Assignment Question
Explore various strategic choices regarding price and non-price variables undertaken by a company as it attempts to establish and sustain a competitive advantage in a market as-a-game. In so doing, apply your knowledge and use various examples of game theory and transactions cost economics applications in illustrating how a player makes those strategic choices to reshape strategy.

Assignment Objective

Your essay should critically assess the value-added of game theory tools and use case study and your Workshop case research. A key objective is to outline the overlap between micro-economics and game theoretic concepts introduced in this Module. Using academic literature and coupled with the practical case research undertaken by your group during the Workshop or coupled with the research you may have undertaken in support of your individual Workshop Alternate Assignment, illustrate how the economics of game theory can be used to reshape strategy. So, please do use real case study materials where appropriate.

Companies in Workshop: Netfix and Disney Plus

Essay Context include:

Conjectural Variation Matrix

T/3 F Framework (Type, Technology, Time)

Critical Timeline

Game Dimension/ Game Theory

Hint

The best way to approach the assignment is to imagine that the essay is to be read by senior management. Their concerns may have to do with (i) market entry (ii) product launch (iii) challenges of technology or (iv) prices. So, proceed to analyse the market-asa-game, identify and filter the competitive threat, assess the action-reaction sequence of events and evaluate your results. And always provide a risk assessment of the likely competitive threats facing a company on choice of strategy

You must try to impress upon the team. One way to do that is to convince them of the value-added of applying economic concepts and economic reasoning from game theory and transactions cost economics to an evaluation of their company strategy.

You are an MBA consultant. Here is an opportunity to reflect on both the research undertaken by you at the Workshops and on the learning obtained in the preparation of your assignments for this Module. In any consultancy, you must try to impress upon the team. One way to do that is to convince them of the value-added of applying economic concepts and economic reasoning from game theory and transactions cost economics to an evaluation of their company strategy.

So what do you need to do?

• The broad idea is to reflect on the approach taken throughout the module to illustrate how the analytical tools can (and should) be incorporated into strategic decision making.
• How does using these tools, techniques, approach and ways of thinking help guide strategic decision making in a business rivalry?
• You can draw on the case study you used in your workshop.
• You can illustrate with other examples as you choose (including your own organisations, if appropriate).
• The main focus is how do these concepts add value.

Think about the consumer – What do we know about them? How do they make decisions?

• What can firms do to retain existing and attract new customers?
• Can we say anything about switching behaviour (cross price elasticity).
• How might they respond to changes in price?
• How might they respond to a change in quality (or other utility enhancing changes)

Think about the firms – are there advantages they can exploit over their rivals?

• Can they exploit economies of scale?
• Can they exploit economies of scope?
• Think about transaction costs – if considering new ventures should they make or buy?

CITATION