Ch. 7 - Business Marketing

55-inch is a great size for many consumers, but it may be not big enough for some/many businesses. In the current (Ultra) High Definition LED/LCD television market, there are many TVs that are much larger than 55-inch. As far as size is concerned, LG's 55-inch Curved OLED TV (55EA9800) is absolutely the best in its game and it has received great reviews since its first appearance in the market. However, many companies that utilize large area displays for business purposes would need displays bigger than 55 inches and they should pay attention to LG's another game changer.

LG introduced a 77-inch Ultra HD OLED TV prototype in September at the IFA 2013 in Berlin. After all the great reviews that LG has gotten for 55EA9800, LG added 22-inch and also increased the resolution to 4K, not to mention the curved OLED panel. According to Jay Vendenbree, senior VP of LG's USA home entertainment division, said that the official debut for the U.S. market will be at the International CES 2014 in January. He said, 

“some may say it’s too early to kick off the future, I’m here to say the future is now. Today, consumers already are purchasing Ultra HD TVs in ever-increasing numbers. And the reason is simple – they can really see the difference. Consumers’ jaws literally drop when they see it, even more than HDTV.”

LG's confidently forecasts that their sales will be as high as 800,000 units during 2014 while other industry research organizations, such as DisplaySearch, estimates up to 500,000 units.

He also mentioned that businesses will soon need Ultra HD because of an increase in consumers' demand for Ultra HD in businesses such as hotels and airports.

Here are some pictures of 77-inch Curved Ultra HD TV:

Source: IBTIMES, TWICE

Ch. 8 - Segmenting and Targeting Markets

A month after the U.S. launch of 55EA9800, it went on sale in Germany, Australia, and United Kingdom in September and Saudi Arabia in November. Prices vary but mostly it was lower than the U.S. retail price.

When 55EA9800 went on sale in Germany, the initial price was €8,999, which was $3,000 lower than the U.S. retail price. In Australia, LG launched it at $11,999 AUD.The same model but different model number, 55EA980W, also launched in the United Kingdom in September at £7,999. 

Earlier last month, LG introduced 55EA9800 in Saudi Arabia.

“The new curved model compliments our core OLED TV family with a unique design that capitalizes on the thinness of the screen and the aesthetic beauty of OLED TV,” president of United Yousef Mohammad Naghi (UYMN), Ammar Naghi said.

“We have huge expectation because LG is No. 1 and it will remain No. 1,” he added.

According to B.W. Park, managing director of UYMN, Saudi Arabia is one of the biggest premium TV market for LG. With its beautiful design, colors, and viewing experience, 55EA9800 can surely spoil wealthy Arabs. As the technology matures and prices go down, LG will be able to contribute the tv market where many consumers use televisions as their primary entertainment source.



In East Africa, Kenya, although many Kenyans are still obsessed by Smartphones and tablets, LG plans to grow the premium television market share by launching the 55-inch Curved OLED TV, so that they can stay ahead of other competitors.

55EA9800 is available in Kenya at about Ksh.1.2 million (approximately US $14,000) 

Source: HDTVtest, HDTVtest, Arab News, allAfrica

Ch. 11 - Developing and Managing Products

Senior designer/ researcher, Sunha Park, at LG has designed many televisions. She wanted to design something more than just thin, flat screen televisions that are prevalent in the current market. She wanted to design a television with LG's newest panel technology, OLED, and she knew that the OLED display can be flexible. According to Ms. Park, what bothered her the most was that there were some people who didn't believe what she wanted to achieve was possible.

After they found the perfect curvature of a screen, they faced another problem. Since the display was curved, they had to find the matching conduction angle and the level of conductivity for the curved OLED television. She said, "...every department involved in LG CURVED OLED TV faced and overcame their fair share of obstacles."

In order to maximize the viewers experience, they added a crystalline stand so that the tv looks like it is floating and it also gives an IMAX-like view experience. After 5 years of research and development process, they have introduced the prototype Curved OLED TV, received prestigious design award from the Red Dot Design, and started manufacturing for consumers.

Source: WHY LG TV Blog, GIZMAG


Check out their design story commercial video:

Ch. 18 -Social Media and Marketing

LG utilizes various social media tools to develop relationships with their consumers. They post articles on their blog(US) about various news on their products. However, LG has more Web traffic on their Facebook, Twitter, Google Plus, and YouTube pages. Each social media site has basically two different pages per medium, LG Mobile and LG USA.

The 55-inch Curved OLED TV article is posted on their blog. Click the picture below to read more.

On October 30, 2013, LG announced their new social media campaign, Hidden Worlds. It is a campaign that tells LG's products are "bringing excitement to consumers' daily lives." Participants can engage in the campaign by playing a rescue mission game either with a webcam or mouse to save a female author who is trapped in one of the beautiful colors of television pixels of LG's 55-inch Curved OLED TV. According to LG, they try to increase their brand awareness and also their new brand identity theme, It's All Possible, through the campaign, Hidden Worlds. The campaign will eventually be roll out in more than 20 countries in Europe, Asia, Central/South America, Middle East and Africa. Source: LG Newsroom

You can participate the campaign HERE.

Also, here is the full campaign video on YouTube:

For those who wonder about how they make this kind of video, you can check out a video made by the company that produced the LG's campaign video. Click HERE.

Ch. 10 - Product Concepts

As technologies change rapidly, many not only small gadgets but also a lot of consumer electronics become obsolete. However, when consumers buy electronics that are expensive or that are expected to last longer than other small gadgets, such as televisions or computers, they tend to make their decisions carefully. For early adopters and those who are willing and able to pay more than 10 times higher prices than current LCD/LED televisions on the market for LG's 55-inch Curved OLED TV,(55EA9800) you won't regret your decisions.

Whether consumers install 55EA9800 in their living room or businesses install it at a lounge/waiting area for clients in their companies, the viewing experience will impress anyone who sits in front of this television. One of the most important reasons is LG's OLED panel technology. While other competitors use RGB OLED panel technology, LG chose WRGB OLED panel technology. This allows infinite contrast and also wider viewing angles. This superior panel technology absolutely sets apart 55EA9800 from other competitors OLED televisions. 

source: DIGITALVERSUS

For some consumers who need their display output devices in a bright environment, 55EA9800 will be able to surpass their expectations on televisions. Thus, such customers who have seen and experienced high-quality, satisfying results with LG's products, look for LG's product lines. 

LG's logo, symbol, and tag-line are quite easily noticeable. 

Because they all have similar elements that connect each other. The symbol has a letter 'L' in the middle of a red circle and a carefully designed letter G is between the letter 'L' and inside the circle. This symbol is always accompanied by the letters 'L' & 'G' right next to it. Their tag-line, "Life's Good" alliterate with their brand name, LG. Wherever in the world LG's product is sold, their logo symbol and  brand name are used consistently. 

AS the display panel technology matures and the manufacturing costs are reduced, LG will produce more variety of televisions that will serve general consumers who need less options and features at competitive prices for everyday use and power users and businesses who want more useful options and features.

Ch. 17 - Personal Selling and Sales Management

When consumers purchase high-end electronics such as LG's 55-inch Curved OLED TV(55EA9800), they look for a help/advice from experts so they can make a right decision.When you buy LG's 55EA9800 TV, you are definitely in good hands. Especially at Best Buy, they have a dedicated store-within-a-store, Magnolia, which provides you all kinds of help you would need when it comes to high-end electronics.

Here are some features that you can hear more about from experts.

4.8mm thin. The slimmest 55-inch tv currently available on the market. How does this work for you? You may be able to impress your clients in your waiting lounge area with this TV.

LG's Smart Touch Control for a minimalistic design. 

Reading a manual may not be as clear as seeing it in person.

LG used a special material,carbon fiber-reinforced plastic, on the back of the TV. It protects the TV more securely. But you should note that a wall-mount option isn't available for this model.

If you have other electronics that can be connected to this TV, you need to make sure what ports and inputs are available. Obviously, the easiest and best input would be HDMI.

Photo source: http://asia.cnet.com/product/lg-55ea9800-55-inch-oled-46730710.htm

You can get detailed information about LG's 55-inch Curved OLED TV at Best Buy's Magnolia. Many reviewers on the Internet have said that it is hard not to like this TV. If you like this TV but wanted to wall-mount it, you may still be able to it. Even though this TV is not designed to be wall-mounted, you can find out what Magnolia can do for you if you wanted it to be wall-mounted. 

Ch. 16 - Advertising, Public Relations and Sales Promotion

We all know that the current main stream television panels are mostly LCD/LED based products and LG manufactures many main stream products that are available in the market, not to mention LG offers them at very competitive prices. While LG prepares the next generation TV panel technology, OLED, they use various marketing tools to attract consumers. One of the most important tools is CES, the Consumer Electronic Shows. It is a trade show/exhibition produced by the Consumer Electronic Association (CEA). According to the 2013 attendee summary audit, the number of attendees from all over the world were over 150,000. Among them, about 6,400 attendees were media related attendees from 73 different countries. A show like this is very effective not only for LG but for any company that can afford to participate. 

Before the 55-inch Curved OLED TV (55EA9800), LG introduced 55EM9600 flat-panel OLED TV and it was selected by CNET (reputable online review website) as the winner of TV category of 2012 CES. 

And at the 2013 CES, LG showed off the 55-inch OLED TV (55EM9700) and they were planned to arrive in the U.S. in March 2013. 

Along with the 55EM9700 model, LG started selling the 55-inch Curved OLED TV(55EA9800) model in August 2013 worldwide.

Also, LG works with a brand ambassador, Ewan McGregor, for the Australian market. As they introduced the 55-inch Curved OLED TV in Australia along with other large area TVs, they introduced Ewan McGregor as their brand ambassador. According to CNET, before he described his brand ambassador role, he said, “LG makes f**king good tellies.” 

Ch. 14 - Marketing Channels and Retailing

LG's Curved 55-inch OLED TV has arrived in the U.S. market since July 22, 2013 through Best Buy. When it first released in the market, it was offered at $14,999, but LG has dropped its price from $14,999 to $9,999. Actually, not all of Best Buy's stores carry this TV. It was first appeared at Best Buy's Magnolia Design Center store near Minneapolis and it was said that other selective stores in cities, such as LA, NYC, Miami, Houston, Dallas, San Francisco, Chicago, Seattle, and San Antonio, would plan to carry it followed by the Minneapolis store.

Magnolia was acquired by Best Buy in 2000 and introduced to selective Best Buy stores as a store-within-a-store type. These stores offer premium home electronics for Best Buy customers and the store feels like a home theater/ entertainment room. One of the stores let some customers watch a sport event and the employees were very friendly according to the source.

 

Here are some pictures taken by a Minneapolis resident who went to check out the LG's 55-inch Curved TV on the first day of its launching. Although these are cellphone photos, you can still see the difference in contrast compared to other LCD/LED models.

When it first introduced, it was said to be "built to order." In New York City, there was no availability but went to see it anyway if I could get lucky. It was still "built to order," but if you are in other major cities you can check out its availability here.

Ch. 6 - Consumer Decision Making

LG 55-inch Curved OLED TV

is currently sold in many countries already. Some consumers who look for a new television to replace their old LCD/LED models, LG's 55-inch Curved OLED TV cannot make it to their list. Due to the high production costs, it is offered in the market from $12,000 up to $14,999. But, what's the difference between LCD/LED TVs and OLED TVs?

LED TVs are similar to traditional LCD TVs. LED TVs are better than LCD TVs because LED TVs use smaller backlights. Therefore, LED TVs are thinner and it allowed manufacturers to produce larger screen TVs. Although LED screens can generate great color, it is not bright enough and has washed out black color on the screen. Some people say Plasma TVs have great black color, but still not good enough.

OLED TVs are the next generation TV technology that will replace current LED TVs.
First of all, OLED TVs are thinner than LED TVs. OLED panels have elements that generate light without needing any backlights, thus it needs less space and be more energy-efficient.
Second, contrast ratio is literally infinite. LCD/LED TVs have to still light panels to generate black color, but OLED TVs can simply turn pixels off for black color. Especially, LG's OLED technology has better architecture because each pixel consists of four sub-pixels and this allows simpler structure by design than other competitors'. Read more about OLED panel technology here.
Since OLED TV has self-illumanating materials, it provides wider viewer angle than do LED TVs. LG has researched for 5 years to find the best curvature angle and applied it to the world's first curved OLED TV.

This TV might only be for early adopters with deep pockets. BUT, if you see LG's 55-inch Curved OLED TV for yourself, you may consider buying one when price drops, if not this one. You can go to one of BestBuy Magnolia stores and check it out.

Ch. 5 - Developing a Global Vision

LG's the world's first curved OLED TV and other products are available in more than 110 countries. LG Display is one of LG Electronics companies and the multinational corporation LGE controls 114 local subsidiaries worldwide and they employee roughly 82,000 executives and employees.

Every year, LG participates Consumer Electronics Show and shows off their new technologies, innovative products, and meets buyers from all over the world. At 2013 CES, LG's curved OLED TV was introduced and launched in April 2013 in Korea. It is now available in the United States, United Kingdom, China, Israel, Australia, and United Arab Emirates and take pre-orders in other countries.

In the UAE, LG's price(Dh 35,000) is slightly higher than Samsung's (Dh 32,999). According to LG, they are expecting high demand from high-income people because the OLED TV is a new technology and it is actually better than one of their biggest competitors, Samsung. In the UAE, LG's market share is about 28 percent and plans to target market share of 30 percent by the end of this year.

Generally, LG's products are very similar regardless of places, but there will only be one model of 55-inch Curved OLED TV this year. If there's any difference, it would be some minor software changes. LG has always differentiated their marketing strategies depending on countries and it has been successful; LG's global market share of 2011 in the display industry is 27 percent.

Ch. 4 - The Marketing Environment

Since the inception of the company, LG Display has been developing market leading products and technologies. Current generation TFT-LCD/LED displays are available for wide demographics, from teens who love to play video games and access social media while they are watching television to grandparents who like to enjoy their TV shows and news with crystal clear display, not to mention large fonts.

Earlier this year, LG Display announced a curved 55-inch OLED Smart TV at the CES and it is available now for sale at $14,999. As Samsung introduced their own OLED TV followed by LG, LG's initial $15,000 price was dropped to $10,000. Ignoring the fact that the TV is curved and equipped with the newest technology, the price may be too high for most people. LG knows that, and they are mostly targeting early adopters who want to indulge privilege viewing experience that comes with the price for now.

The OLED TV era is not mature yet and as with other technologies, the affordable OLED TVs will be available for some time, or years, later until it reaches a point where middle income people can accord one of these televisions.

In one of many efforts to reach that point, LG strategically planned to lead the next generation television industry while their TFT-LCD/LED market was still growing, they purchased WRGB OLED panel technology from Eastman Kodak company. This strategic investment soon paid off with LG Display's integration of WRGB OLED panel technology and they were able to produce OLED televisions for consumers.

Also, in order to reduce the manufacturing cost, LG Display has invested approximated $706 million to build a new 8th Generation fabrication facility for OLED display panel production and they will be able to produce large area OLED display panels from 1st quarter of 2014.

According to DisplaySearch, the OLED TV panel market will grow as large as $3 billion by 2015 and LG Display is far ahead.

Ch. 3 - Ethics & Social Responsibility

“We have to promote a business that can lead us to succeed and contribute to the society. Such business can continuously be crowned with success.” by In-hwoi Koo, the founder of LG Group 

Corporate Social Responsibilities

LG Display has been striving to contribute to regional communities and human happiness through various activities.

1. They build internet PC facilities and multimedia spaces throughout the country for underprivileged children to help them experience the technology's of digital age. Three of their main programs are, "Very Special Saturday", "After School", and "IT Room for Hope."
   
   
   
   
   
2. In an effort to inform children at elementary schools about eye-care awareness, they conduct special classes. Also, they offer free eye-checking for the elderly people in remote areas where eye care services are difficult to get.
   
   
   
3. Support multicultural families to help improve their home environment.

source: http://www.lgdisplay.com/lgdhp/eng/sustainability/socialIntro.dev

Environmental Awareness

LG Display pledges to make efforts to become environment-friendly companies. As part of their management, LG Display is well aware of energy, environment, health and safety for the corporate and its employees and society. They devised their own management system called, ESH(Environment, Safety and Health) Management system.

Based on the system principle, LG Display strives to contribute society through sustainable development activities and mail activities are as follows.

• Improvement of product environmental aspects
• Hazardous substance process management
• Application of halogen (Bromine, Chlorine)-free parts & green glass
• Analysis of hazardous substances in products
• ISO/IEC 17025 accredited Eco Analytical Center
• Standardization activities of eco analytical technology
• Climate change and energy reduction
• Energy saving and greenhouse gas reduction
• SF6 abatement system
• Participate in World LCD Industry Cooperation Committee to reduce greenhouse gas emission. 
• Resource conservation and efficiency improvement
• Water saving and recycle
• Minimizing waste and maximizing waste recyle
• Pollution control
• Maximizing treatment efficiency of pollutants
• Reducing pollutants emission and discharge
• Chemical control
• Controlling all chemical stages
• Emergency response to prevent chemicals from flowing into streams and rivers
• Safety management
• Securing safe reliability through equipment safety certification
• Process Safety Management - in order to avoid any sources of fire, explosion and leakage and to prevent occupational accidents
• Safety Training School -  train employees from fundamental safety knowledge to fire drills.
• Health management
• Health promotion programs- provide annual examination for employees age of  over 35
• Work Environment Assessment - outside professional organizations are commissioned to assess hazardous agents in all workplaces twice a year

source: http://www.lgdisplay.com/lgdhp/eng/sustainability/ecoIntro.dev


LG Display does more activities to protect our environment and has many employee volunteers to go other countries where help is needed. LG Display started generating a thorough, comprehensive sustainability report since 2011. For more detailed report, please click here.

Ch. 2 - Strategic Planning for Competitive Advantage -WI Students Begin Marketing Plan

While still TFT-LCD/LED displays were popular in the display market, LG Display purchased OLED* technology from Eastman Kodak Company in 2008 and established Global OLED Technology LLC. Eastman Kodak Company first developed and owned all of the OLED patents since late 1980s. In 1987, two chemists, Tang and VanSlyke, first developed OLED at Eastman Kodak Company and Eastman Kodak Company used small sized OLED displays for Digital Cameras and Wireless Picture Frame devices. But LG Display took over almost 2,200 OLED patents from Eastman Kodak Company in 2009, LG Display and two other LG companies formed a new company called, “Global OLED Technology LLC,” to further develop, manage, and research OLED technology. LG Display planned well ahead of their biggest competitor, Samsung.
*OLED is the next generation display panel technology followed by TFT-LCD/LED.

At the IFA 2013 conference in Berlin, LG Display unveiled the 77-inch LG Curved OLED TV boasting its 3840 x 2160 pixel resolution, that is, four times bigger than current 1080p Full HD models. The 77-inch LG OLED is made of WRGB OLED panel technology with integrated Ultra HD technology to offer near infinite contrast ratios.
source: http://www.trustedreviews.com/news/lg-unveils-77-inch-4k-oled-tv-at-ifa-2013#DQCPzwwoD4h9s0PG.99

The WRGB OLED panel technology is what LG Display purchased from Eastman Kodak Company. In the WRGB architecture, each pixel consists of four sub-pixels, white, red, green, and blue, and the combination of each sub-pixels generate a color. When generating a black color all sub-pixels are turned off, which increases efficiency, and only the white sub-pixel is turned on to generate white; the turn-off pixels' deep black and dedicated white sub-pixel increases contrast ratio "near infinite." This technology is one of the big differences between Samsung and LG Display. Samsung's panel technology might be more efficient and able to achieve smaller pixels, but it is hard to achieve. Although Samsung has more experience with OLED production, LD Display was able to produce OLED televisions faster than Samsung. 

Computers need operating system, such as Mac OS X, Windows, Linux, and Unix. Not only computers but all other gadgets need operating system. LG Display is planning to implement the "failed" mobile operating system, webOS, to their Smart TVs. LG Display purchased some of webOS earlier in 2013 from HP. According to LG Display, they will launch webOS mounted Smart TVs in 2014. 

source: http://www.ibtimes.com/lg-next-generation-tvs-4k-ultra-hds-77-inch-ultra-hd-oled-webos-tvs-compete-samsung-1404328

Most operating systems for televisions are buggy and laggy, not to mention confusing to use. Can't wait to see how LG Display successfully implements webOS into new Smart TV lines in 2014!

Ch. 1 - Overview of Marketing (Brief History and Mission Statement)

Brief History of 

LG Display, one of the global leaders in the display industry, started as a software company in 1985. They began developing Thin-Film Transistor Liquid Crystal Display (TFT-LCD) in a research center, and in 1995, they finished building their first plant and started mass-production of TFT-LCD. In 1999, they transferred software related business to LG Electronics and purchased TFT-LCD related business assets from them. In 2004, LG Display became a public company and has been listed on the New York Stock Exchange and the Korea Stock Exchange since then. In 2008, LG Display took over Organic Light Emitting Diode (OLED) patents from Eastman Kodak Company and they have been focusing on developing and researching the next generation panel technology, OLED display panels. However, in order to replace TFT-LCD technology with OLED technology, LG Display needs to improve the cost of manufacturing displays with OLED technology. Thus, LG Display’s major revenues are still from TFT-LCD business.

Mission Statement

 In the vision of LG Display that is ‘You Dream, We Display,’ the word ‘You’ indicates all our customers, partners, and members of LGD and ‘Display’ means realization of dreams transcending the concept of mere showing. In other words, it is ‘to create the world where people are dreaming with LG Display’ as well as the expression of the strong determination that intends to provide advanced values based on competitiveness differentiated from other competitors. To accomplish such vision, ‘Global No.1 Display Company’ was set as our detail goal while newly defining the 6 signature basic competences of LG Display. The core values and ideal qualities that the company requires in employees become the basis of corporate culture as well as the code of conduct to be equipped with all employees.

Assignment 1

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