Opportunistic optimization for market-based multirobot control
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Digital Marketing StrategiesIn today's digital age, having effective digital marketing strategies is crucial for businesses to reach and engage with their target audience. Digital marketing encompasses various online tactics and tools to promote products or services, increase brand awareness, and drive traffic to a company's website. In this article, we will explore some key digital marketing strategies that businesses can implement to achieve their goals.1. Search Engine Optimization (SEO):SEO is a fundamental digital marketing strategy that focuses on improving a website's visibility in search engine results. By optimizing website content, using relevant keywords, and building quality backlinks, businesses can increase their organic search traffic and rankings on search engines like Google. This results in more website visitors and potential customers finding and interacting with the brand online.2. Content Marketing:Content marketing involves creating and distributing valuable, relevant, and informative content to attract and engage a target audience. This content can take the form of blog posts, articles, videos, infographics, social media posts, and more. By providing valuable information to users, businesses can establish themselves as industry experts, build trust with their audience, and drive traffic to their website.3. Social Media Marketing:Social media platforms have become essential tools for businesses to connect with their audience, promote their products or services, and build brand awareness. By creating a strong social media presence on platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Pinterest, businesses can engage with customers, share content, run targeted ads, and drive traffic to their website.4. Email Marketing:Email marketing is a powerful digital marketing strategy that involves sending targeted and personalized emails to a company's subscribers and customers. By building an email list and sending regular newsletters, promotions, and updates, businesses can nurture relationships with their audience, drive traffic to their website, and increase conversions and sales.5. Pay-Per-Click Advertising (PPC):PPC advertising involves paying for ads that appear on search engines or social media platforms when users search for specific keywords or demographics. Businesses can target their ads based on location, interests, demographics, and more to reach their ideal audience. By using platforms like Google Ads or Facebook Ads, businesses can drive traffic to their website, increase brand visibility, and generate leads and sales.6. Influencer Marketing:Influencer marketing involves partnering with influencers or popular personalities in a specific industry to promote products or services to their audience. By collaborating with influencers who have a large and engaged following, businesses can reach a new audience, build credibility, and drive traffic to their website. This strategy can be highly effective in reaching niche markets and increasing brand awareness.7. Website Optimization:Ensuring that a website is user-friendly, mobile-responsive, and optimized for speed and performance is essential to the success of digital marketing strategies. A well-designed and easy-to-navigate website will improve user experience, increase dwell time, and encourage visitors to explore more pages and take action. Additionally, optimizing landing pages, calls-to-action, and forms can improve conversion rates and lead to higher sales and revenue.In conclusion, implementing a comprehensive digital marketing strategy that combines SEO, content marketing, social media marketing, email marketing, PPC advertising, influencer marketing, and website optimization can help businesses achieve their marketing goals and reach their target audience effectively. By leveraging the powerof digital marketing, businesses can increase brand visibility, drive traffic to their website, generate leads and sales, and ultimately grow their business in the digital realm.。
数字市场法中英文对照The digital market law, also known as the Cybersecurity Law, in China has been a topic of discussion and debate in recent years. This law aims to regulate the collection and use of personal data by companies operating in China to protect the privacy and security of individuals. It also includes provisions related to data localization, cross-border data transfers, and cybersecurity assessments for certain types of companies.数字市场法,也被称为网络安全法,在中国近年来一直是一个讨论和争议的话题。
这项法律旨在规范在中国经营的公司收集和使用个人数据的行为,以保护个人的隐私和安全。
它还包括了与数据本地化、跨境数据转移以及针对某些类型公司的网络安全评估相关的条款。
One of the key provisions of the digital market law is the requirement for companies to obtain consent from individuals before collecting and using their personal data. This is aimed at giving individuals more control over their own data and ensuring that companies are transparent in their data practices. Companies are also required to clearly inform individuals about the purposes forwhich their data will be used and obtain separate consent for each use.数字市场法中的一个关键条款是公司在收集和使用个人数据之前必须获得个人的同意。
pierce 刺穿;刺破词根:pierceadj. piercing 刺穿的;敏锐的;尖刻的;打动人心的pierced 穿通的vt.1. 刺穿;刺破;穿过:He pierced the rubber ball with a needle.他用针刺穿橡皮球。
2. 打动,感动:to pierce someone to the core深深地打动某人3. (寒冷、忧伤等)影响,侵彻:The cold wind pierced him to the bone.他觉得寒风刺骨。
4. 穿孔;挖洞;穿洞;钻孔:The worker tried to pierce a hole in a piece of leather.工人设法在一块皮革上打一个洞。
在(鼻、耳等身体部位)上穿孔:get one’s ears pierced 在某人的耳朵上打洞I'm having my ears pierced on Saturday.我星期六要去扎耳洞。
5. 突破,冲破;突入:The army pierced the enemy's line.部队突破了敌人的防线。
6. 尖叫声穿过;被突然听见;(亮光)照进:The sound of the telephone pierced his sleep.电话铃声把他从睡梦中惊醒。
7. 看穿,洞察,识破:Old Mother Adams next door couldn't pierce her daughter's thoughts.隔壁的亚当斯老大妈看不透女儿的心思。
vi.穿入;刺入;突破(有时与to, into 或through 连用):The rocket pierced through the space.火箭穿过太空。
The knife did not pierce very deeply.刀扎得不很深。
license 执照;许可证美['laɪsns]n. 执照,许可证;特许vt. 许可;特许;发许可证给[ 过去式licensed 过去分词licensed 现在分词licensing ] licence 许可证,执照;特许licensee 持牌人;执照持有者;获许可的人;领到执照的人licenser 认可者;发许可证者silly 愚蠢的;傻的adj. 愚蠢的sillier silliestn. 傻瓜[ 复数sillies 比较级sillier 最高级silliest ]n. silliness 愚蠢;糊涂adj.愚蠢的foolish, stupid, mad, doltish, insipientn.傻瓜stupid, fool, donkey, gump, aleckBut I feel silly when he wants me to do it in public, like at the supermarket.可是在公共场合比如在超级市场里,他还要我这样,我就觉得太冒傻气了。
人工智能大模型优化商品定价策略英文English:Artificial intelligence (AI) has revolutionized many industries, and one area where it can make a significant impact is in optimizing pricing strategies for large retail companies. With the help of AI algorithms, businesses can analyze vast amounts of data to understand customer behavior, market trends, competitor pricing, and pricing elasticity. By leveraging machine learning models, companies can predict optimal pricing points that maximize profit while taking into account various factors such as seasonality, promotion effectiveness, and customer segmentation. These AI-powered pricing strategies can also be continuously updated in real-time to adapt to changing market conditions, ensuring that companies remain competitive and maximize revenue. Additionally, by incorporating dynamic pricing mechanisms into their strategies, companies can offer personalized pricing to individual customers based on their purchasing behavior and preferences, leading to increased customer loyalty and satisfaction. Overall, AI-powered pricing optimization enables companies to make informed pricing decisions that drive revenue growth and enhance customer relationships.中文翻译:人工智能(AI)已经彻底改变了许多行业,其中一个领域可以显著提升的地方是优化零售巨头的定价策略。
全球营销学第四版每章课后习题答案第一章Introduction to Global Marketing1.What are the basic goals of marketing? Are these goals relevant to globalmarketing?P31、Surpass the competition at the task of creating perceived value for customers2、The Guide line is the value equation –Value = Benefits/Price (Money, Time, Effort, Etc.)P42.What is mean by “global localization”?(全球本土化策略)Is Coca-Cola a globalproduct? Explain.The phrase “global localization” represents an attempt to capture the spirit of the rallying cry for o rganizations in the 21st century, namely, “think globally, act locally.”Most people will agree that Coca-Cola is a global product by virtue of the fact that it is available in more than 195 countries in red cans bearing the distinctive signature style. It must be noted, however, that customer service efforts are adapted to the needs of particular markets, e.g., vending machines in Japan. Thus, Coca-Cola is both global and local.3.Describe some of the global marketing strategies available to companies. Giveexamples of companies that use the different strategies.Global marketing strategies: 1. global market participation is the extent to which a company has operations in major world markets; 2. standardization versus adaptation is the extent to which each marketing mix element can be standardized or adapted in various country markets; 3. concentration of marketing activities is the extent to which activities related to marketing mix are performed in one or a few country locations; 4. coordination of marketing activities is the extent to which activities related to marketing mix are performed interdependently around the globe; 5. integration of competitive moves is the extent to which a firm’s competitive marketing tactics in different parts of world are interdependent.Examples: 1. Coke is the best-known, strongest brand, as the Coca-Cola Company, supporting its Coke, Fanta, and Powerade brands with marketing mix elements both that are globe and local, is adept at adapting sales promotion, distribution, and customer service efforts to local needs;2. Mcdonald’s business model is a restaurant system that can be set up virtually anywhere in the world and offers core menu items-hamburgers, French fries, and soft drinks-in most countries, and the company also customizes menu offerings according to local eating customs.4.How do the global marketing strategies of Harley-Davidson and Toyota differ?Harley-Davidson motorcycles are known the world over as “the” all-American motorcycle. Harley’s mystique and heritag e are associated with the USA. The company backs up this positioning with exports from two U.S. manufacturing locations. By contrast, Toyota builds some models (e.g., Camry and Avalon) for the U.S. market in the U.S., a fact that Toyota stresses in its American ad. Thus, Harley-Davidson serves global markets while sourcing locally, while Toyota’s strategy calls for serving world markets and using the world as a source of supply.5.Describe the difference between ethnocentric, polycontric, regiocentric, andgeocentric management orientations.The premise of an ethnocentric orientation is that home country products and management processes are superior. An ethnocentric company that neither sources inputs from, nor seeks market opportunities in the world outside the home country may be classified as an domestic company. A company that does business abroad while still presuming the superiority of the home country may be classified as an international company. Such a company would rely on an extension strategy whereby it would export, without adaptation, products designed for the domestic market.The polycentric orientation that predominates at a multinational company leads to aview of the world in which each country markets is different from the others. Local country managers operating with a high degree of autonomy adapt the marketing mix in a polycentric, multinational company. Managers who are regiocentric or geocentric in their orientations recognize both similarities and differences in world markets. Market opportunities are pursued using both extension and adaptation strategies. The regiocentric and geocentric orientations are characteristic of global transnational companies.OrEthnocentric orientation: home country is superior to the rest of the world, sees similarities in foreign countries,leads to a standardized or extension approach; Polycentric orientation: the opposite of ethnocentrism, each country in which a company does business is unique, sees differences in foreign countries, leads to localized or adaption approach; Regiocentric orientation: a region becomes the relevant geographic unit; management`s goal is to develop an integrated regional strategy; Geocentric orientation:views the entire world as a potential market and strives to develop integrated world market strategies.6.Identify and briefly describe some of the forces that have resulted in increased globalintegration and the growing importance of global marketing.P21+Driving Forces:Regional economic agreements、Market needs and wants、TechnologyTransportation and communication improvements、Product development costs、Quality、World economic trends、LeverageRestraining Forces:Management myopia、Organizational culture、National controls 7.Define leverage and explain the different types of leverage utilized by companieswith global operations.Define leverage:P25第二章The Global Economic Environment1.Explain the difference between market capitalism, centrally planned capitalism,centrally planned socialism, and market socialism. Give an example of a country that illustrates each types of system.Market capitalism is an economic system in which individuals and firms allocate resources and production resources are privately owned. (England).Centrally planned capitalism is an economic system in which command resource allocation is utilized extensively in an environment of private resource ownership. (Sweden)Centrally planned socialism, in this type of economic system, the state has broad powers to serve the public interest as it sees fit. (Former Soviet Union)Market socialism, in such a system, market allocation policies are permitted within an overall environment of state ownership. (China)2.What is a BEM? Identify the BEMs according to their respective stages of economicdevelopment.P53P56-583. A manufacture of satellite dishes is assessing the world market potential for hisproducts. He asks you if he should consider developing countries as potential markets.How would you advise him?Despite the difficult economic conditions in parts of developing countries, many nations will involve into attractive markets.One of marketing’s roles in developing countries is to focus resources on the task of creating and delivering products that are best suited to local needs and incomes. The role of marketing to indentify people’s needs and wants is the same in all countries, irrespective of level of economic development. It is also an opportunity to help developing countries join the information age.And P654.Turn to the Index of Economic Freedom (Table 2-1) and identify where the BEMs areranked. What does the result tell you in terms of the relevance of the index to global marketers?P52第三章Social and Cultural Environments1.What are some of the elements that make up culture? How do these find expression inyour native culture?Culture is a collection of Values, beliefs, behaviors, customs, and attitudes that distinguish one society from another.Culture is acted out in social institutions, such as, family, education, religion, government, business.2.What is the difference between a low-context culture and a high-context culture?Give an example of a country that is an example of each type and provide evidence for your answer.PPT 第四章4-63.How can Hofstede’s cultural typologies help Western marketers better understandAsian culture?P874.Explain the self-reference criterion(自我参照准则). Go to the library and findexamples of product failures that might have been avoided through the application of the SRC.Unconscious reference to one’s own cultural values; creates cultural myopia5.Briefly explain the social research of Everrtt Rogers regarding diffusion ofinnovations,……P94pare and contrast USA and Japan in terms of traditions and organizationalbehavior and norms.第四章The Legal and Regulatory Environments of Global Marketing1.What is sovereignty? What is it an important consideration in the politicalenvironment of global marketing?sovereignty2.Describe some of the sources of political risk. Specially, what forms can political risktake?Tension between aspirations and realityPrimarily occurs in lower and lower-middle income countries–Indonesia and economic crisisWhen political risk occurs in high income countries, it is generally due to a long-standing conflict–Northern IrelandP1423.Briefly describe some of the differences between the legal environment of a countrythat embraces common law and one that observes civil law.4.Global marketers can avoid legal conflicts by understanding the reasons conflictsarise in the first place. Identify and describe several legal issues that relate to global commerce.Intellectual PropertyAntitrustContractualLicensing and Trade Secrets5.“See you in court” is one way to respond when legal issues arise. What otherapproaches are possible?LitigationFormal arbitration–Settles disputes outside of court–Groups agree to abide by panel’s decision1958 United Nations Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards–Most important treaty regarding international arbitration第五章Global Information Systems and Market Research1.Explain two information technology puts powerful tools in the hands of globalmarketers.Modern IT tools provide the means for a company's marketing information system and research functions to provide relevant information in a timely, cost –efficient, and actionable manner.Electronic data interchange (EDI) allows business units to submit orders, to issue invoices, to conduct business electronically, Wal-Mart legendary for its EDI, save time and money, enables retailers to improve inventory management. Transaction formats are universalEfficient Consumer Response (ECR) This is in addition to EDI, an effort for retailers and vendors to work closely on stock replenishment(补充). ECR can be defined as a joint initiative by members of a supply chain to work toward improving and optimizing(最优化) aspects of the supply chain to benefit customersIntranet, Electronic Point of Sale (EPOS), Data Warehouses are also helping businesses improve their ability to target consumers and increase loyalty.2.What are the different modes of information acquisition? Which is the most importantfor gathering strategic information?3.4、Outline the basic steps of the market research process.5、What is the difference between existing, latent, and incipient demand? How mightthese differences affect the design of a marketing research project?Demand and profit potential, in turn, depend in part on whether the market being studied can be classifieds existing or potential. Existing markets are those in which customer needs are already being served by one or more companies. In some instances, there is no existing market to research and. information may be readily available. A latent market is in essence, an und iscovered segment .It’s a market in which demand would materialize if an appropriate product were made available. An incipient market is a market that will emerge if particular economic demographic, political, or sociocultural trend continues. A company is not likely to achieve satisfactory results if it offers a product in an incipient market before the trends have taken root.Market growth, brand loyalty, market segment, product, sales promotion, pricing, distribution, will be different in marketing research project.6.Describe some of the analytical techniques used by global marketers. When is it appropriate to use each technique?A number of techniques are available for analyzing survey data.Factor analysis can be used to transform large amount of data into manageable units. It is useful in psychographic segmentation studies or creating perceptual maps; cluster analysis allows the researchers to group variables into clusters that maximize within-group similarities and between-group differences. It can be used to do global marketing research, to perform benefit segmentation, and to identify new product opportunities. Multi dimensional scaling is another technique for creating perceptual maps which is particular useful when there are many product to choose and consumers have difficulty in verbalizing their conceptions. Conjoint analysis is used to gain insights into the combination of features that will be the most attractive to consumers. It is useful when determines the values and utilities of the various levels of product features and plots them graphically.第六章Segmentation, Targeting, and Positioning1.differentiate the five basic segmentation strategies. Give an example of a companythat has used each one.P170-P1831、IncomePopulationsAge distributionGenderEducationOccupation2、Grouping people according to attitudes, value, and lifestyles3、4、Benefit segmentation focuses on the value equation–Value = Benefits / Price5、The population of many countries includes ethnic groups of significant size2.Explain the difference between segmenting and targeting.P200pare and contrast standardized, concentrated, and differentiated global marketing.Illustrate each strategy with an example from a global company.Standardized global marketing is mass marketing on a global scale with undifferentiated target marketing (Revlon International)Concentrated global marketing, involves devising a marketing mix to reach a niche. A niche is simply a single segment of the global market. (Germany`s Winter halter) Differentiated global marketing, represents a more ambitious approach than concentrated target marketing with multi-segment targeting and two or more distinct markets (Rover)4.5.What is positioning? Identify the different positioning strategies presented in thechapter and give examples of companies or products that illustrate each.Locating a brand in consumers’minds over and against competitors in terms of attributes and benefits that the brand does and does not offer.P192-1956.What is global consumer culture positioning? What other strategic positioningchoices do global marketers have?Identifies the brand as a symbol of a particular global culture or segment.P1967.What is high-touch product? Explain the difference between high-tech productpositioning and high-touch product positioning. Can some products be positioned using both strategies? Explain.High-tech products are sophisticated technologically complex, and/or difficult to explain or understand, and frequently evaluated in terms of their performance against established objective standards. High-tech global consumer positioning also works well for special interest products associated with leisure of recreation.High-touch products, consumers are generally energized by emotional motives rather than rational ones, and frequently evaluated in terms of their performance against established subjective, aesthetic terms.Some products can be positioned using both strategies, with both satisfying buyers’ rational criteria and evoking an emotional response. Nokia, for example, combines technical performance with a fashion orientation.第七章Global Market Entry Strategies:1.What are the advantages and disadvantages of using licensing as a market entry tool?Give examples of companies from different countries that use licensing as a global marketing strategy.Advantages to LicensingProvides additional profitability with little initial investmentProvides method of circumventing tariffs, quotas, and other export barriersAttractive ROILow costs to implementDisadvantages to LicensingLimited participationReturns may be lostLack of controlLicensee may become competitorLicensee may exploit company resourcesP2062.What is foreign direct investment? What forms can FDI take?P209Partial or full ownership of operations outside of home countryForms:Joint ventures–Minority or majority equity stakes–Outright acquisition3.Do you agree with Ford’s decision to acquire Jaguar? What was more valuable toFord---the physical assets or the name?P2154.What is meant by the phrase global strategic partnership? In what ways does this formof market entry strategy differ from more traditional forms such as joint ventures? Participants remain independent following formation of the allianceParticipants share benefits of alliance as well as control over performance of assigned tasksParticipants make ongoing contributions in technology, products, and other key strategic areasPPT3055.What are Keiretsu? How does this form of industrial structure affect companies thatcompete with Japan or that are trying to enter the Japanese market?PPT307书P2276.Which Strategic options for market entry or expansion would a small company belikely to pursue? A large company?StrategiesCompanies must decide to expand by:–Seeking new markets in existing countries–Seeking new country markets for already identified and served market segments第八章Product and Brand Decisions1.What is the difference between a product and a brand?A product is a good, service, or ideaBrandsBundle of images and experiences in the customer’s mindA promise made by a particular company about a particular productA quality certificationDifferentiation between competing productsThe sum of impressions about a brand is the Brand ImageThe added value that accrues to a product as a result of investments in the marketing of the brandAn asset that represents the value created by the relationship between the brand and customer over time2.How do local, international, and global products differ? Cite examplesLocal Product is one that has achieved success in a single national market and represents the lifeblood of domestic companies. (Coca-cola, ginseng beverage only in Japan)International product is offered in several markets in a particular region (Euro-product, only in euro zone)Global product meets the wants and needs of a global market and is offered in all world regions (personal stereos)3.What are some of the elements that make up a brand? Are these elements tangible orintangible?IntangibleP2414.What criteria should global marketers consider when making product designdecisions?In many instances, packaging is an integral element of product-related design decisions. Packaging is designed to protect or contain the product during shipping;Labeling provides consumers with various types of information; Aesthetics differ around the world. Global marketers must understand the importance of visual aesthetics; Product Warranties is a written guarantee that assures the buyer is getting what they paid for or provides a remedy in case of a product failure. Warranties can be used as a competitive tool5.How can buyer at titudes about a product’s country of origin affect marketing strategy?买家对于原产国的态度对营销策略有什么影响?Perceptions about and attitudes toward particular countries often extend to products and brands known to originate in those countries–Japan–Germany–France–ItalyP252-2546.Identify several global brands. What are some of the reasons for the global success ofthe brands you chose?Both products and brand are good……7.Briefly describe various combinations of product-communication strategies availableto global marketers. When is it appropriate to use each?Product-communication extension (dual extension) is a strategy selling the same product with the same promotional appeals used in domestically when pursuing opportunities outside the home market. It used frequently with industrial (business to business) products.Product extension-communication adaptation strategy is a relatively low cost of implementation because the physical product is unchanged, and the main costs are associated with market research and revising promotional appeals. It used frequently when consumer conceptions outside the home market are very different from domestic marketProduct adaptation-communication extension is an approach to global product planning is to extend, without change, the basic home-market communications strategy while adapting the product to local use or preference conditions. It used frequently when natural conditions outside the home market are very different from domestic market Product-communication adaptation (dual adaptation) strateg y is an approach used both the different product serves and advertising appeals to consumer receptivity when comparing a new geographic market to the home market, environmental conditions or consumer preferences differ;第九章Pricing Decisions1.What are the basic factors that affect price in any market? What considerations enterinto the pricing decision?In global marketing, the task of setting prices is complicated by fluctuating exchange rates. Currency fluctuations can create significant problems and opportunities for the classic international company that exports from the home country.Inflation, or a persistent upward change in price levels, is a problem in many country markets. It can be caused by an increase in the money supply and currency devaluation. Governmental policies and regulations that affect pricing decisions include dumping legislation, resale price maintenance legislation, price ceilings, and general reviews of price levels.Pricing decisions are bounded not only by cost and nature of demand but also by competitive action.Competitive Behavior: If competitors do not adjust their prices in response to rising costs it is difficult to adjust your price to maintain operating margins; If competitors are manufacturing or sourcing I a lower-cost country, it may be necessary to cut prices to stay competitiveThe global marketer has several options for addressing the problem of price escalation orthe environmental factors described in the last section.2.Define the various types of pricing strategies and objectives available to globalmarketers.Market Skimming and Financial Objectives: Market Skimming charges a premium price which may occur at the introduction stage of product life cyclePenetration Pricing and Non-Financial Objectives: Penetration Pricing charges a low price in order to penetrate market quickly which appropriates to saturate market prior to imitation by competitors3.Identify some of the environmental constraints on global pricing decisions. Currency FluctuationsInflationary EnvironmentGovernment Controls, Subsidies, RegulationsCompetitive BehaviorSourcing4.Why do price differences in world markets often lead to gray marketing?Because price differences in world markets lead to trademarked products are exported from one country to another where they are sold by unauthorized persons or organizationsGray marketing occurs when product is in short supply, when producers use skimming strategies in some markets, and when goods are subject to substantial mark-ups 5.What is dumping? Why was dumping such an important issue during the UruguayRound of GATT negotiations?Sale of an imported product at a price lower than that normally charged in a domestic market or country of origin.P2966.What is transfer price? Why is it an important issue for companies with foreignaffiliates(外国子公司)? Why did transfer pricing in Europe take on increased importance in 1999?The transfer price is that Pricing of goods, services, and intangible property bought and sold by operating units or divisions of a company doing business with an affiliate in another jurisdiction.P2997.What is the difference between ethnocentric, polycontric, and geocentric pricingstrategies? Which one would you recommend to a company that has global market aspirations?P291-292 PPT240-242pare and contrast the different forms of countertrade.Countertrade occurs when payment is made in some form other than moneyOptions–BarterThe least complex and oldest form of bilateral, non-monetary counter-tradeA direct exchange of goods or services between two parties–Counter-purchase P303-304–Offset–Compensation trading–Cooperation agreements–Switch trading第十章Global Marketing Channels and Physical Distribution1.In what ways can channel intermediaries create utility for buyers?ObjectivesMarketing channels exist to create utility for customers–Place utility -availability of a product or service in a location that is convenient to a potential customer–Time utility -availability of a product or service when desired by a customer–Form utility -availability of the product processed, prepared, in proper condition and/or ready to use–information utility -availability of answers to questions and general communicationabout useful product features and benefits2.What factors influence the channel structures and strategies available to globalmarketers?B2CThe characters of both buyers and products have an important influence on channel design.The number of individual buyers and their geographic distribution, income, shopping habits and different channel approaches.Products characters such as degree of standardization, perishability, bulk, service requirements, and unit price have an impact as well.Channels tends to be longer as the number of consumers to be served increases and the price per unit decreases. Bulky products usually require channel arrangements that minimize the shipping distances and the number of times products change hands before they reach the ultimate customer.B2BAs is true with consumer channels, product and consumer characteristics have an impact on channel structure. Three basic elements are involved: the manufacture's sales force, distributors or agents and wholesalers.Channel strategy in a global marketing program must fit the company's competitive position and overall marketing objectives in each national market.market factors: consumer profiles, market size and location of country.3.What is cherry picking? What approaches can be used to deal with this problem?P323pare and contrast the typical channel structures for consumer products andindustrial products.P340 PPT252-2555.Identify the different forms of retailing and cite an example of each form. Identifyretailers from as many different countries as you can.PPT258-259 P3256.Identify the four retail market expansion strategies discussed in the text. What factorsdetermine the appropriable mode?Organic–Company uses its own resources to open a store on a green field site or acquire one or more existing retail facilitiesFranchise–Appropriate strategy when barriers to entry are low yet the market is culturally distant in terms of consumer behavior or retailing structuresChain Acquisition–A market entry strategy that entails purchasing a company with multiple existing outlets in a foreign countryJoint Venture–This strategy is advisable when culturally distant, difficult-to-enter markets are targeted 7.What special distribution challenges exist in Japan? What is the best way for anon-Japanese company to deal with these challenges?第十一章Global Marketing Communications Decisions:Advertising and Public Relations1.In what ways can global brands and global advertising campaigns benefit a company? P3482.How does the “standardized versus localized” debate apply to advertising?Four difficulties that compromise an organization’s communicat ion efforts–The message may not get through to the intended recipient.–The message may reach the target audience but may not be understood or may even be misunderstood.–The message may reach the target audience and may be understood but still may not induce the recipient to take the action desired by the sender.–The effectiveness of the message can be impaired by noise.。
Ad-hoc路由算法1 前言为满足信息社会对资源共享及信息传递的需求,计算机网络技术和无线通讯技术在近几十年得到了极大的发展。
20世纪50年代诞生的利用导线传输数据的有线网络经过几十年的发展,从双绞线、同轴电缆发展到如今的光纤通讯网络,网络的性能和覆盖范围虽然得到了很大的提升但是仍然无法满足人们在移动场景中对网络接入的需求。
在一些场合如抢险救灾、数字化战场、野外勘探及临时会议等场合无法快速高效的建立这常用无线网络,因此需要一种新型网络满足这些应用需求。
为满足在上述场合下快速高效组网的需求,无需基础设施的移动自组织网络(Mobile Ad-hoc Network)应用而生[2]。
Ad Hoc网络是一种不需要任何基站或固定基础设施的多跳无线网络,具有独立组网、自组织、动态拓扑、无约束移动、多跳路由等众多特点,能够快速地布设局部通信网络。
近年来,Ad Hoc网络研究得到了很大的发展,尤其是对网络路由协议的研究已经逐步成熟。
自二十世纪七十年代开始,由美国国防部所属的国防先进研究项目局推动了移动自组织网络方面最初的研究项目“战场环境中的数据包无线网络”(Packet Radio Networking),并在此后对多项相关研究进行支持。
最初由军方推动的移动自组织网主要应用在军事领域,然而随着微电子技术、嵌入式系统技术、无线通信技术等的发展和相关硬件成本的降低,移动自组织网络技术开始在民用领域推广[1]。
尤其在近十年,一些新技术与移动自组织网络的结合产生了许多新的研究热点如无线传感网络(Wirless Sensor Network)、车载自组网(Vehicular Ad hoc Network)、无线个人局域网(Wireless Personal Area Networks)以及无线Mesh网(Wireless Mesh Network)等[5]。
2 正文2.1、Ad-hoc网络的优点(1)无中心Ad hoc网络没有严格的控制中心。
The Feasibility report for OPPO entering to Emerging Market Huimu Zheng, 04/05/20161.1 International marketing planThe following report is a foreign market entry strategy for the Chinese tech-nology firm, OPPO. It will provide a detailed report into the future growth and development of the company, through an expansion plan looking at their for-eign market entry strategy, and recommendations of processes to achievetheir targets. Primarily, there needs to be an understanding and backgroundintroduction of OPPO, their situation in the market, their performance, and anunderstanding of the current business environment. There then needs to be substantial consideration into their target country, of Brazil, with a full PESTLE analysis to understand the business environment. The mode of entry for OP-PO will be detailed and analysed for suitability and feasibility, recommending the servicing strategy that will suit both OPPO, and Brazil. The marketing mix that is appropriate for both product and producer will be key in understanding the necessary steps needed for OPPO to internationalise into Brazil and that will be explained in depth later in the report; along with the cultural and ma-nagerial implications that could arise from the proposed internationalisation strategy. The report will conclude with an explicit recommendations and the basis on which they have been made.1.2 Who are OPPO?OPPO are a global electronics and technology service provider in over 20 countries, although mainly situated in Asia, they do service areas of the Unit-ed States, and Europe. OPPO focus their USP on being a brand that has a close relationship with their customers, who they regularly liaise with to en-sure feedback is constructively utilised to create a more effective co-developed end product that delivers …the most extraordinary mobile expe-rience through the meticulous design and smart technology‟.The business environment in OPPO‟s largest market, Asia, is ever changing for smartphones and technology manufacturers. Although as of late, there has been a surge in Chinese brands that are providing superior functionality compared to their Silicon Valley rivals and it is …causing havoc with white label makers‟. Samsung and Apple are all facing declines in their sales revenues and market share as a result.OPPO as a brand are becoming ever more omniscient in their home markets. Having begun their journey with MP3 players in 2004, and with their first smartphone only coming to market in 2011, the current 3.8% share of the global market, and 59.7 million handsets sold in 2015, demonstrates the ex-plosive growth the company is experiencing. A former executive at Nokia, once China‟s dominant handset brand pre smartphone era, commented on how when “Chinese no-name phones started penetrating the market they pushed us off out number one-spot just like that”, eerily similar to the current trend with smartphones. OPPO‟s sales of 59.7 million units in 2015, is up 67% since 2014. (Their expansion needs to be managed effectively, with the op-portunities that are created with such growth, exploited efficiently.1.3 SWOT analysisBeneath is a SWOT analysis of the business environment that OPPO operate in; to allow for some contextual understanding to their current situation.1.4 The business environment.JP Morgan produced a report on the smart phone industry in China, highlight-ing the struggles that Samsung producing a mid-high end product was having in the market. The …Big Four‟Chinese producers have attained a 20% marketshare between them, similar to that of Samsung, whose share is on the de-cline. The report detailed that non-China EM‟s remain the last key undeve-loped market, with a smartphone diffusion rate of less than 60%. Making ob-vious sense, with the product focused on functionality rather than features, moving into these non-Chinese EM‟s is the next progressive step.The most recent expansion of the company has seen them move into Indone-sia, which has become their second biggest market outside of China (wheresales actually fell by 4% in the final quarter of last year) this slowdown in thehome market is led largely by the decreasing amount of first time buyers; 75% of mobile phones in China are now smartphones.Such is the growth of the Dongguan based company OPPO, that they are nowoutselling all their Chinese competitors in the Indonesian market, with a 16%share of the smartphone market.2.1 OPPO, internationalising and the basis of the strategyFor proactive revenue related factors, internationalisation is an effective strat-egy to gain profits and increase the market share. OPPO established in 2004,with several years became the fourth largest mobile phone manufacturer in China. In 2015 having sold near 60 million units in 2015, sitting just behindthe Korean brand LG, OPPO are mature enough to look to the emerging mar-kets to expand.(Abbas,2015) Secondly, the fierce competition in the heavilysaturated home market of China, acts as a reactive market related factor to internationalise(Dunning, 2008).The immediate competition in both home and foreign markets, Samsung recently announced that they are expanding their presence in Emerging market countries from 15 to 32. So as a strategic reac-tive factor, if OPPO want to increase their market share, they must look to engage in more foreign production. Following Dunning‟s principals, OPPO are clear market seekers looking for horizontal expansion, as proven with their recent expansions. Following the market leader by looking for new market opportunities to develop and exploit.2.2 OPPO‟s products and servicesThe products and services that OPPO use to internationalise are key to the success of the firm. Selecting a product that is not too advance or too basic for the market is imperative. The product selection for their most recent in-ternationalisations has been the OPPO Find 5. The versatility of this phone is key; with their being no carrier or operator ties with the device in any coun-try, coupled with the outstanding battery life, far superior to that of its com-petitors. The second key feature, in keeping with OPPO‟s brand, is the price point, lower than that of its key rivals Samsung and HTC.Secondly, OPPO keep a close relationship with its users and developer com-munity. OPPO always updates its handsets through making changes, and adding features based on the users‟feedback. They always actively update and focus on their users to make changes based on the feedback from public forums. It‟s an integral part of the success of the brand, as it allows the re-tention of a customer base creating brand loyalty. Beyond that they are ex-perimental as a firm not afraid to try new things. OPPO has built a company with a fantastic brand reputation as a company who truly appreciate their us-ers, and recognise that they exist more than just to make financial gains.3.1 Initial country screeningWhen searching for the emerging market for OPPO to continue their interna-tionalisation, we followed some criteria especially in the segmentation of in-ternational market. Considering the factors such as; market potential, compe-tition, psychic/geographic distance and market similarity. With the focus being on emerging markets; and only Russia and Brazil remained vacant with noOPPO operations present.Measurability, accessibility, profitability, and actionability are four criteria we use in the first step of segmentation, followed by development and screening of segments steps. So the superiority of Brazil in comparison with Russia is obvious: Brazil has competitive market potential, high purchasing power and market similarity.Russia was considered as our target country into however in addition to all the standout positives of Brazil, there were also poignant downfalls of Russia; like the vast physic distance from China in addition to evidence showing that Russia has severe corruption problems in comparison with Brazil, scoring 29 (ranking 119/168) according to Corruption Perceptions Index 2015.3.2 Advantages of BrazilRelatively high purchasing power:As the largest national economy in Latin America, Brazil is also the eight larg-est economy at market exchange rates worldwide and its purchasing power parity (PPP) is ranked the seventh, according to the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank. So for proactive motives and revenue-related fac-tors, it provides a good opportunity that needs to be exploited by OPPO. The GDP per capita is continuously growing and it is predicted that the Brazilian economy will become one of the five largest in the coming decades world-wide. Naturally, if OPPO have operations that are established in this market, with an extended customer base, they will profit exponentially from an in-crease in GDP per capita.Currently, according to IMF data, Brazil‟s GDP per capita rank them 77th glo-bally putting them just inside the top half, however with an active role in the manufacturing sector, such positive results make it clear that developing the mobile phone business in Brazil will benefit a company with a product portfo-lio such as OPPO; due to the relatively high purchasing power and the benefi-cial manufacturing environment in Brazil. which can be predicted that OPPO may benefit from the Economies of scale in the future since more subsidiaries are set up in BrazilCompetitive mobile phone markets:As the fourth largest smartphone market (ranking after China, USA, India) Brazil offers a market in which many smartphone manufacturers worldwide want to be involved in, naturally a lot of investment from many manufactur-ers has been put into the emerging economy. For example: the only two countries that produce CKD locally for Apple are China and Brazil. What‟s more, Samsung, LG, MOTO and Sony all have their own production factories in Brazil. So for market seekers, like OPPO, Brazil is an attractive foreign mar-ket to invest in, especially at the low-mid product level OPPO provide com-pared to that of high-end brands like Apple.Increasing demands of mobile phones in Brazil:In comparison to other consumer products in electronics categories, mobilephone markets performed consistently throughout the economic crisis in Bra-zil, and even made positive gains in 2015. The Statistics Portal and the figuresabout the total number of mobile phone users in Brazil from 2013 to 2019 show that, for 2017 the number of mobile phone users is expected to rise to136.5 million, which means there is an increasing demand and huge capacityin the Brazilian mobile phone market and continuing the application of Dun-ning‟s market seekers principal, OPPO are recommended to capitalise on this growth.3.3 Limitations of BrazilIssues on network operators, economic crisis, political risks and cultural dif-ferences:It is competitive operate a mobile phone business in Brazil since there is no dominant network operator. The network market is shared by four major car-riers-Oi, TIM, Claro, Vivo(Techin Brazil, 2014).What‟s more, even smartphones were more or less affected by the negative effects of the economic crisis. Following the economic crisis in Brazil, there was a trend that, consumers who continued to buy new mobile phones with more technologically advanced features in 2015 tended to consider if such purchases were necessary following the economic troubles that hit the coun-try. Credit restrictions made such purchases less viable and more expensive to pay in instalments.Another barrier may be political risks in Brazil since it has moderate, yet not severe corruption issues with the score of 38 (ranking 76/168) according to Corruption Perceptions Index 2015. Also, the cultural difference is a big issue for Chinese mobile phone manufacturers to localize in Brazil like the lifestyle that may influence the usage amount,which will be analysed in the following paragraph in details.Competitors:As the first competitor of OPPO, Samsung was still the leader in feature phones field in Brazil in 2015 and its retail volume share was about 38% of the market. Popular products like dual-chip slots were used mostly by Brazili-ans who prefer more than one SIM card in the same phone, which can help them reduce the mobile phone expenditure overall. The second competitor of OPPO is LG. As the second leading player in the field of feature phones in 2015,LG Electronics overtook the position of Nokia and Brazil Technologia Ltd a and successfully won the retail volume share of 22%.Another competitor is also a Chinese brand called Huawei which has owned over than 20% of mo-bile phone markets in Brazil(Grush,2014)Recommended entry modeTo a certain degree, OPPO‟s proposed internationalisation process follows thebasic principles of the Uppsala model. The Uppsala Model is applied by com-panies who are looking to expand into new foreign markets, the exact modelthat was used for OPPO‟s incredibly successful expansion into Indonesia . The initial process begins with exporting to neighboring countries or those with asmall physic distance. Such process is an efficient way to learn through gain-ing knowledge and experience from the foreign market whilst allowing control and power of the resource. Once the company became more experienced, they start to expand and can establish sales outlets, or more contractual based FDI. In addition to the culture difference, at this stage, overcoming and adapting to the barriers associated with a new market, like language, politics become much more prevalent. Following this, firms can then look to fully es-tablish themselves in the foreign market, as OPPO did when they announced the three production facilities in Indonesia. The success of OPPO‟s venture into Indonesia can be used a framework for the companies move into Brazil.(resource :the Text book, International Business Theory, lecture 6)4.2 ExportingIn terms of entry mode for OPPO to access the Brazilian mobile market, they can use the basic framework of the Uppsala Model.Exporting is the logical, and most risk averse initial step. No new investments are needed. There is no need for a company owned sales subsidiary, saving on the potential sunk costs and therefore risk of FDI.Through exporting, OPPO will become accustomed to the production envi-ronment, allowing for learning and understanding of the market. Increasing awareness in terms of production possibilities (the risk of shortage of raw materials, cost of labour etc) and in terms of the market feasibility to the product. Exporting allows a number of different series OPPO mobile phones tobe exported in order to understand the viability with customers and potential success in terms of sales from Brazil. OPPO will intensify the competitive envi-ronment and will likely be accepted by Brazilian customers as the target con-sumer for OPPO is concentrated on middle and low income groups, whichhave already provided success for other Chinese brands providing a low pricehandset like; Lenovo and Huawei. (Newstex Trade, 2014).Exporting also removes at large the communication barriers, many of the le-gal barriers and also technology barriers. It should be noted that OPPO could divide their proposed exporting strategy into two main categories, indirect exporting and directing.The main difference between the two related to who undertakes the export-ing. Direct exporting is carried out the producer, they establish the pricing policies, have the power to develop the international contracts, and control the supply to the market. However indirect exporting, is handled by another agent outside of the firm. This removes the level of control the firm has, re-moves the contact with end user, and removes the opportunity to learn, as there is no market information flow between consumers and producers.As a result of this, OPPO, at the first stage of foreign market entry into Brazil,should look to direct export their products, in order to provide the foundationsfor further expansion such as local market understanding, knowledge acquisi-tion, and relationship/network building.With phase one; exporting will look to establish the networks and brand in the foreign market, whilst allowing strong controls over market and informa-tion flows.4.3 Joint VentureThe second phrase we recommend for OPPO, which again loosely follows the Uppsala model, is a Joint Venture. This requires finding a local company to create a separate legal entity to carry the production and sales of the OPPO handset.Each partner takes an active role in the day to day decision-making which means that select an appropriate partner is imperative. Such entry mode has proven success in the mobile phone industry, in Brazil. We can reference Huawei as an example to illustrate how and why a Joint Venture will be suita-ble for OPPO enter to Brazil.Huawei and OPPO have strong similarities. Both of them are Chinese mobile companies; they have similar backgrounds in terms of expansion and growth. They focus on middle and low-income consumer groups; so the entry modewe are recommending to OPPO can draw immediate parallels from that ofHuawei.Huawei focused on establishing the reputation of the firm to enhancethe brand influence. They subsequently took advantage of marketing initia-tives to make Brazilians feel at ease with the brand and their products. Hua-wei created a GMS network to utilize R&D capacity by signing contract with Brazilian telephone operator, VIVO. In 2011, Huawei negotiated an agree-ment with Flextronics , a Brazilian manufacturer and then six regional delivery centers were established to serve the local market. These joint ventures have allowed HuaweiThere are key deciding factors as to why we recommend exporting followedby a move to joint venture (JV) for OPPO. Firstly, it can help achieve expo-nential growth for OPPO. Creating a JV allows quick diffusion in the target country, utilisng the local partners‟knowledge and contacts, combined with those gained in the export phase of foreign market entry. With the ever-changing product portfolio in the mobile handset industry, creating brand loyalty and a strong customer base is imperative to success, and through a JV one can use the customer database of your partner to achieve more targeted marketing, and product selection. For instance, marketing through apps in an area to exploit. The apps market is still increasing in Brazil, only 6% of total world app downloads was contributed by Latin America and through a JV the opportunites for targeted marketing increases, with both a rise in users, and more specific customer information through joint databasesElecting a JV also can provide the platform for a partnership to emerge withfor example: network provider, or a Brazilian manufacturer; as was the case with Huawei. By securing a JV of this nature, it can increase the credibility of the OPPO product, whilst allowing an increase in sales and volume of units sold through the exploitation of the partner‟s capabilities within the market. There is no dominant network operator in Brazil, which allows for the poten-tial of a JV to create a dominant operator and unit provider, in OPPO. A JV will also spread the risk, and cost of the foreign market entry. Whilst allowing access to new markets, local resources such as specialized staff, advanced technology. For example, offering the new products to the existing customers of your partner,The strategy needs to be implemented rather aggressively to be successful, similar to the other internationalisation strategies applied by the firm for their moves into Indonesia and alike. Hong Kong based research firm Counterpoint detailed the importance of …pursuing an aggressive go-to market strategy‟in which …streamlined and lean‟product portfolios are offered. They commented on the successes of this aggressive marketing strategy used by OPPO in In-dia; and the resulting success that this has led to for the firm.With the suggested mode of entry for Brazil, the subsequent value chain deci-sions that stem from that should be similar to that of OPPO‟s Indonesia oper-ations. After around 12 months of exporting, OPPO began to construct theirphones at a site outside of Jakarta; with 40% locally sourced content the tar-get by 2017. If a plan similar to this is followed in Brazil, it allows the compa-ny the opportunity to establish operations in the country, before committing to factories.Adaptability is key with internationalisation, and value chain activities can move before or later than scheduled, depending on the success of the prod-uct, implementation of legislations and alike. However, a three year plan to have their activities fine sliced in Brazil with R&D remaining in China is entire-ly feasible given the previous success of the product in the other EM‟s.5.1 Marketing mixAs discussed the Uppsala approach will be theoretical backbone to the foreign market entry strategy we recommend to OPPO. Beginning with direct exports, and approach that they favoured in their recent expansion into Indonesia. With OPPO providing a low-mid range handset, that as discussed, focuses on functionality rather than features, there will be little adjustment needed to the physical product, with a smartphone diffusion rate of sub 60% in the non-Chinese emerging markets. As a product that sits beneath Samsung and Ap-ple‟s offering, it is perfectly suited to the first time smartphone buyers, as were initially targeted in the home country of China. Coupled with that, as shown in the country analysis, the Latin America lifestyle is vastly different to the tech heavy China, meaning the focus extravagant smartphones with latest features is heavily diluted, allowing the mid-low range smartphone to be ideally suited to the demographic and the lifestyle presented in the target country.The company‟s brand name …OPPO‟is incredibly global and was created with a global vision and global brand in mind. Unlike certain British firms, such as Norwich Union now Aviva, there is no need to adjust the brand name to make it more appealing to the international market. OPPO is strong, effective and linguistically compatible with Brazil, and the Portuguese language. The logo is also universally effective, and there will need to be no adjustments to make it global.5.2 Advertising and PromotionThe advertising objectives alerting the mass market to the product will remain key in order to reach the maximum target audience. Marcello Serpa, one of the leading admen in Brazil, and creative director of BBDO agency in Sao Pau-lo has regularly commented on the need for maximum creativity in Brazilian ads to engage the largest audience. Brazilian football provides huge au-diences at a key demographic level, and the upcoming Rio Olympics will of course be an ideal carnival style stage to enter with advertising, however ad-verts come with an incredible premium, and reach a global market; not spe-cifically targeted to Brazil. The …telenovelas‟(soap operas) that air every even-ing reach 90% of the households in Brazil, and will have a higher concentra-tion of target audience (domestic workers, housewives, office workers) for the OPPO product; providing an ideal platform to unite Brazil‟s diverse popu-lation with the goal of selling the OPPO product.Sale promotion is an area where OPPO have previously excelled when enter-ing the emerging markets. In the Philippines, OPPO created a strategic al-liance with Home Credit, a global consumer finance company, to sell their F1 product, that retails at $251.99. The company were able to offer the purchase of the phone through instalments at 0% interest rate, with no credit card re-quired. To be able to create a promotion of a similar nature in Brazil will allow rapid product diffusion through the necessary demographics. This expansion will create a customer base and hype around the products6.1 Cultural ImplicationsTo create a successful foreign market entry strategy for OPPO one must also take the cultural and managerial implications that will be encountered in Bra-zil. Following is the analysis about the cultural differences and challenges that one must consider and manage effectively in the entry strategy that OPPO select for their entry into Brazil.In comparison to Chinese culture that has its own origin and last for thou-sands of years, Portuguese culture is regarded as the origin of the core cul-ture of Brazil, and there are strong colonial ties between Brazil and the Portu-guese. So, the culture of Brazil is partially Westernised. However, outdoor sports are very important people who live in Brazil and play and important role for Brazilians and their lifestyle. This is in complete contrast to the Chi-nese who rely on mobile phones and similar technology, spending hours a day engaging with their phones.The outdoor lifestyle of Brazilian makes them more independent and focus on things outside of the scope of electronic goods. Such combinations of differ-ent cultures could create barriers for OPPO; yet with their functionality over features ideology, the OPPO product range can still accommodate Brazilian culture l.Localisation is important in Brazil, and is an area where other Chinese firms have previously fallen short. The diverse culture across the country means that there needs to be focused market segmentation, and adapt to the changes of what is needed in the local divisions of Brazil, not just what is popular in terms of the World‟s trends. For example, some manufacturers think that it is not necessary to offer after-sales service in Brazil, when in fact not offering an aftersales service impacted sales negativelyAnother example could be the different demand of big screen mobile phone and LTE. Most Chinese customers are familiar with the service of LTE andtherefore big screen mobile phones are popular in China, yet, this isn‟t the case in Brazil. Customers in Brazil are not willing to buy LTE and have a dis-like for mobile phones with a big screen over the size of four inches, whichmeans the effort of introducing mobile phones that are popular in China willnot be successful in Brazil.7.1 RecommendationsThe foreign market entry strategy for OPPO needs to be a progressive and dynamic adaption to the Brazilian market. For proactive revenue related fac-tors, and a strategic reactive factors, Brazil is the emerging market that offers the greatest prospect. OPPO as market seekers need to capitalise on the sub 60% mobile handset diffusion rate in Brazil, by offering their product portfolio of low-mid range devices.Exporting, as the firm recently favoured in Indonesia, allows the firm to un-derstand the market, whilst gaining knowledge and experience of operating inBrazil. Following this, a joint venture allows rapid diffusion into the nationwidemarket, whilst adding credibility to the newfound legal entity, by securing a local company to partner with. The increased customer base will allow for in-creased profit, and security within the ever growing Brazilian market.•OPPO, as market seekers, need to look to enter a growingemerging market.•Brazil provides the largest economy in Latin America, with a growing economy and ever growing market for mobile hand-sets.•Use the Uppsala approach as the theoretical framework•Begin with low risk, low cost, direct exporting.•Create networks, relationships in Brazil, and then look to Joint Venture.The limitations of the strategy must also be highlighted. Exporting requires strong logistics, and can incur taxation when crossing national barriers. By affecting the pricing structure of the product, the sales could be heavily influ-enced. Joint venture can create a conflict of management styles; which can lead to poor integration, which can hamper performance. Brazil, as a nation, is also still moderately corrupt, yet less so that the alternative EM of Russia. Finally, the Brazilian culture, in terms of leisure time, focuses heavily on non-electronic based activities; potentially hindering the sales.。
优化方法英语作文Optimization is a crucial aspect of improving any process or system. It involves making changes and adjustments to make things more efficient, effective, and productive. There are various methods for optimization, and each one can be applied in different situations to achieve the best results.One common method of optimization is through the use of technology and automation. This involves using software, machines, and other tools to streamline processes andreduce the need for manual labor. By automating repetitive tasks, businesses can save time and resources, allowingthem to focus on more important aspects of their operations.Another method of optimization is through the use of data analysis and performance metrics. By collecting and analyzing data, businesses can identify areas for improvement and make informed decisions to optimize their processes. This can involve tracking key performanceindicators, such as production output, sales figures, or customer satisfaction, and using this information to make strategic changes.Furthermore, optimization can also be achieved through the implementation of lean principles. This involves identifying and eliminating waste in processes, such as unnecessary steps, overproduction, or excess inventory. By streamlining operations and focusing on value-added activities, businesses can optimize their workflows and improve overall efficiency.In addition, collaboration and teamwork are essentialfor optimization. By involving employees from different departments and levels of the organization, businesses can gain diverse perspectives and ideas for improvement. This can lead to innovative solutions and a more holistic approach to optimization.Lastly, continuous improvement is a key aspect of optimization. By regularly reviewing and refining processes, businesses can adapt to changing market conditions and stayahead of the competition. This involves a commitment to ongoing learning and development, as well as a willingness to embrace change and innovation.In conclusion, optimization is a multifaceted process that requires a combination of methods and approaches. By leveraging technology, data analysis, lean principles, collaboration, and continuous improvement, businesses can achieve greater efficiency, productivity, and success.。
The Markets for“Lemons”:Quality uncertainty and The Market Mechanism 柠檬市场:质量的不确定性和市场机制Geogre A. Akerlof阿克洛夫一、引言This paper relates quality and uncertainty. The existence of goods of many grades poses interesting and important problems for the theory of markets.(本文论述的是质量和不确定性问题。
现实中存在大量多种档次的物品给市场理论提出了饶有趣味而十分重大的难题)On the one hand, the interaction of quality differences and uncertainty may explain important institutions of the labor market.(一方面,质量差异和不确定性的相互作用可以解释劳动力的重要机制)On the other hand, this paper presents a struggling attempt to give structure to the statement: "Business in under-developed countries is difficult"; in particular, a structure is given fordetermining the economic costs of dishonesty.(另一方面,本文试图通过讨论获得这样的结论:在不发达国家,商业交易是困难的,其中,特别论及了欺骗性交易的经济成本)Additional applicationsof the theory include comments on the structure of moneymarkets, on the notion of "insurability," on the liquidity of durables,and on brand-namegoods.(本文的理论还可以用来研究货币市场、保险可行性、耐用品的流动性和名牌商品等问题)There are many markets in which buyers use some market statistic to judge the quality of prospective purchases.(在许多市场中,买者利用市场的统计数据来判断他们将要购买的商品的质量)In this case there is incentive for sellers to market poor quality merchandise, since the returns for good quality accrue mainly to the entire group whose statistic is affected rather than to the individual seller. As a result there tends to be a reduction in the average quality of goods and also in the size of the market.(在这种情况下,卖者有动力提供低质量商品,因为某种商品的价格主要取决于所有同类商品质量的统计数据而非该商品的实际质量。
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Opportunistic Optimization for Market-Based Multirobot ControlM.Bernardine Dias and Anthony StentzCarnegie Mellon University,Pittsburgh,Pennsylvania,USA,{mbdias,axs}@AbstractMultirobot coordination,if made efficient and robust, promises high impact on automation.The challenge is to enable robots to work together in an intelligent manner to execute a global task.The market approach has had considerable success in the multirobot coordination domain.This paper investigates the effects of introducing opportunistic optimization with leaders to enhance market-based multirobot coordination. Leaders are able to optimize within subgroups of robots by collecting information about their tasks and status, and re-allocating the tasks within the subgroup in a more profitable manner.The presented work considers the effects of a leader optimizing a single subgroup,and some effects of multiple leaders optimizing overlapping subgroups.The implementations were tested on a variation of the distributed traveling salesman problem. Presented results show that global costs can be reduced,and hence task allocation can be improved, utilizing leaders.1IntroductionThe growing demand for robotic solutions to increasingly complex and varied problems has dictated that a single robot is no longer the best solution for many application domains;instead,teams of robots must coordinate intelligently for successful task execution.Driven by these demands,many research efforts have focused on the challenge of multirobot coordination.Dias and Stentz[2]present a detailed description of multirobot application domains and their demands and show that robot teams are more effective than a single robot in many application domains. Simply increasing the number of robots assigned to a task does not necessarily solve a problem more efficiently;multiple robots must cooperate to achieve high efficiency.The difficulty arises in coordinating many robots to perform a complex,global task. Dynamic environments,malfunctioning robots,and multiple user requirements add to the complexity of the multirobot coordination problem.Dias and Stentz[2] explore some of these issues,and present some of the principal efforts in this field of research.One approach is to design the team such that a single robot or central computer acts as a“leader”and is responsible for planning the actions of the entire group. The principal advantage of such centralized approaches is that they allow optimal planning.However,they suffer from several disadvantages including sluggish response to dynamic conditions,intractable solutions for large teams,communication difficulties,and the leader becoming a central point of failure.Local and distributed approaches address these problems by distributing the planning responsibilities amongst all members of the team.Each robot operates independently,relying on its local sensor information. Many research efforts have modeled distributed systems inspired by biology,physics,and economics.The principal drawback of distributed approaches is that they often result in highly sub-optimal solutions because all plans are based solely on local information. Recently,negotiation-based and economy/market-based multirobot coordination has gained popularity.This work in multirobot coordination draws from the software agents literature that began with Smith’s Contract Net Protocol[9],its extension by Sandholm and Lesser[7],and the general concepts of market-aware agents developed by Wellman and Wurman[12]. These concepts have since been extended to control a variety of multiagent(and more recently multirobot) systems.Golfarelli and Rizzi[5]proposed a swap-based negotiation protocol for multirobot coordination that restricted negotiations to task-swaps.Stentz and Dias[10]proposed a more capable market-based approach for multirobot coordination which aims to opportunistically introduce pockets of centralized optimal planning into a distributed system,thereby exploiting the desirable properties of both distributed and centralized approaches.Thayer et al.[11],Gerkey and Mataric[4],and Zlot et al.[13]have since produced market-based multirobot coordination results. Economic approaches are not without their disadvantages.Negotiation protocols,mapping of task domains to appropriate cost functions,and introducing relevant de-commitment penalty schemes can quickly complicate the design of a control architecture. Furthermore,some negotiation schemes can drastically increase communication requirements.Thus,all of these factors must be considered when designing a market-based architecture.2The Market ApproachStentz and Dias[10]first introduced the concept of using a market approach to coordinate multiple robots to cooperatively complete a task,building on the contract net protocol by Smith[9],its extension by Sandholm and Lesser[7],and the general concepts of market-aware agents developed by Wellman and Wurman[12]. This work introduced the methodology of applying market mechanisms to intra-team robot coordination (i.e.in typically non-competitive environments)as opposed to competitive multirobot domains and competitive inter-agent interactions in domains such as E-commerce.Simulation results using this approach were produced by Dias and Stentz[3],and proven robot results were presented by Thayer et al.[11],and Zlot et al.[13].A brief introduction to this approach is presented here.Consider a team of robots assembled to perform a particular set of tasks.Consider further,that each robotin the team is modeled as a self-interested agent,and the team of robots as an economy.The goal of the team is to complete the tasks successfully while minimizing overall costs.Each robot aims to maximize its individual profit(which often translates to minimizing individual cost where possible);however,since all revenue is derived from satisfying team objectives,the robots’self-interest equates to doing global good. Moreover,all robots can only increase their profit by eliminating unnecessary waste(i.e.excess cost).Hence, if the global cost is determined by the summation of individual robot costs,each deal made by a robot(note that robots will only make profitable deals)will result in global cost reduction.The competitive element of the robots bidding for different tasks enables the systems to decipher the competing local information of each robot, while the currency exchange provides grounding for the competing local costs in terms of the global value of the tasks being performed.2.1Revenues,Costs,the Role of Price and theBidding ProcessAppropriate functions are needed to map possible task outcomes onto revenue values and to map possible schemes for performing the task onto cost values.As a team,the goal is to execute some plan such that the overall profit(the excess of revenue over cost),is maximized.Furthermore,these functions must provide a means for distributing the revenue and assessing costs to individual robots.Thus,robots receive revenue and incur costs for accomplishing a specific team-task,but the team’s revenue function is not the only source of income.A robot can also receive revenue from another robot in exchange for goods or services.The price dictates the payment amount for the good or service.A common approach is to bid for a good or service in order to arrive at a mutually acceptable price.2.2Cooperation,Competition,Learning andAdaptationTwo robots are cooperative if they have complementary roles;that is,if both robots can make more profit by working together than by working individually. Conversely,two robots are competitive if they have the same role;that is,if the amount of profit that one can make is negatively affected by the presence of the other robot.The flexibility of the market-model allows the robots to cooperate and compete as necessary to accomplish a task.Moreover,the robot economy is amenable to learning new behaviors and strategies as it executes its complex global task.An added strength of the market approach is its ability to deal opportunistically with dynamic environments.2.3Self OrganizationConspicuously absent from the market approach is a rigid,top-down hierarchy.Instead,the robots organize themselves in a way that is mutually beneficial.Since the aggregate profit amassed by the individuals is directly tied to the success of the task,this self-organization yields the best results.Consider a group of ten robots.An eleventh robot,A, offers its services as their leader.It does not become their leader by coercion or decree,but by convincing the group that they will make more profit by following its advice than by acting individually or in subgroups.A does this by investigating“plans”for utilizing all ten robots.If A comes up with a truly good plan,it will maximize profit across the whole group.The prospective leader can use this large profit to bid for the services of the group members,and of course,retain a portion of the profit for itself.Note that all relevant robots will have to commit to the plan before the plan can be sold.The leader may be bidding not only against the individuals’plans,but also against group plans produced by other prospective leaders.Note that the leader acts both as a benevolent and a self-interested agent since it receives personal compensation for efforts benefiting the entire group.But there is a limit to this organization.As the group becomes larger,the combinatorics become intractable and the process of gathering all of the relevant information to produce a good plan becomes increasingly difficult.A leader will realize this when it can no longer convince its subjects(via bidding for their services)to follow its plans.3ContributionThe work presented in this paper explores some effects of opportunistic optimization with leaders in market-based multirobot coordination.Furthermore,this work addressed one of the key limitations of our implementation of this approach thus far:the restriction of negotiations to single-party,single-task deals.In many cases,this restriction limits the global cost reduction,since the robots do not have the negotiation tools to reason their way out of shallow,local minima. The work presented here extends these tools to permit multi-party and multi-task deals with better global cost reduction potential.4Optimizing with LeadersAn important contribution of this work is the development of a“leader”role that allows a robot with the necessary resources to assess the current plans of a group of robots and provide more optimal plans for the group.The leader can gain knowledge of the group’s current state via communication or some form of observation.A prospective leader can use the profits generated by an optimized plan to bid for the services of the group members,and retain a portion of the profit for itself.The leader may bid not only against the individuals’plans,but also against group plans produced by other prospective leaders.Centralized and distributed approaches are two extremes along a continuum.The introduction of leaders allows the market-based approach to slide along this continuum in the direction of improved profitability in anopportunistic manner.In this work we implement a preliminary version of the leader capability by means ofa combinatorial exchange,as proposed in[2].4.1Clustering for Multi-Task ProcessingThe capability to negotiate multi-task deals greatly enhances the market approach because it allows a robot to escape some local minima in task allocation solutions.However,if the robots bid on every possible combination of tasks,the number of bids submitted will grow exponentially with the number of tasks. Consequently,processing these bids will be impossible for more than a few tasks.Hence,some form of clustering algorithm is necessary to determine the clusters of tasks to bid on.The possibilities for such clustering algorithms are numerous[6].The clustering algorithm used in this work is chosen to ensure a span in size(from single-task clusters to a wholly inclusive cluster)and task membership(i.e. ensure that every task is included in at least one cluster). These properties are important because a robot cannot necessarily predict the interaction of the clusters it offers with the tasks of other bidders,and hence,needs to give the allocator ample flexibility in offloading tasks.The chosen clustering algorithm operates as follows:1.Create a list of edges spanning all tasks on offer(N),where each edge joins two tasks and the cost of the edge represents the distance in cost space between the two tasks.A low edge value implies, but does not guarantee,that two tasks can be performed more cost-effectively together than apart.2.Sort the edge list from lowest to highest cost.3.Form the first group of clusters by creating a single-task cluster for each task on offer.4.For cluster sizes ranging from2to N,recursivelyform new clusters by adding the next best available edge(an edge is unavailable if it is either already included in a previous cluster or if the edge connects two tasks which are not included in any of the previous clusters)to a cluster in the previous cluster-list.(Note,when new clusters are formed, all previous clusters are preserved).Thus, recursively form a forest of minimum spanning trees(MSTs)[1]ranging in size from1to N.This algorithm can be applied in general to determine which tasks are best dealt with in clusters,without computing every possible cluster.Suitable variations of this algorithm(or others)can be chosen to enable multi-task negotiations in different task domains.The presented work is verified on a multi-depot distributed traveling salesman problem(TSP),and hence,the MSTs are decomposed into tours as follows.If a newly added edge breaks the continuity of the tour,the MST is adjusted by removing one of the edges connecting to the newly added edge and adding the necessary edge to preserve the continuity of the tour with the least addition to the cost of the tour.Note that this change still preserves the bounds of the MST,which guarantees that the cost of the tour does not exceed twice the optimal cost.This holds true for metric cost spaces where the triangle inequality is preserved.Allowing robots to include the offloading of an owned cluster when bidding to accept a new cluster of tasks further enhances the bidding capability of the robots. 4.2Combinatorial Exchange for Multi-PartyOptimizationsA combinatorial exchange(a market where bidders can jointly buy and sell a combination of goods and services within a single bid)is chosen to enable multi-party optimizations for a team.A combinatorial exchange enables a leader to locally optimize the task assignments of a subgroup of robots and to potentially achieve a greater global cost reduction.Many researchers including Sandholm and Suri[8]have presented valuable insight on how to efficiently implement and clear combinatorial exchanges for E-commerce applications.However,many of these tools are relatively complex and are not used in this work for simplicity.Instead,the basic recommendation of searching a binary bid tree is applied.The chosen implementation for clearing the combinatorial exchange in this work is a depth first search on a binary tree where each node of the tree represents a bid and the binary aspect of the tree represents accepting or rejecting that bid.The tree is pruned to disallow accepting multiple bids from any single bidder,and to disallow exchanging of any single task more than once. Note that the pruning does not affect the solution except by improving the runtime.The preliminary version of the leader role in the market approach is implemented as follows.A leader queries surrounding robots to discover what tasks they have to offer and their current states,and re-allocates tasks within the group using the combinatorial exchange mechanism.Note that this is just one way in which the leader can reduce the cost within the group(and thereby the global cost).Other schemes could involve the leader using different mechanisms to re-distribute tasks and even generating new tasks to coordinate the group more efficiently.Moreover,some tasks(for example, cooperative automated construction and cooperative maneuvering of large objects)may require tight coordination where a leader has to closely monitor the progress of individual team members and accordingly direct the efforts of other members of the team.4.3Competing Local GroupsWhen leaders are allowed to opportunistically optimize sub-groups,occasions could arise where two leaders are in competition for the services of the robots that overlap between the two groups.If a robot bids on tasks from both leaders,it could win both bids and be unable to perform them or find it unprofitable to do so.There are several ways to address this“synchronization”issue. For example,broken deals with a penalty can be allowed,or bids can be stamped with an expiration time during which they are valid and offers can be dealt with on a first-come-first-serve or last-come-first-serve basis.In the work presented here,the groups are allowed to negotiate in round robin fashion,thus forcing serial synchronization.5ExperimentationThe proposed multi-task and multi-party enhancements are developed and tested in a simulated distributed sensing task.A group of robots,located at different starting positions in a known simulated world,are assigned the task of visiting a set of pre-selected observation points.This problem is a variation of the multi-depot distributed traveling salesman problem,where the observation points are the cities to visit.Note that many multirobot application domains require an effective solution to the distributed traveling salesman problem.The costs are the lengths of the straight-line paths between locations,interpreted as money.Let c ij be the cost for the j th robot to visit the i th city from the (i-1th )city in its tour (where the 0th city is the starting location).The robot cost function for the j th robot is computed as follows:where n j is the number of cities in the tour for robot j .The team cost function is:where m is the number of robots.The team revenue and robot revenue functions are determined by the negotiated prices.All robots (bidders)adopt the same simplistic strategy of bidding a fixed 10%markup above the cost of completing the task.According to this strategy,if an announced task costs c to execute,a robot computes its bid as 1.1c .Thus,the robots bid for each city based on their estimated costs to visit that city.Similarly,if a robot offers up a task that will cost it c to execute,in an attempt to buy the services of another robot to complete that task,the maximum price it offers for this service is set as 0.9c .Tasks and robot positions are randomly generated within a 100x100world,and initial task allocations are made by randomly distributing the tasks among the robots.Heterogeneous robot capabilities are considered by restricting some robots’capabilities such that they can only process single-task (ST)deals,while other robots can process multi-task (MT)deals.Robots capable of playing leader roles are allowed the additional capability of performing multi-party (MP)optimizations via either a single-goods exchange or a combinatorial exchange,depending on their capability.Sections 5.1through 5.4describe in detail the scenarios of robots negotiating in the absence of a leader (TPST and TPMT)and the optimization scenarios with leaders (MPST and MPMT).Section 5.5describes the scenario where robots have limited communication range and hence can only trade within subgroups.5.1Two-Party,Single-Task (TPST)NegotiationsIn this case,once the initial random task assignments are made,each of the robots,in turn ,offers all its assigned tasks to all the other robots,in turn .Thus,interactions are limited to two parties at any given time as illustrated in Figure 1.Figure 1:TPST IllustrationEach bidder then submits a bid for each task.In order to estimate the additional cost of inserting a task into its queue,the bidder uses the cluster generation algorithm described above to generate an MST with its current queue of tasks plus the offered task,and computes the cost difference between the resulting and original queues.The offerer accepts the most profitable bid it receives.The cost of the offerer’s resulting queue is computed by removing from its queue the task that was transferred through the winning bid,clustering the remaining tasks using the clustering algorithm,and computing the cost of the resulting queue.Hence,in the TPST scenario,only single-task (ST)deals are considered,and pairs of robots continue to negotiate amongst themselves in round-robin fashion until no new,mutually profitable deals are possible.Therefore,negotiations cease once the system settles into a local minimum for the global cost function.5.2Two-Party,Multi-Task (TPMT)NegotiationsIn this case,the previous case is repeated with clusters of tasks being the atomic unit of the negotiations as shown in Figure 2.Figure 2:TPMT IllustrationThat is,the initial assignments are followed by each of the robots,in turn ,offering all of its assigned tasks to all the other robots,in turn .The robots then bid for∑==j1)(n i ijc j rcost ∑==mj j rcost tcost 1)(Stage 1Stage 2......Stage 1Stage 2...clusters of these tasks.Once again,costs are computed by using the clustering algorithm to cluster all tasks under consideration and compute the cost of the resulting queues,and negotiations are always between two robots.5.3Leader Performing Multi-Party Single-Task (MPST)OptimizationsA leader,whose capability is restricted to dealing in single-task deals,is introduced in this case.The leader queries all the robots,and gathers all the tasks of all the robots along with each robot’s state information.The leader then sets up an exchange by formulating single-task bids for the robots in the sub-group based on the gathered information.The exchange used in the MPST scenario is a single-task exchange (i.e.a single bid can contain buying of a single task and selling of another single task).The exchange is then cleared to maximize the leader’s profit.These interactions are illustrated in Figure 3.IllustrationThis process is repeated until the exchange cannot produce any further profit,andthe corresponding task re-allocation is proposed to the sub-group of robots.If the leader’s plan reduces the global cost,the resulting excess profit can be distributed among the entire subgroup (including the leader)such that the robots in the subgroup accept the leader’s task re-allocation.5.4Leader Performing Multi-Party,Multi-Task (MPMT)OptimizationsIllustrationHere,the previous case was repeated with the added capability of the leader to process MT bids as shown in Figure 4.That is,the leader sets up and clears a combinatorial exchange to determine the re-allocation of tasks.In a combinatorial exchange,clusters of tasks can be bought and sold within a single bid.5.5Multiple Competing Local GroupsThis set of experiments involved 8robots divided into 3groups of 4robots each (with the middle group overlapping the other two groups)and 10tasks.Trading and optimization with leaders are restricted to within the subgroups.The robots are evenly spread throughout a 2000x2000world and the cities (tasks)are randomly generated.Scenarios with and without leaders,and with ST-capable and MT-capable robots are considered.6Results and DiscussionThe results for the experiments described above are shown below.Figure 5and Figure 6show the final tours of each robot for a 2-robot,10-city TSP and a 4-robot,10-city TSP respectively.In both figures,the robots are shown as circles and the cities are shown as squares.without leader-optimizationCost Itns Improved Opt.Error Random 351-0.0%65.6%No Leader 2ST 256225.9%21.4%2MT 231133.0%9.0%ST Leader 245229.0%16.2%MT Leader 227134.4%7.0%Optimal 212-38.6%0.0%Table 1:Performance averaged over 100randomlygenerated 2-robot,10-task TSPsFigure6:Solutions to a4-robot,10-task TSP with andwithout leader-optimizationThe first illustration in each figure shows the tours after the initial random allocation of tasks.The second illustration shows the resulting tours after the robots have completed TPST deals and reached a local minimum in global cost.The third and fourth illustrations show the results of the MPST and MPMT scenarios.In the illustrated cases,the optimal allocation is reached in the MPMT scenario.Cost Itns Improved Opt.Error Random411-0.0%124.6% No Leader4ST230542.7%27.7% 2ST+2MT222544.6%23.3% 1ST+3MT209447.8%16.2% 4MT197450.9%9.7% ST Leader218345.8%21.1% MT Leader193251.8%7.5% Optimal183--0.0% Table2:Results averaged over100randomly generated 4-robot(heterogeneous),10-task TSPsTable1,Table2,and Table3report the performance averaged over100randomly generated task distributions for the2-robot-10-task case,the4-robot-10-task case,and the4-robot-20-task case respectively. As evident from these results,on average,an MT-capable leader can improve the profit of the group significantly.An ST-capable leader can only improve the profit of the group on average for groups of robots where there are at most50%MT-capable robots.Cost Iterations Improved Random725-0.0%No Leader4ST4001044.1%2ST+2MT388945.7%1ST+3MT359749.8%4MT336553.0%ST Leader373647.7%MT Leader322354.9%generated4-robot(heterogeneous),20-task TSPsFigure7and Table4illustrate preliminary results for the competing subgroup scenario.The subgroups of robots are circled in Figure7,which depicts the results of a single run.Table4reports the performance averaged over100randomly generated task distributions.Again,the results show that on average the local optimization with leaders improves the global profit.Cost Iterations Improved Random9091-0.0%No Leader4ST4598848.9%2ST+2MT4379951.2%ST Leader4312652.1%MT Leader3687658.9% Table4:Performance averaged over100randomly generated8-robot(heterogeneous),10-task TSPs with3 overlapping groups of4robots eachFigure7:Solution for TSP with3overlapping subgroups of4robots each and10tasksThe presented work only addresses scenarios where leaders run exchanges to optimize task allocation within a group of robots.Some leaders are also capable of clustering tasks and hence can conduct combinatorialexchanges.It is also possible to have combinatorial exchanges and leaders as distinct entities within the economy.For example,there could be a leader that simply clusters tasks and sells these cluster plans to a combinatorial exchange.Note that the leader is not selling the actual cluster of tasks—just a plan for which tasks to cluster.The exchange could then buy all of the component tasks,sell off the resultant cluster,and pay a fee to the leader.The presented results indicate that the benefit from the ability to cluster tasks and participate in multi-task negotiations exceeds the benefit from the ability to perform multi-party negotiations.Leaders could also use other approaches to generate plans for a subgroup of robots.Finally,a leader could simply act as a means of enabling trade between subgroups of robots who are otherwise unable to communicate,thus enriching the possible trades.7Conclusions and Future WorkPresented results show that leaders can considerably reduce global costs in market-based multirobot coordination.Initial experiments for optimizing within robot sub-groups with leaders also proved promising. Future work includes implementing these capabilities on a robot team and further extensions of the market approach.Proposed enhancements include more detailed analysis of optimizing with leaders,dealing with time constraints,and experimentation with different task domains.The goal of this work is to produce an efficient and robust market-based multirobot coordination architecture.8AcknowledgementsThis research was sponsored in part by NASA,under contract"Heterogeneous Multi-Rover Coordination for Planetary Exploration"(contract number NCC2-1243). This research was also sponsored in part by DARPA, under contract“Cognitive Colonies”(contract number N66001-99-1-8921,monitored by SPAWAR).The views and conclusions contained in this document are those of the authors and should not be interpreted as representing the official policies or endorsements,either expressed or implied,of the ernment.The authors thank the members of the Cognitive Colonies group:Scott Thayer,Bruce Digney,Martial Hebert, Robert Zlot,Aaron Morris,Charles Smart,and Bart Nabbe and wish to acknowledge the contributions of the FIRE project team:Reid Simmons,Trey Smith,Dani Goldberg,Steve Smith,Jeff Schneider,Drew Bagnell, Vincent Cicirello,David Apfelbaum,and Stuart Anderson.9References[1]Cormen,T.H.,Leiserson,C.E.,and Rivest,R.L.eds.1990.Introduction To Algorithms.Cambridge,MA:The MIT Press/McGraw-Hill Book Company.[2]Dias,M.B.and Stentz,A.2001.A Market Approach toMultirobot Coordination.Technical Report,CMU-RI-TR-01-26,Robotics Institute,Carnegie Mellon University.[3]Dias,M. 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