top-ten-mission-statements.htm

Beware of your apps!

A recent Wall Street Journal investigation revealed that certain Android and Iphone apps violated users’ privacy. By downloading apps such as: games, Pandora, TextPlus 4 (text messaging app) and many other apps, users were essentially sending basic information about themselves without their awareness or even consent. In fact, these phones are said to have the ability to transmit information including your name, gender, age, your device’s ID number and many more data to a number of online tracking companies and ad firms as well. While Apple claimed that it does not transmit information about its users nor does it obtain any information about them without their consent, the investigation tested a number of apps and found out that it is not true; certain apps where revealing the location of users without asking permission.

This article has left me in awe. I had never taken into consideration the possibility of collecting information about me just from the apps that I download on my Iphone. It is unbelievable and scary how basic data including: location, gender, name and even a phone’s zip code could be transmitted so easily and in a matter of seconds to a number of ad companies. Not only does it invade one’s privacy but it also makes him/her an easy target for ad companies as well as the possibility of identity theft.  In addition to that, I think that companies like Apple should ensure better privacy settings for their users to make sure that they are protected against these kinds of issues. After reading this article, I became more aware of what actually could happen when I download certain apps and now I will think twice before downloading any.

Here’s the link to the article:

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704694004576020083703574602.html?mod=WSJ_Tech_Below_Video#articleTabs%3Darticle

Apple and the Ethical/Business Problems of Child Labor and Other Unsavory Practices

Hey guys I know this article is a little outdated, but it leads to many ethical dilemmas faced throughout the world today. Child labor is definitely something that big companies don't want to talk about and it definitely doesn't help when workers end up sick from substances they use. The combination of the two creates even more problems. So what can these companies do in the future to create better solutions? Too many times we do use the "don't ask don't tell" kind of theory to hide these laborers, but is this ethically right? Is this what Apple and other big corporations want us to see? I don't think so. While legislation of where companies can find suppliers may make the situation even more companies, I think some of these companies need to make changes that help these child laborers. Price shouldn't be the main factor as these kids work in awful conditions. If they want to continue to hide these workers, I'm sure activist groups will continue to make the public aware. Apple needs to stand up for their morals and create better working conditions.

Works: http://www.itbusinessedge.com/cm/blogs/enderle/apple-and-the-ethicalbusiness-problems-of-child-labor-and-other-unsavory-practices/?cs=39724

RIM Faces Ethical Dilemmas

Research In Motion Ltd (RIM), the maker of BackBerry, has experienced several ethical challenges. One example of an ethical challenge that RIM has faced is with the Indonesian government, which told its countries Internet service providers to block customers from viewing pornographic websites. RIM had to decide whether it was ethical to block people from viewing porn or not. Is it right to block what people see? Motivated to keep good relations with Indonesia, RIM decided to install filters on the phones before the actual deadline.

Another example has to do with BlackBerry encryption. India feared that encryptions make RIMs smartphones allows terrorists to remain anonymous. RIM faced the ethical dilemma of whether they should keep the feature of encryptions or not. Is it worth it to have a feature that makes it easier for terrorists to be anonymous? In efforts to compromise, RIM chose to provide tools for Indian security agencies so that they could access messenger services. I do not agree with RIM's decision to filter pornography from Indonesian smart phones, because I do not believe that it is ethical to block people from seeing what they want to see. However, I do understand that Indonesia is a big consumer of RIM's products, so compromising with them ultimately helped their business. However, I do agree that RIM made the right move in providing told for Indian security agencies to access messenger services so that it is more difficult for terrorists to remain anonymous. I believe that ultimately, RIM has handled both situations in a strategic way for their business.


Works Cited:

Ismar, Andreas. (2011). Rim starts internet filters in indonesia . The Wall Street Journal, Retrieved from http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704881304576093174017705238.html?mod=WSJ_Tech_LEFTTopNews 

iPad, the new textbook for students.

The iPad has become the new textbook for college students in a number of US universities. Students are now provided with iPads as a new educational tool which substitutes for heavy books. This article posted on Wall Street Journal discusses the impact of technology and the emergence of such creative electronics in facilitating the educational process. Prof. Angst teaching at the University of Notre Dame reveals the advantages of this new learning technique as a more appealing and desirable method to keep classes more interesting as well as engaging students in participating more in class discussions. He said that although students are now more likely to go on Facebook or other sites, nonetheless, it has not affected their distraction level. I found this article very intriguing, because it shows how technology has become an essential part of our lives especially now that universities are providing students with iPads just to do their readings and other homework. This new technology has brought many advantages for students and will definitely encourage more universities to adopt this method. Creative electronics like the iPad has made learning more fun and entertaining!

Here's the link to the article:

http://blogs.wsj.com/digits/2011/01/22/using-an-ipad-as-a-textbook/

LG's 3D TV

The Consumer Electronic show held in Las Vegas is home to the newest technology in the country, as well as the world. This year, LG Electronics was praised for the creation of a cinema 3D TV. Recently, other such companies have created the 3D TV, however, have had complaints on the vision of the TV's because of the shutter glass used in them. LG's new 3D TV eliminates the dizziness and eye fatigue that some persons get from watching 3D TV because of the new Film-type Patterned Retarder(FPR). This is the future of 3D TV's because instead of only getting the 3D picture through the glasses that users in the world are accustom too, now the 3D images are created through polarized film attached to the actual panel. This alleviates the pressure on the eyes and doesn't harmfully affect one's eyes either. Right now, LG's new 3D TV will have other companies such as Panasonic, Mitsubishi, and Samsung hard pressed to find buyers on there 3D products based on LG's newer and better technology. This will directly affect the stocks of these 3 companies, most likely heading toward a decrease, meanwhile LG's products are sure to increase the stocks based on the higher quality product out right now. Although LG is prospering with the best 3D TV, it is only a matter of time until all the popular TV companies are battling it out to create the best 3D TV. As 3D TV is the future in the making already, companies around the world will be figuring out the best ways to assemble a 3D TV.

http://www.itnewsonline.com/showbwstory.php?storyid=4608