Nintendo and provide a critical analysis- U55077 MARKETING ANALYTICS

Choose one of the following companies: Microsoft (Xbox)), Sony (PlayStation) or Nintendo and provide a critical analysis 

U55077 MARKETING ANALYTICS  

RESIT ASSESSMENT SEMSTER 3 2018/19 

         Submit via Turnitin. Deadline: Friday 05/07/2019 by 13:00 

Deadline for final draft feedback Wednesday 26 June by 13:00                               (Send my email to [email protected]) 

By 2020 the global gaming industry is forecast to grow 14.6% to $90.1 billion. (Clairfield.com, 2018) The 3 largest regional markets are China, the US and Japan. Surprisingly Europe has the smallest regional share. It is a large and dynamic market which is directly impacted by new developments in technology and consumer behaviour. 

As can be seen from the timeline above, gaming has evolved over time through technological innovations and digitalisation. The gaming industry became much larger with the arcade video games of the 1970’s and 1980’s. The standalone PC revolution of the 1980’s heralded the era of home consoles. The 1990’s market was dominated by incumbents from Japan such as Sega and Nintendo who pioneered the global console market. In 1995 Sega was so intent on competing with Nintendo on video and graphics performance that it was blindsided by the entry of Sony with its first PlayStation console. The financial and marketing clout of Sony improved the level of software gaming development in the supply chain and was the first console to sell over 100 million units globally (Thorsen, 2004). 

In the 21st century, the global gaming industry is now larger than the film and music industry combined. (Malim, 2018). This has been due to the increased digitalisation of game and the entry of big global corporations like Sony and Microsoft. The consolidation of large developers including Activision and Electronic Arts has led to the production of gaming titles with budgets larger than that of a Hollywood blockbuster film. Digital gaming and distribution platforms pioneered by companies like Valve Corporation have also paved the way for digital retailing and direct distribution channels. Mobile gaming is now the largest sector because of the rapid growth in the global smartphone industry and apps markets. This is reinforced by technological disruptors such as cloud services, streaming technologies, 5G deployment and vastly improved hardware engineering in mobile. The entire landscape of the global gaming industry has changed remarkably in a short space of time. As of 2015 Tencent Games of China is the largest developer of games in the world (Takahashi, 2015). This is part of the giant Chinese corporation Tencent Holdings which has an extensive digital enterprise and gaming portfolio. With the onset of both emerging technologies and new emerging brands, the gaming industry appears to have gained a new lease of life. 

References 

Clairfield.com. (2019). [online] Available at: http://www.clairfield.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/Gaming-Industry-and-Market-Report-2018.01-2.pdf [Accessed 01 Feb. 2019] 

   Malim, G. (2018). ‘Video games market is worth more than music and movies combined so why aren’t CSPs launching games services?’ - VanillaPlus - The global voice of Telecoms IT. [online] VanillaPlus - The global voice of Telecoms IT. Available at: https://www.vanillaplus.com/2018/07/05/40093-video-games-market-worth-music-movies-combined-arent-csps-launching-games-services/ [Accessed 2 Feb. 2019] 

  Takahashi, D. (2015). ‘Tencent widens its position as the world’s largest game company’. [online] VentureBeat. Available at: https://venturebeat.com/2015/05/13/tencent-widens-its-position-as-the-worlds-largest-game-company/ [Accessed 3 Feb. 2019] 

 Thorsen (2004). [online] Available at: https://www.gamespot.com/articles/100-million-playstations-sold/1100-6098786/ [Accessed 6 Feb. 2019] 

Assignment Briefing (Final Report 100% of module) 

This assessment covers all the learning outcomes (1-6) on the module. 

You are required to write a 3000 word report which incorporates marketing analytics and metrics learnt on the module in the following areas 

1. Using relevant statistics and further supporting evidence, discuss how the competitive landscape of the industry has changed since the incumbent firms (Sega & Nintendo) dominated the global gaming industry in the 1980’s. 

1. Based on the concept of ‘complementary analytics’, discuss the impact of technological developments in other industries that are having or will have an impact on the global gaming industry in the near future. 

1. Choose one of the following companies: Microsoft (Xbox)), Sony (PlayStation) or Nintendo and provide a critical analysis of the following areas: 

1. Revenue and market share performance compared to two other competitors in the video console sector. 

1. Critically analyse any available metrics on brand equity performance and reputation compared to the other video console brands in recent years. This part of your answer should cover concepts such as sentiment analysis, brand performance and reputation management. 

1. Critically the metrics available on your chosen company across key social media such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and any other appropriate digital channels. This should include information published on social media following, reach and engagement. 

1. Based on all the aspects above, write a concluding summary outlining the areas that need to be addressed in the marketing performance of your chosen company. You are not required to make any strategic recommendations. 

Please note: 

• The word count is 3000 words. This excludes the executive summary, annotated contents, key infographics, references and relevant appendices. In other words, the word count of your narrative from the introduction to the final conclusions. 

• You are actively encouraged to develop your own infographics using Excel, Word or any other applications to insert in the report. The report can be uploaded to Turnitin in either a compatible document or PDF formats. Please see: Turnitin compatible file guide 

• You can also import and use various infographics, charts and tables that have already been published but you should ensure a careful balance between these and using your own original reconstruction of key marketing data from various sources. 

• The report should be produced in Word report format. We will cover writing professional marketing reports in the final classes this Semester. 

Assessment  

Criteria (Learning outcomes 1-6)   

70%+  

60-69%  

50-59%  

40-49%  

        <40% 

Analysis of overall market and industry trends (Learning outcome 3) 

25/100 

Critical analysis of the available marketing data of your chosen company (Learning outcomes 1-3) 

25/100 

Quality of concluding section  

(Learning outcome 4) 

20/100 

Report structure, writing clarity, presentation and use of originally produced infographics         

(Learning outcome 6)                  

15/100 

Depth and breadth of secondary research and quality of Harvard style referencing system 

(Learning outcome 3) 

15/100 

Excellent use of key industry data to critically appraise key marketing trends  

A comprehensive and critical analysis of the chosen company’s available marketing data. This includes competitor analysis, KPIs and digital metrics. 

Excellent synopsis with very specific findings. 

A professional looking report with lots of original infographics. Superbly written. 

Excellent use of both academic and practitioner sources. Extensive secondary research and very accurate Harvard referencing. 

Competent use of key industry data to critically appraise key marketing trends  

 As aside but not quite as comprehensive in the range of marketing data and other metrics. Still shows good critical awareness of marketing and digital analytics. 

A good synopsis with reasonably specific findings. 

 A well-presented report with reasonable use of original infographics. Well written. 

Good use of both academic and practitioner sources. Reasonable research and Harvard referencing. 

Some analysis of industry and market trends. 

Contains some relevant use of marketing data but more limited in scope, especially on the digital aspects.  

Some evidence of summarising key points but not specific enough. 

Acceptable report structure and presentation but contains some mistakes. Not enough original infographics. 

Acceptable use of different sources. Could have had done more research and shown more attention to detail on Harvard referencing. 

Limited analysis of industry trends   

Limited research and too descriptive. Some competitor data. 

Insufficient conclusions. Some valid points but too short. 

Follows a report structure but far too many flaws. 

Very limited research and use of secondary sources. Weak on Harvard referencing. 

No awareness shown of trend data 

No attempt made at critical analysis and covering comparative data from competitors 

Very poor conclusions which are far too short and ambiguous 

Ignores the requirements of the briefing and no evidence of a proper report structure 

Hardly any research undertaken and totally insufficient references. Little or no awareness of Harvard referencing. 

Marks out of 100  

FEEDBACK 

Feedback is designed to support your learning and preparation for both the final assessment and your future professional career. You will receive feedback from the class activities throughout this Semester as well as the 1-2-1 feedback opportunity outlined for your final assessment preparation below.  

Final Individual Report Feedback 

You are encouraged to contact me on [email protected] to arrange a further consultation and guidance on this assessment. 

TURNITIN 

The assignments on this module will be submitted through Turnitin under the ‘Assessment’ section of the Moodle site for this module. Turnitin is a web-based tool that supports the development of good academic practice when preparing written work for assessment. This text-matching tool allows academic staff to check assignments for improper use of sources or potential plagiarism by comparing it against continuously up-dated databases (including web-pages and other student work).  

REGULATIONS 

Late submission of assessments 

Students who submit work late, will receive a mark of ZERO for that element of assessment. 

 If circumstances outside of your control (for example, medical or personal circumstances) affect your ability to meet an assessment deadline or attend an examination then it is ESSENTIAL that you notify your module leader and submit a Mitigating Circumstances Request form. You will be required to provide satisfactory documentary evidence to support your claim. The only exception to this is for very short extensions (up to one week) to an assessment deadline, where you may be allowed to self-certify your difficulties if there is a valid reason why you cannot provide evidence.  

  If you submit a claim of mitigating circumstances later than an assessment deadline, then you will not only need to demonstrate that you were affected by these circumstances but you will also need to provide evidence that you were unable to submit your claim by the deadline. 

You are required to write a 3000 word report which incorporates marketing analytics and metrics learnt on the module in the following areas 

1. Using relevant statistics and further supporting evidence, discuss how the competitive landscape of the industry has changed since the incumbent firms (Sega & Nintendo) dominated the global gaming industry in the 1980’s. 

2. Based on the concept of ‘complementary analytics’, discuss the impact of technological developments in other industries that are having or will have an impact on the global gaming industry in the near future. 

3. Choose one of the following companies: Microsoft (Xbox)), Sony (PlayStation) or Nintendo and provide a critical analysis of the following areas: 

3. A) Revenue and market share performance compared to two other competitors in the video console sector. 

B) Critically analyse any available metrics on brand equity performance and reputation compared to the other video console brands in recent years. This part of your answer should cover concepts such as sentiment analysis, brand performance and reputation management. 

C) Critically the metrics available on your chosen company across key social media such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and any other appropriate digital channels. This should include information published on social media following, reach and engagement. 

4. Based on all the aspects above, write a concluding summary outlining the areas that need to be addressed in the marketing performance of your chosen company. You are not required to make any strategic recommendations. 

REQUIREMENTS 

statistics  marketing analysis  Metrics  gaming consoles  marketing analytics  "Marketing Analytics"  Global gaming industry