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Describes the California wine cluster, or the group of interconnected wineries, grape growers, suppliers, service providers, and wine-related institutions located in California. Also describes the wine cluster in France, Italy, Australia, and Chile, the four other major international competitors.

Describes the competitive situation facing Robert Mondavi, the leading premium California winery. Mondavi has been an industry innovator and has recently taken steps to become more international. Mondavi has to cope with growing domestic competition as well as market share growth by wineries from Chile and Australia.

Students evaluate the consistency and liability of Amazon.com founder Jeff Bezos's marketing strategy. Bezos founded Amazon.com as an Internet retailer of books, and by 1999, the site also sold CDs, videos, used books, and gifts and operated an auction service.

Discusses the emerging competition between law firms and accounting firms.

Supplements the (A) case.

The marketing head of the Boston Red Sox is reviewing the team's "Friendly Fenway" fan satisfaction program. The program is described in the context of the team's on-the-field performance, the ballpark's character, and team marketing and fan-building in general. The revenue implications of increased customer satisfaction are also raised, within the framework of team economics.

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 on the history of the NFL on television, TV ratings for major sports, TV rights fees for major sports (including the recent new NBA TV contract), and the current contract with each broadcast partner. Ideas proposed to the NFL by rights-holders and rights-seekers are also included.

This case describes a vacuum cleaner manufacturer whose program for operational improvement includes the development of performance measures. Management decides to start with the service department. Students are asked to design a system of performance measures that are simple and feasible and that relate to both company strategy and what people do. Balanced scorecard or other frameworks may be used, but students find that fitting the situation to a preconceived framework does not work as well as the other way around.

Only one year after the grand opening of EuroDisneyland, Robert Fitzpatrick left his position as EuroDisney's chairperson. In April 1993, Philippe Bourguignon took over the helm of EuroDisney, thought by some to be a sinking ship. EuroDisney publicly reported a net loss of FFr188 million for the fiscal year ending September 1992, through cumulative losses through April 1993 approached half a billion dollars. The European park fell one million visitors short of its goal for the first year of operations. In addition to the financial woes weighing on Bourguignon, he was also expected to stem the flow of bad publicity, which EuroDisney had experienced from its inception. Phase Two development at EuroDisneyland was slated to start in September 1993, but in light of their drained cash reserves (FFr1.1bn in May 1993) and monstrous debts (estimated at FF42bn), it was unclear as to how the estimated FFr8-10billion Phase Two project would be financed. Despite this bleak picture, Michael Eisner, CEO of Walt Disney Co., remained optimistic about the venture: "Instant his are things that go away quickly, and things that grow slowly and are part of the culture are what we look for. What we created in France is the biggest private investment in a foreign country by an American company ever. And it's gonna pay off."

Deals with key strategic challenges facing Eli Lilly, a highly successful U.S.-based drug company.

Examines major issues faced by Eli Lilly as it evaluates the appropriateness of a focused matrix organization with extensive use of cross-functional teams.

This case chronicles the mismanagement of funds by an investment management firm for a medical center's endowment and details the subsequent lawsuit. It explores fiduciary responsibility, securities litigation, mortgage-backed securities, and endowment portfolio management while providing background on the bond crisis of 1994. To examine portfolio management, nonprofit management, finance, and law.

When Allied Domecq purchased Casa Pedro Domecq, the intent was to absorb the new division into the company. But the Mexican subsidiary had different ideas: to operate as an independent unit but reap the benefits of being part of something larger. The conflict between various intentions, cultures, and management approaches helps define the nature and timing of this alliance.

Sirona, the dental systems business of Siemans AG is being sold through an auction. In September 1997, buyout firm Schroder Ventures has to decide whether to make a binding offer for the business. Schroder has done extensive due diligence with support from a team of consultants. There seems to be some unrealized growth potential as well as room for cost reduction at Sirona. But there is also considerable uncertainty around cost reduction and growth scenarios. Furthermore, there seem to be problems at Sirona subsidiaries abroad. Finally, the financing will depend on the feasibility of a high-yield offering, a first of its kind in Germany.

Supplements the (A), (B), (C), and (D) cases.

The Disco chain of supermarkets has pursued a successful local niche strategy in Argentina to compete with intense competition from multinational chains. Now Disco considers options for expanding its regional strength.

Describes the history and current situation in the retail pharmacy industry, including competition from new merchants and Internet drugstores. Eckerd, one of the top four drug chains, must decide how to position itself for the future.

exciting mystery movie. Walsh has the final say on the development and production of movie scripts for major box-office release. This new movie idea, like so many others in the film industry, is risky. It could become a blockbuster hit, but it could also become a costly failure. Alternatively, Anderson could recommend that Walsh forgo production of the movie drama and use the studio's currently available resources to produce a film from another script for Home Box Office (HBO). Anderson has to determine the best use of the studio's current production resources. The HBO option would provide fairly certain profits. Conversely, a huge hit at the box office could put High Places on the map as a major contender among the Hollywood studios, but a flop could incur significant losses, which High Places could ill afford. See also the B case, UVA-QA-0547.

In the B case, a question arises concerning what type of contract to offer the film's star. Should the studio offer a standard fixed-fee contract, or should it offer a smaller fixed fee plus a percentage of the gross? Moreover, which alternative would the star prefer? See also the A case, UV6214.

Spreadsheet supplement for case 799-158.