1. Describe changes in Philips environment occurring during the 1960's and 1970's
(a)
Philips operates in a very competitive market domestic and internationally. There have been various changes over the last decade, with the emergence of the company from a position near economic failure to a well-known brand that is still lacking in performance. From the 1960's onward, a number of significant changes took place. Due to the efforts of the GATT General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade barriers fell worldwide. There have been many attempts at designing models which describe the competitive environment and the determinants of profitability from Western competitors.
The first element is that of the existing competition. Philips' market for their products are elevating domestically and emerging internationally, however the environment in which it operated in for both of these markets is highly competitive. The way in which the products are perceived had changed over the last decade may have been seen as a luxury by the domestic markets are now seen as becoming more and more a necessity as technology moves into the home internationally. According to Cahners, the name Philips s is well known, indeed it is ranked as the global brand leader in electronics Cahners Research and in terms of Inter-brand's World's Most Valuable Brands 2000. However, there are also some problems with this and the way that it has been competing and brand awareness alone does not create sales, socially in a market where there is firm competition.
2. Describe why Philips had low profits durng the 1970's and 80's
(a)
The problem faced by the company may be seen as a result of the lack of change and the inability to identify the way the market was moving. In the 1970's and the 1980's there were different market drivers and challenges. Philips has many different products, and with such a diversified portfolio there has been a spread of risk, but this has also lead to a lack
Bibliography: Cahners Research Sales Estimates Electronic Business News Letter retrieved on June 15, 2005 From http://www.reed-electronics.com/electronicnews/index.