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Television in India has been around for just over four decades. For the first 17 years, transmission was restricted to black and white, and sales figures of television sets were minimal. The liberalization of the Indian economy, however, brought with it many changes, including the entry of a number of global players in manufacturing and broadcasting. In a span of just over 10 years, the broadcasting industry grew from a single public service provider to a thriving sector with over 300 channels beamed across India. Sales of televisions, though characterized by a low penetration rate, also continued to grow steadily. By 2005, India's potential as one of the world's largest viewerships was attracting the attention of international media giants. Paradoxically, infrastructure and the prevailing regulatory environment brought into question the abeyant growth of the industry. This was especially so for rural India, which is typically characterized by low levels of disposable income. Looking at the industry from broadcasting and manufacturing perspectives, this note explores the dynamics, challenges, and prospects of Indian television.

In 2003, the chairwoman and controlling shareholder of Argentina's leading residential mortgage lender are considering how to bring the bank's restructuring to a successful conclusion as the country's economy continues to suffer from the impact of the 2001-2002 currency crisis and default. As the bank's competitors, many of whom were also creditors, begin to close ranks, Banco Hipotecario's management and shareholders need to come up with a plan that will satisfy creditors and keep the bank's business model intact.

Braun is developing a new top shaver that it hopes will reverse its declining market share in mens' shavers. At the same time, another team has been developing a highly innovative automatic cleaning device that could dramatically differentiate the new shaver from the competition's offerings. At issue is whether to "marry" the two projects, with the goal of creating a revolutionary, break-through product. That carries risks, however: the cleaning device is so far from ready that it could delay the launch of the new shaver until the critical window of opportunity has passed. Why not introduce the new shaver on its own, leaving the cleaning device as an optional accessory? The debate generates questions about product strategy, new product design and development, and market analysis.

In 1997, building on its earlier success with Tokyo Disneyland, Oriental Land Corp. Japan and the Walt Disney Co. discussed the possibility of a new joint project known as the Tokyo DisneySea Park. Different approaches toward capital budgeting and distinct corporate governance regimes led the two firms to evaluate the project in different ways. Although globalization of the Japanese economy has advanced with astounding speed, management philosophy and capital budgeting techniques still differ significantly among Japanese and American firms. In a joint venture, such differences have a momentous impact on decision-making processes. Illustrates key divergent practices between Japanese and American firms in the realm of corporate governance and finance.

In 2001, Pankaj Bajaj is considering whether to go forward with a residential development outside New Delhi. Facing an uncooperative local authority, he must determine how to evaluate the risks of proceeding against the potential loss of a golden opportunity to bring Eldeco, his real estate development company, into the top tier of industry players.

CEMEX has pursued an aggressive decommoditization strategy focused on its relationship with small Egyptian retailers. In particular, the strategic role and effectiveness of the Rewards Program, a tournament that rewarded the sales performance of the retailers, was called into question by Assiut Cement's management based on the results of its first two rounds.

Howard Atkins, the chief financial officer of Wells Fargo, is considering issuing $3 billion in convertible debt. With an investment-grade credit rating, Wells Fargo is not the typical issuer of convertible securities, but the market conditions in 2003 are unusual. Strong demand from both convertible arbitrage hedge funds and income mutual funds appears to create an opportunity for Wells Fargo to raise capital at a low cost.

In 2004, Adrian Pandal is seeking financing for a residential conversion of a building in Mexico City's historic center district. He must convince potential lenders that the project is viable and that it makes sense to bet on the future potential of an area that, until recently, has not attracted substantial real estate investment.

Five years after the launch of the Frederick Douglass Charter School, the school's performance is under review by the state board of education as part of a decision about whether to renew the school's charter for a school as well as the implications of a state-administered accountability system based on student achievement data.

How do you go to market with a brand new product in a new industry? How does a business develop an opportunity and then adapt its strategy to ensure success? Who are the early adopters and how does a business work with them? Katherine Hays, chief operating office at Massive Inc., faced several options for guiding the development and launch of the Massive Ad Network. Massive had recognized that young males, ages 18 to 34, were becoming increasingly hard to reach through traditional means of advertising yet, at the same time, video game usage by this highly coveted market segment had skyrocketed and online game advertising provided a valuable revenue opportunity. To capitalize on the situation, Massive had built a product that enabled the dynamic delivery of advertising content into video games. Although the concept was simple, successful adoption of the new advertising medium required the enthusiastic buy-in from three distinct audiences: game publishers and developers, advertisers and their media buyer, and gamers. To be successful, Massive needed to continue to ask questions, experiment, and listen to each of these constituencies.

A significant part of the long-term economic growth in developed economies depends on the translation of scientific research into new products and processes. Focuses on the front end of this value creation stream. The laboratory of George Whitesides has a 30-year history of outstanding chemistry research as reflected by the quality and quantity of journal papers, paper citations, successful graduates, breakthrough ideas and concepts, and new companies. Details the research philosophy and processes for selecting research problems and forming teams. Whitesides guides students to choose challenging research topics rather than safe, incremental research, and problems that require interdisciplinary teams. Allows discussion of: the principles for operating a creative and productive lab; the role of the leader in creating the infrastructure and systems for discovery and learning; the issues of resource allocation and the appurtenant wasted effort as researchers seek academic research support; and the scale and scope limits for highly successful labs. Also discusses applying the Whitesides lab principles and processes to nonscience organizations and teams.

The head of Manchester Bidwell Corp. ponders what it will take to replicate its social services in 100 cities across North America and internationally--an effort that ultimately would cost several hundred million dollars.

Theatre Calgary was a non-profit performing arts organization in Calgary, Canada. In its 2002/03 season, it faced a financial crisis that nearly ended in bankruptcy. It survived the crisis and made many changes to its budgeting and control systems to solve some of the deficiencies that had led to the financial difficulties. As the president prepares for a board meeting, the board of directors want to know if the current budgeting and control systems will ensure long-term stability. This case details Theatre Calgary's budgeting system and paints an accurate picture of the organization, and provides students the opportunity to recommend changes to control systems.

In June 2005, Koldo Saratxaga, the leader of Basque-based luxury coach manufacturer Irizar, decided to leave after 14 years at the helm of the worker-owned cooperative. Under Saratxaga's stewardship, Irizar was saved from near bankruptcy in 1991 and has become a highly profitable industry leader with a 23.9% compound annual growth rate since 1991. The company opened a number of manufacturing sites as far-reaching as Mexico, Morocco, India, Brazil, China, and South Africa. Irizar calls itself "a project based on people" and has realized its success through a business model characterized by a narrow product focus, strict quality adherence, an empowered workforce, and a truly customer-centric organization. Irizar's model is completely different from that of most other coach manufacturing firms given the absence of unions, departments, and hierarchy. All activities are carried out by self-managed teams (teams, for example, are responsible for setting their own work schedules and objectives). Although Irizar's model has worked fantastically well for over 14 years (since Sarataga's arrival), the question now is: Will the company continue to thrive without Saratxaga? Or is Irizar's success due to Saratxaga's leadership?

A well-performing Chinese manufacturer faces major impediments raising funding to grow. Highlights various imperfections that shape the financing decision.

Harley-Davidson Co. exemplifies a remarkable management-led business transformation of a long standing manufacturing company. The company successfully met global competition and continues to innovate to maintain its market position.

KingJewels, one of the leading jewelry manufacturing and trading companies in Hong Kong, was having another profitable year. With its operations director essentially running the company in Hong Kong while the owner and CEO focused his energies on expanding the business into international markets, an opportunity had arisen for foul play. Accounting records had been manipulated and some senior staff were found to have forged shipping documents and accepted bribes from suppliers in exchange for awarding contracts. To complicate matters further, the professional and personal relationships between some key players in the company were blurred, making it even more difficult for the eventual whistle blower to decide her course of action. Illustrates the importance of corporate governance and internal control, even for SMEs, and especially when senior management members of the company concerned had ties that extended beyond professional relationships.

AccuForm, a German-Hong Kong joint venture specializing in the production of chemical coatings for application to garments, is confronted with a situation where an unauthorized Chinese manufacturer had stolen one of AccuForm's experimental coatings, applied it to their own brand of clothing, and sold it to the public as an AccuForm product. The product had caused allergic reactions in some children, and the media had widely reported the incident. It was later discovered there was more to the situation than stolen coating, as some staff were found to have engaged in money laundering, misappropriation of company assets, acceptance of illegitimate rebates, and bribes. The general manager of AccuForm, in addition to having to deal with the media, also had to find a way to resolve the differences in business practices between the company's German and Hong Kong parents, which are thought to have been partially responsible for the incident, as well as rebuild staff morale and customers' confidence in AccuForm's products. Illustrates how differences in company cultures can create difficulty for management, and what are formulas for success in one country may be guarantees of failure in another.

Hexcel's new CEO is faced with deciding how to "take out" $60 million in cash costs in fiscal 2002, as two of the company's end markets--electronics and commercial aerospace--are expected to decline precipitously. Options include closing plants, exiting a business, or undertaking a major headcount reduction. Includes a description of Hexcel's private equity relationship with Goldman Sach's Capital Partners and presents the financial challenges of renegotiating bank lending covenants and managing maturing debt. Focuses on selecting a turnaround approach from the point of view of a general manager (the CEO).

Intermon Oxfam is a Spanish nongovernment organization that is almost 50 years old. Explains the tensions that arose during its growth--in a short time going from lending support to Jesuit missionaries in the Third World to being one of the leading development NGOs in Spain, integrated within one of the most important international NGO groups: Oxfam. Provides the opportunity to review the history of the organization, analyze its governing body (the board of trustees) and human resources and volunteer policies, and gain exposure to its mission and culture in order to choose a candidate for a position on the management team.