Publications

01 Dec 2007
News

Hollywood Squared

In an opinion piece in the Wall Street Journal (September 4, 2007), Sony Pictures Entertainment chairman and CEO Michael Lynton (MBA ’87) declared that from his perspective “the global economy in general —... View Details

Keywords: Arts, Entertainment

01 Sep 2015
News

In My Humble Opinion: Keith Clinkscales (MBA 1990)

singer from Kansas City, Kansas. Leisure time? “No. No. No. In all truth and candor, when you’re launching a media property in this kind of environment, you just don’t have what you’re speaking about.” On... View Details

Keywords: Julia Hanna; Performing Arts, Spectator Sports, and Related Industries; Performing Arts, Spectator Sports, and Related Industries

Profile

Jackie Burgos

to see more diverse characters and storylines on Television. At HBS, the Career Services office has been especially supportive of Jackie’s ambition to further continue her success in the Media and View Details

Keywords: Entertainment / Media; Entertainment / Media; Entertainment / Media

01 Dec 2004
News

Pyramid Scheme

(MBA ’03) told the Boston Globe (September 22, 2004). DuPlessie, who studied mechanical engineering at MIT, launched TOMB after gaining experience working on projects at Disney and Universal Studios. Boston-based TOMB, the first project... View Details

Keywords: Amusement, Gambling, and Recreation Industries; Amusement, Gambling, and Recreation Industries

June 2004
Teaching Note

Strategic Inflection: TiVo in 2003 (A & B) TN

By: Pai-Ling Yin and David B. Yoffie

Teaching Note to (9-704-425) and (9-704-429). View Details

Keywords: Entertainment and Recreation Industry

April 2006 (Revised May 2007)
Case

Apple Computer, 2006

By: David B. Yoffie and Michael Slind

Apple has reaped the benefits of its innovative music player, the iPod. However, its PC and server business continue to hold small market share relative to the worldwide computer over the past few years. Will the iPod lure new users to the Mac? Will Apple be able to... View Details

Keywords: Technological Innovation; Product Positioning; Performance Evaluation; Information Infrastructure; Music Entertainment; Time Management; Information Technology Industry

06 Aug 2015
Blog Post

What I Was Not Expecting: Rerouting Towards My Passion at HBS

about. I applied to non-profits, startups, social innovators, arts foundations, theatre producers, music labels, entertainment conglomerates, among others. I am now halfway through my internship in one of the biggest music labels in the... View Details

Keywords: Entertainment / Media / Sports

24 Feb 2009
First Look

First Look: February 24, 2009

restaurants. This case examines four such services: Entertainment Book, Restaurant.com, Rewards Network, and OpenTable. Despite key functional similarities, each of the services chooses an importantly... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

March 2002 (Revised May 2003)
Case

Supply Chain Close-Up: The Video Vault

By: V.G. Narayanan and Lisa Brem

The owners of the Video Vault struggle to determine the optimal stocking levels of home videos in an industry fraught with new technology, new pricing paradigms, and stiff competitive pressure from large national chains. Teaching Purpose: To demonstrate the role of... View Details

Keywords: Supply Chain Management; Competition; Motivation and Incentives; Price; Technological Innovation; Service Delivery; Entertainment and Recreation Industry

June 2018
Supplement

Valuing Snap After the IPO Quiet Period (B)

By: Marco Di Maggio and Benjamin C. Esty

Analyzes Snap’s value and analyst recommendations following the events described in the (A) case. View Details

January 2011 (Revised January 2011)
Case

Marvel Enterprises, Inc. (Abridged)

By: Anita Elberse

The management team of Marvel Enterprises, known for its universe of superhero characters that includes Spider-Man, the Hulk, and X-Men, must reevaluate its marketing strategy. In June 2004, only six years after the company emerged from bankruptcy, Marvel has amassed a... View Details

Keywords: Business Model; Intellectual Property; Rights; Growth and Development Strategy; Brands and Branding; Marketing Strategy; Entertainment and Recreation Industry

June 1999 (Revised August 2004)
Case

NFL-Network Television Contracts, 1998-2005, The

By: Stephen A. Greyser

The National Football League (NFL) is negotiating its next round of national television contracts with its broadcast and cable TV partners. The revenues from these contracts constitute a major source of income for the individual NFL teams. The case provides information... View Details

Keywords: History; Rights; Contracts; Business Earnings; Negotiation; Partners and Partnerships; Budgets and Budgeting; Entertainment and Recreation Industry

June 2018 (Revised April 2021)
Case

Valuing Snap After the IPO Quiet Period (A)

By: Marco Di Maggio, Benjamin C. Esty and Gregory Saldutte

Snap, the disappearing message app, went public at $17 per share on March 2, 2017, making its two 20-something founders the youngest self-made billionaires in the country. Over the next three weeks, 14 analysts made investment recommendations on Snap: two with buy... View Details

March 2024 (Revised September 2024)
Case

Supercell 2.0: Clash of Plans

By: Jeffrey F. Rayport and George Gonzalez

Founded in 2010, Supercell was a Helsinki, Finland-based mobile gaming company that had developed and launched five global hit mobile games: Clash of Clans, Clash Royale, Hay Day, Brawl Stars, and Boom Beach. The company’s early philosophy was that it could produce... View Details

Keywords: Business Growth and Maturation; Restructuring; Games, Gaming, and Gambling; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Organizational Culture; Organizational Structure; Corporate Strategy; Video Game Industry; Finland

August 2002 (Revised August 2003)
Case

Electronic Arts Introduces The Sims Online

By: Youngme E. Moon

Electronic Arts (EA), the world's largest independent game publisher, is preparing to launch an online, subscription-based version of the most popular PC game in history: The Sims. The new game is called "The Sims Online" and it differs from the original game in two... View Details

Keywords: Fair Value Accounting; Decision Making; Price; Product Launch; Market Entry and Exit; Internet; Entertainment and Recreation Industry

October 1998
Case

Star TV in India--1998

By: Tarun Khanna, Geetu S Karnani and Tanya Z Haider

Keywords: Television Entertainment; Media and Broadcasting Industry; India

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April 2019
Case

American Ballet Theatre

By: Anita Elberse, Tsubasa Nakajima and Melissa Rodman

Kara Medoff Barnett, executive director of American Ballet Theatre (ABT), widely regarded as one of the world’s premier ballet companies, faces several challenges. It is June 2018. Despite its prestige, the company’s $45 million annual budget and $22 million endowment... View Details

Keywords: Performing Arts; Superstars; Talent; Talent Development; Non-profit; Contracts; Labor Economics; General Management; Arts; Entertainment; Media; Talent and Talent Management; Nonprofit Organizations; Marketing; Strategy

August 1974 (Revised April 1983)
Case

Peter Olafson (A)

By: John J. Gabarro

Describes the problems facing a recent MBA graduate in his job as general manager of a cable television company owned by a parent corporation. Raises issues of corporate divisional relationships and the difficulties facing an inexperienced manager who seems to be... View Details

Keywords: Business Subsidiaries; Television Entertainment; Managerial Roles; Organizational Design; Problems and Challenges

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June 2017
Case

AKB48: Going Global? (A)

By: Juan Alcácer, Kotaro Sasamoto, Tee Chayakul and Mayuka Yamazaki

After a remarkable success in Japan, the producer of the Japanese female singing group AKB48 evaluates market opportunities overseas for his artistic creation. This case introduces the business model behind the AKB48 concept and allows students to identify what... View Details