Publications

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May 2014
Supplement

RCA: Color Television and the Department of Justice (B)

By: Willy C. Shih and Gregory Dieterich

This case is a supplement to 614-072, which examines the early history of the color television receiver market, and the global consequences of an historic 1958 consent decree with the U.S. Department of Justice that opened RCA's patents to licensing by domestic... View Details

Keywords: Intellectual Property; Patents; Rights; Business Strategy; Competitive Strategy; Corporate Strategy; Business History; Information Technology; Information Infrastructure; Communications Industry; Media and Broadcasting Industry; Electronics Industry; United States; Japan

January 2013
Supplement

Cabot Corporation: The Fuel Cell Decision (B)

By: Willy Shih and Ying Zhou

Managers at Cabot Corporation are faced with deciding the future of its fuel cell program. The (A) case recounts the view of the business manager and the technical project lead, and the (B) case describes the perspective of a senior manager who is the head of the New... View Details

August 2012 (Revised August 2013)
Background Note

Competency-Destroying Technology Transitions: Why the Transition to Digital Is Particularly Challenging

Some technology transitions are exceedingly difficult for incumbent firms to execute. The bankruptcy filing by the Eastman Kodak Company highlighted the difficulty companies faced when their core business transitioned from an analog to a digital world. Kodak's business... View Details

May 2014 (Revised July 2016)
Case

RCA: Color Television and the Department of Justice (A)

By: Willy C. Shih and Gregory Dieterich

This case examines the early history of the color television receiver market and the global consequences of an historic 1958 consent decree with the U.S. Department of Justice that opened RCA's patents to licensing by domestic competitors royalty-free. This externality... View Details

Keywords: Intellectual Property; Patents; Rights; Business Strategy; Competitive Strategy; Corporate Strategy; Business History; Information Technology; Information Infrastructure; Communications Industry; Media and Broadcasting Industry; Electronics Industry; United States; Japan

03 Dec 2019
News

What Is The Future Of Work In The Tradable Sector?

Teaching Interest

IFC Asia: China's Belt & Road Initiative

The course objective is to provide students perspectives and insight into one of the major political and economic development programs of China – its Belt and Road Initiative, a strategy that involves infrastructure development and investments in countries spanning... View Details

Keywords: China; Globalization; Trade; Infrastructure; China; Southeast Asia; South Asia; Central Asia

Web

Curriculum - Business & Environment

dynamic backdrop for how both new entrants and incumbent firms can navigate and drive the energy transition. For the full listing, click here . IFC: Europe; Decarbonization and Sustainable Production (January 2025) Willy View Details

October 2013
Case

Rhythm & Blues

The bankruptcy filing of Rhythm & Hues, who received an Oscar for the arresting visual effects in Life of Pi, raised questions about the challenges faced by the firms like it as well as the broader post-production industry. The rapid pace of technology certainly... View Details

Keywords: Post-production; Visual Effects; Digital; Entertainment; Animation Entertainment; Film Entertainment; Television Entertainment; Theater Entertainment; Job Cuts and Outsourcing; Information Technology; Internet and the Web; Applications and Software; Information Infrastructure; Motion Pictures and Video Industry; Los Angeles

TeachingInterests

Immersive Field Course: China and Taiwan

I designed this course to enable students to examine cross-strait issues between the Peoples Republic of China and the Republic of China—(Taiwan) at a critical juncture. Many products produced for the global marketplace—televisions, computers and computer components,... View Details

Web

HBS Entrepreneurship Summit - Alumni

Senior Lecturer of Business Administration Ann Dewitt (MBA 2009), The Engine Unpacking the Supply Chain Mess with Some First Principles and Common Sense Willy C. Shih, Robert and Jane Cizik Professor of... View Details

January 2014
Case

MIT Mystery Hunt: The Answer is Secondary

By: Willy Shih and Karen Robinson

The MIT Mystery Hunt is an annual puzzle-based scavenger hunt at MIT. It is run every year by a different team, and every year is slightly different as teams try new ideas and decide whether to keep or ignore new ideas from previous years. As the Mystery Hunt has... View Details

Keywords: Puzzle-solving; Puzzle Hunt; MIT Mystery Hunt; Innovation and Invention; Collaborative Innovation and Invention; Innovation Leadership; Education Industry; Massachusetts; Cambridge; United States

12 Aug 2018 - 14 Aug 2018
Conference Presentation

Abstraction, Knowledge Flows, and the Rapid Dissemination of Emerging Technologies

Many emerging technologies are remarkably complex and embody high levels of technological sophistication, and they often are key enablers for new products and services. Yet the speed of dispersal of the know-how required to employ these technologies and foster... View Details

Keywords: Emerging Technologies; Technological Innovation; Knowledge Dissemination

August 2009
Supplement

The TSMC Way: Meeting Customer Needs at Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (CW)

When L.C. Tu receives an emergency order, he is confronted with a range of production scheduling choices, each of which has unique costs and trade-offs. The case was designed to help students understand job-shop style production and the impact of disruptions and... View Details

Keywords: Factories, Labs, and Plants; Disruption; Customer Focus and Relationships; Cost; Cost Management; Business or Company Management; Time Management; Network Effects; Production; Hardware; Manufacturing Industry; Semiconductor Industry; Taiwan

September 2013
Case

Boeing 787: More Electric Architecture

The "more electric architecture" of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner represented a significant shift in the design of secondary power systems for commercial aircraft, compared to traditional designs that employed a mix of hydraulic, pneumatic, and electrical power. While the... View Details

Keywords: Boeing; 787; Airbus; A350XWB; Architectural Innovation; Technological Substitution; Technological Innovation; Vertical Integration; Air Transportation; Aerospace Industry; United States

23 Mar 2023
Blog Post

Arla Foods: How Sustainable Can A Dairy Company Be?

In January 2023, Professors Willy Shih and Mike Toffel led more than 40 HBS MBA students on site visits to witness the energy transition and innovative sustainable production activities throughout Denmark... View Details

30 Nov 2018
News

The Challenges GM Is Facing, and the Reasoning Behind Its Plant Closures

11 Apr 2023
Blog Post

BTG Bioliquids: Creating Fast Pyrolysis Bio-Oil from Biomass Residue Streams

In January 2023, Professors Willy Shih and Mike Toffel led more than 40 HBS MBA students on site visits to witness the energy transition and innovative sustainable production activities throughout Denmark... View Details

March 2018
Case

EKOL Logistics: Thinking Outside the Box

By: Willy C. Shih and Esel Çekin

This case describes Ekol, an intermodal transportation and logistics company, and how it manages capacity planning. Its busiest routes linked motor vehicle assemblers in Germany and Turkey with many of their parts suppliers, but it had also developed key links in... View Details

December 2014 (Revised April 2018)
Case

Dalian Wanda Group: The AMC Entertainment Acquisition (A)