Differentiate between neligence, intentional and constitutional torts Essay

Differentiate between neligence, intentional and constitutional torts. What act(s) can cause a tort liability - Essay Example For example: an employee of the criminal justice department conducted his duties without making sure that others are not harmed by his means of conducting duty, due to this others may have been inflicted with harm or injury, thus the official is held responsible for conducted his duties in a negligent manner. Criminal justice officers experience intentional torts when they indulge knowingly and freely indulge in activities due to which citizens or other individuals of a society may be harmed (Vaughn, 1999). For example: a police officer uses coercive methods to obtain a confession from a suspect, due to his act the suspect gets badly injured, the police official is held responsible for using coercion and the confession obtained from the suspect might not be used as evidence in the court of law. A criminal justice employee may be held responsible in a case of constitutional tort if he fails to conduct his duties in accordance to the constitution of the country (Carlson, 1985, p.342). For example: if a police official makes an arrest and forgets to read the Miranda rights to the suspect, the police official may be held responsible for acting according the constitution and the suspect may be free to leave as his Miranda rights were not read to him (Peak, 2011, p.281). Various activities conducted by the officials of the criminal justice system lead to tort liability, these activities includes: negligent behaviour, wrongful charges for arrest, breach of right of privacy, upholding information and evidence, and coercive interrogation. When an official of the criminal justice system is said to have acted in a negligent manner, he is said to have not exercised his duty of due care (Peak, 2011, p.341). This means that while conducting his duties, an official has not ensured to eradicate practices and procedures that may harm an individual and that are foreseen. Therefore a police official has to exercise his duty of care while conducting his

Gucci Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Gucci - Essay Example This essay analyzes one of the leading luxury product brands. And the name of it is Gucci. The brand is associated with symbol, name, design etc of a firm that helps a company to distinguish itself from others. The brand name or image is used by the companies for marketing and advertising its products. The positive image of the brand is an important asset of the firm. It helps the company in creating good impression in the mind of targeted customers. A brand is often represented by logo (Batey, 2012). It is protected by secure trademark. A company makes people aware of its products and services by marketing its products through various channels. In the competitive market of fashion industry, Gucci always maintains its strong brand image. This brand is so popular that in spite of its high price, the company has several customers in different parts of the world (Blackburn, 2012). The concerns of the company about its customers and its high quality of products contribute in developing p ositive brand image of Gucci. Gucci is highly conscious about its resonance. The company tries to satisfy its customers and increase their engagement with the brand by providing them complementary gifts with every purchase. The firm provides the facility of same day deliver in New York. The response of the customers to the brand is highlighted in this step. The company got to know the buying behaviour of the customers by understanding their judgement and feelings towards products. Gucci aims to deliver best goods of high quality. The brand position of Gucci is highlighted in this essay.

Health Insurance Costs Versus Privacy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Health Insurance Costs Versus Privacy - Essay Example If such adjustments cannot be accommodated, CBD may revoke the job offer. This, however, should always be an absolute last resort. Federal regulations illegalize CBD from discriminating against job applicants or workers based on their genetic information. CBD may test workers to ascertain if they have illegal drugs or alcohol or in their systems. The law prohibits them from testing employees' genetic predisposition to alcoholism or drug abuse (Mathiason, 2007). Wellness programs such as the one proposed by owners of CBD in option two of their two- step program cannot be considered illegal by the law. A wellness program that renders an incentive conditioned on participation in a health program is not discriminatory under Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). However, the Act prohibits CBD health plans from discriminating based on a health factors such as; health status, medical condition, claim experience, receipt of health care, and medical history. Examples in clude nicotine addiction and body mass index (Mathiason, 2007). Collective bargaining is where employers and employees negotiate agreements that regulate terms of employment. Employees belong to a union that voices their interests. Collective bargaining in the automobile industry in United States has developed since 1930’s. ... According to Block (2006), Ford and GM companies UAW negotiated wage increases by an average of 7.2% annually from 1961-1980 and increased by 3.6% from 1985-2004. The union also negotiated for employment security, and this amounted to 5.9% to the hourly income paid by the companies. Following this, the union traded half of its wage increase for job security guarantees. However, in 2005 and 2006, the union negotiations focused on health care and employment levels. This resulted to companies faced with the dilemma of paying for health care benefits of retirees. Health insurance was, therefore, not provided by non-U.S.-based firms opened in the mid-1980. In 2006- 2007, GM and Ford reflected this concern by providing health care benefits to active employees for the remainder of their employment contracts. Eventually, the two organizations drew a plan whereby they paid for health insurance of active employees and retirees. This has resulted in severe financial losses for automobile indust ries such as Ford and GM. Considering the Occupational Safety and Health Act, the general duties of first-line managers include providing safe areas of access and exit to place of work, providing healthy and safe place of work, maintaining safe facilities, equipment and working areas and ensuring safe work systems. The first line managers ensure management and other staff members comply with their duties regarding safety and health regulations in the work place (Pomfret, 2006). On the other hand, finance managers ensure the company adopts and integrates an effective Occupational Safety and Health regulation Act. This leads to a sound investment and produces excellent financial rewards for the company. They plan, organize, lead and control all

The Rights of the Nonhuman World by Mary Anne Warren Assignment

The Rights of the Nonhuman World by Mary Anne Warren - Assignment Example Humans can experience humiliation and etc. in similar circumstances. The same thing is with a moral right on life: animal don’t suffer morally from ruined hopes, or long term plans, while humans do. 3. Firstly, despite being not fully capable of a moral behavior, nonparadigm humans still possess a potential or partial moral autonomy. Thus, humans respect their moral rights in order to keep an existing moral attitude (order) among human beings. Secondly, it’s simply hard to define a degree of a moral autonomy when it’s full, or when it’s partial for nonparadigm humans. 4. Nonsentient natural entities are a great part of natural environment on Earth. They influence life of other entities and thus, trees and mountains etc. have an intrinsic value for other entities. Yet that can’t be discussed in terms of moral rights because nonsentient entities aren’t capable of pain or satisfaction. 5. Both land ethic environmentalists and animal liberationists deny a homocentric view on moral rights. Warren says they complete, because they both are wrong. Land ethical environmentalists neglect a difference of â€Å"logical foundation† when discussing moral rights of nonsentient and sentient natural entities, while animal liberationists don’t see how different is content and strength of human and animals’ moral capacities (Warren

International Human Resource Management - International competition Essay

International Human Resource Management - International competition - Essay Example Differential payment is not just a business tactics but a whole some strategy developed by new international human resource management for multinational corporations. Yet, the reality of pay differentials among the international staff does not normally lead to grievances among them. Multinational corporations usually stick to a number of principles of international compensation strategies in order to overcome the ill-effects of pay differentials. The present study is an effort in delineating the mechanism of pay differentials followed by multinational corporations and its effect over the employees from different national environments. The practices of multinational corporations aim to get rid of the resentments and motivational issues pertaining to pay differentials among the international staff would be examined in detail and with theoretical rigour. There is no consensus among the theorists of international compensation strategies over the question of the correct approach to the understanding of pay differentials, related grievances and appropriate compensation strategies (Scullion and Linehan, 2005). Rather than adhering dogmatically to a single approach, the paper tries to synthesise the wisdom each approach in understanding and defining the subject-issue. The paper would primarily give a clear picture of the existing practices of international compensation and multinational common and theoretically validated reactions for addressing the possible and real negative effects of pay differentials among the international staff. The issue of performance management, especially the difficulty of neutral performance appraisal would be examined with special emphasis. Moreover, the paper would be a comprehensive and introductory appraisal of a complex issue which is an important matter of debate in the present business world. Pay Differentials and Compensation Strategies of Multinational Companies International compensation as a concept encompasses the issues and concerns regarding the defining aspects of international compensation, the determining factors of international compensation strategy, reforming compensation along with international transfer within MNCs, and disparities in international compensation (Dowling and Welch, 2004). Performance appraisal is vital in performance management as a core human resource management activity. Revealing the importance of compensation strategy in the practices of multinational companies, Fenwick defines the compensation system of an organisation as "the usual means by which employee rewards are planned and administrated" ( 2004, p. 308).Compensation strategy is increasingly becoming integral to the conduct of organisational strategy as globalisation of market became a reality with an unprecedented pace and intensity (Tayeb, 2005). It is important to not that no distant corner of the world is out of the reach of the twenty first centu ry globalised market. For Fenwick, international compensation is "the provision of monetary and non-monetary rewards, including base salary, benefits, perquisites, long- and short-term incentives, valued by employees in accordance with their relative contributions to MNC performance"( 2004, p. 308). The very structure of organisation itself has become transformed in great deal to get adapted with

Effect of violent video games Essay Example for Free

Effect of violent video games Essay There are millions of people who play highly controversial games like Grand Theft Auto and other violence video games, realize that it is a game and do not do things they do in the game in real life. If people believe that video games cause behavior problems, they are underlying issues with the gamer himself, and not with the software, but according to American Psychological Association, almost ninety percent of kids between the ages eight and sixteen are addicted to video game especially the violent one. The average girls spends almost six to eight hour week’s playing video games which does not sound bad comparing to boys who spends an average of thirteen hours a week. Some parents reported that video games only describe virtual reality, and should not translate into real world problem. However, children are more likely to imitate the actions of a character with which they classify themselves with. In all violent video games, players are often required to take point of view of the shooter or perpetrator, which show a change of their behavior. Study shows that repetition increases learning and video games required repetition in order to master control characters movement. If the game is violent, then the effect is a behavioral practice for a violent activity. These children who are involve in playing violent video games are more aggressive than who are not involve with these game, which at some point of their life, they will get heart or might die because of their action. Recently, parents become unaware with their kids behavior in real life. Some of them let their kids do whatever they like to do like playing violent video games for long hours or watching brutal shows on television. Report by American Psychological Association â€Å"disagree that violent video games cause behavior problems, because the choices people make cause violent behavior. Video games, even the violent once, can be good experience. † But parents need to teach their kids those video games need to be separate from reality. The choices they make in their daily life have absolutely nothing to do with video games. In fact they may be able to take out any aggressions that they have on a video game, rather than go out and beat someone up, that what their parents believe, but what they do not know is playing video game frequently for long hours has a huge negative on kids because it feed their brain with aggression, violence, and fighting which creates problems such as poor social skills from kids to their parents and the outside world. Sociology studies shows that boys by the age of twenty-one had spend more than 10000 hours or more just by playing video games American Psychological Association wrote â€Å"97% between the age 12 to 17 in the US played video game†¦ top 10 out of 20 were violent. † USA today made study twenty years ago about sixty percent of American family had sat down as family dinners, same study last year the number drop down to twenty percent. Because kids are spending their times on video game, it creates huge problems such as poor social skills, poor grade in school, and live in hostile environment. Psychologist concludes, that video game is nature requirement activities, because it based on reward system and as human we try to be satisfied and achieved all requirements. For example, in video game Mafia 2, the character is required to rob bank which is the basic objective. But if the player kills all securities without triggering the alarm, the player will receive bounce. Since all players love to achieve more, they will do the mission, after completing the mission they will play it again in order to get the bounces. If parents are worried that their children are addicted to violent video game and spending so much time playing it, they should set limits, like playing video game for an hour after completing their homework, also try to encourage their children to play outside, and do other activity. Parents must check the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) to learn about the video game’s content and what age range it belongs to. Parents should strongly monitor their children about video games that they are buying, and from online games. Violent video games have been blamed for increase bullying, assaulting women, and school shooting, because violent games teach children that violence is way to solve problems and it is acceptable in this world. Studied showed that sixty percent of middle school children who played at least one video game that rated mature has hit, beat, and assault other students. Also it shows that students who committed this violence act were enjoying inflected pain and become less forgiving. For example, in Bully the character have to fight with teacher and other student in order to be popular in school. In other word, this video game encourages kids to be disrespectful to the elder and to the other student. Female in violent video games are mostly present as explore to sexual contact, like being rape, get killed, and thrown behind the bushes. What make it ironic is the player is rewarded by getting some extra feature. For example, in LA Noire the character is homicide, in one of his chapter the player must solve several of cases that women been rape, nude, murder, and thrown in dumpster or tree. In 1998 study shows that thirty percent of violent video games involve women been attacked and rape. Another example, in Grand Theft Auto, which considers one of the best seller games in 2008, player must gain money to be able to buy armor or guns so the player will target female for two reasons. First, they carry more cash, and second they weak. Schools shooting have been connected to shooting video games. Students who have been exposed to violent video games held more violent attitudes, had more hostile personalities, were less forgiveness, and believed that being sadistic with other is normal. Seung-Hui Cho the student who opened fire at Virginia Tech incident. He was addicted to shooting game called Counter Strike, the objective of that game is to kill the other team where character are allowed to buy guns, armor, and grenade. Every time the character kill member of the other team he rewarded with money. If parents and schools are affected by kids who play violent video games for long hours, it means media and society are affected too. Societies are concern with violence and media including the internet have extend worlds of video game, especially the violent one, such as the Hitman series, Grand Theft Auto, Mortal Kombat, and more. The character in video games may get away when he committed crime or brutal events. As adults they know the different between real life and fiction one, but kids do not know that. Kids might steal money or attack other kids believing they will get away. For example, in Grand Theft Auto player can steal car, run over pedestrian, and hit another car. With kind action the police well attempt to arrest you character. However, if the character were able to drive fast or hide inside building for couple of minutes police will ignore you and let you free.

Casual Internet Gamers in India

Casual Internet Gamers in India Casual Internet Gaming in India is the area of dissertation which will be researched. A phenomenon relatively new to the world, casual internet gaming is an area which is yet to be researched and fully understood. Computer gaming is an area close to my heart, as well as an exciting and challenging field to work on, where the markets are still evolving and promising great potential in the near future. Electronic gaming itself is a very wide subject which hasnt been properly researched, especially in India. Internet gaming is a subset to it, but again an area so vast that it cant be covered in one research. Going down further, I chose casual internet gaming because of the following reasons- Casual gaming is by far the most popular mode of gaming on internet in India. Internet speeds in India allows only casual gaming to grow currently. Social media is proving to be an ideal platform for their growth No research on this topic has been done so far. We are yet to understand why people and Indians in particular are attracted towards casual gaming. Till now, Indian Marketers have not taken a consumer-centric approach to make and deliver casual games. There is great scope in the field, as Indians discover casual gaming and get hooked on to it through various platforms According to a recent study by JuxtConsult , Of the 47 million Internet users, 39 million are based in urban areas, while only 8 million reside in the rural. Hence Internet penetration is largely limited in India and speeds are still slow. In such a scenario, the only games that can work well are casual games because they dont need high end computer/gaming systems, nor are the speed requirements a constraint. In fact, being the only mode of gaming which is viable, it has been the focus of the gaming industry as well. From dedicated websites like zapak to integration of casual games to social media networks like facebook, casual games are available across the internet. The surprising part is that no one has really tried to understand the reason for their popularity or the potential profitability of these games. The growth of Indias casual games market comes in line with the overall growth of the countrys games market and industry. According to founder of CasualGaming.biz, Gaurav Mirchandani the industry has changed substantially over the past few due to the growth of internet users in India whom now have broadband access in their homes, at work, and in restaurants and hotels. This change has sparked a new emergence of casual gaming in India as a leisure and as lead to new small companies setting up offices for game development outsourcing mostly for flash and PC downloadable games. The Industry focus has been on delivering casual games across platforms to the maximum possible user base. However, no thought has been given to the consumer and their needs. The Industry lacks a consumer-centric focus in game development and delivery. A deeper understanding of why these games are being played, and by whom they are being played is necessary to improve the standards and profitability of casual gaming as a business. As the world moves towards the virtual avenues provided by the technological revolution, internet gaming assumes significance as the next major frontier of the world. Brands are already investing in this area and can really cash on into this profitable business. Internet now provides people the choice of playing with other individuals over the cyber space. The constant advances in technology open up new possibilities regularly, taking computer gaming to new heights each time. Hence, the objective of the research will be to understand the psyche of the Indian casual gamer. This will help the Indian gaming industry understand the consumers better and hence deliver better products to them. Not only that, it will also help them improve the profitability of the business, by understanding what is relevant to the gamers, and what is not. This will be an exploratory study into the realm of casual gaming in India. Given the time constraints of a dissertation, I will be able to focus on limited aspects of casual gaming. Hence I am choosing only those aspects of the area, like why do gamers behave as they do and where and when they play games, which are important both for the Industry and the academia. Again due to the time constraints and vastness of the topic, everything cannot be covered in one research. Hence a study on the college-going gamers will be conducted. LITERATURE REVIEW Very little literature is available on consumers of Casual Gaming in India. I studied the gaming industry in general to find references to casual and internet gaming, especially in the Indian context. Gaming: India is All Set! -Rao, K. Rajesh (rajesh, 2008) Prospects for Animation Gaming Industry in India. -Kuruvila, A. O. (A.O, 2008) (Computer gaming on the go in India, 2004) India: The Final Frontier for Games? (Silicon india, 2008) Zapak Taking Casual Games seriously! (Vimali, 2008) Casual Gaming A Big Draw for VCs. (Khanna, 2008) Games people play (Marketing Management, 2007) Casual video gaming is now serious business (2007) Casual Computer Games Go Upscale (2007) Nothing casual about it Rajiv Fernando 2009 The article presents the authors views concerning the development of the gaming industry in India. He relates that the new generation is characterized by the evolution of interactive digital content and distributed model of games services. The author perceives good opportunities for game developers and providers associated with the increase of Internet penetration and digital content. The article starts off with a preface of the Global and Indian gaming and animation industry and goes on to dwell upon the statistics of the industry in India. It then follows up with a SWOT analysis of the Indian gaming Industry Reports on the report released by British Broadcasting Corp. in 2005 regarding the mobile gaming market segment in India. Increase in the number of mobile phone users in October 2004; Factors that influenced the growth in the mobile gaming sector; Number of game developers and mobile companies that provide games to their subscribers. The article provides an overview of the computer games industry worldwide, particularly in India. It explains the technology trends that might influence the advent of these games including powerful cellular telephones, cloud gaming and the growth of broadband networks. A historical background on the emergence of these electronic games is also presented. The article discusses the success of the online games introduced by Zapak Digital Entertainment in India. Zapak is influential to the success of the gaming industry through the launching of massive multiplayer online games (MMOGs), hardcore games and large format gaming cafÃÆ' ©es. The companys strategies in creating value chain for its customers and distribution network are mentioned. The article presents the views of the author on various issues related to the electronic games industry in India. It focuses on the casual gaming business. The author addresses the problems on piracy and financing animation and gaming projects in the country. Future opportunities for the casual gaming space are also cited. The article discusses conflicting studies concerning the target audience for casual games. A study by Information Solutions Group found that casual gamers are predominately female. In-game advertisement firm Eyeblaster backed this data up, claiming that the majority of casual gamers are females that are more than thirty years old. However, a study by Ipsos Insight showed that more than half of computer and video gamers are male, data that is backed up by a Universal McCann study about console gamers. The article reports on the growing competition among firms in the video games industry in New York City. According to IDC Research, revenues from casual video games are expected to increase by 68 percent to $750 million in 2007 and are forecasted to reach $2 million by 2009. Wade Tinney, co-founder of Large Animal Games, said that it is important for firms in the industry to be well-funded so that they can move quickly and make products that compete with those with other companies. The article talks about the demographics of casual gamers worldwide according to the various studies that have been conducted. It also talks about the distribution of these games and what the game developers are doing to fight off competition in the casual gaming segment. It takes the zapak example to show that casual games are here to stay. It further tells about the future plans of zapak and compares the groeth of casual gaming in India with increase in internet penetration.It re-iterates that industry observers believe that online games had great potential for growth in the Indian gaming market, as it overcame the problem of piracy. Sify eyes kids for gaming biz (2007, Infotech.indiatimes.com) Web 2.0: Online Communities, Personalization and the Web OS. (Singh, 2006) Casual Games White Paper -IGDA ,2003 The 2009-2014 Outlook for PC Casual Games in India Icon Group International, Inc. 2008 Insights on Casual Games, Nielson, 2009 Casual gaming study conducted by NPD Group China Gaming 2008à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å"2012 Forecast and Analysis Casual Gaming Market Update James Kuai and Peter Shackelfor 3Q 2007 2004 China Casual Game Research Report (2005) It shows the interest of the industry in the casual gaming industry and an attempt to focus on the needs of the consumers, finally. I talks about Sify and its plan to acquire casual games and make them available all across Sifys cyber cafes. The article reports developments on Web 2.0 in India. Social networks and casual gaming continue to prevail in the major themes of Web 2.0. Online communities emphasize the notion of more sharing and connectivity on the Internet, as well as a strong focus on personalization. Another interesting phenomenon in the Web 2.0 world is the emerging space of online casual gaming. This article is on the International Casual Games industry. Numerous players continue to enter the market, business models are constantly changing, and new customers are found every day. This paper helps define the industry, and give everyone a base level of understanding of all aspects of this space. It is not intended to go into minute detail on any one subject, but provides broad understanding to the major factors involved in the casual game industry. This econometric study covers the latent demand outlook for PC casual games across the states, union territories and cities of India. Latent demand (in millions of U.S. dollars), or potential industry earnings (P.I.E.) estimates are given across over 5,000 cities in India. This report does not discuss the specific players in the market serving the latent demand, nor specific details at the product level. Nor does the report cover actual sales data (which are simply unavailable, in a comparable or consistent manner in virtually all of the cities in India) This study looks at data from more than 800 casual games for PC computers, which are defined as inexpensive to produce, straightforward in concept, easy to learn and simple to play. They say that casual gamers return more often to games and therefore play more often than hardcore gamers. The study, which surveyed nearly 3,000 U.S. gamers, identified 14 specific types of gamer within 39 different game genres. Casual gamers were divided into 10 classifications. The study also offered data that would seem to dispel the myth that casual gamers dont invest as much time playing games as core gamers do. This IDC study examines the dynamics of the China gaming market and focuses on online gaming. It looks at market drivers, dynamics, and strategies; the competitive landscape; and includes profiles of the top 10 vendors as well as a 2008à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å"2012 forecast. The concentration of the China online gaming market improved significantly in 2007. The revenue sum of the top 10 vendors occupied 91.8% of the total market. Casual Gaming Market Update provides in-depth analysis of the current dynamics and future directions of the rapidly growing casual gaming industry in the USA, including quantitative forecasts, competitive analysis, consumer perspectives, and profiles of leading companies in the casual gaming value chain. According to iResearch, market size of China online casual game industry was RMB 25 million in 2003 and it reaches to RMB 410 million in 2004 with growth rate of 356%. The fast growth of online casual game industry is mainly attributable to the market success of QQ game platform and Shanda BnB. iResearch forecasts that market size of China online casual game industry will keep fast growth in the following years: its is estimated that market size of China online casual game will reach RMB 1.78 billion in 2007. The literature review failed to reveal any concrete consumer research done in the field of Casual gaming in India. Apart from references in articles in business and technology magazines, only two proper journal articles were found on the subject. No survey, scholarly article, book, dissertation etc on this topic covering the consumer angle and pertaining to India was found. Being a new research area, this is not surprising, but only logical. Hence we find a huge research gap here, particularly in the Indian context. RESEARCH OBJECTIVES FRAMEWORK We see that there is a wide research gap in this area. At best surveys, statistics and reports are available on the subject. While the consumers have been studied in the west and Asian markets like China, an Indian study to understand the consumer was not found on an extensive search. Therefore, in the proposed research we plan to- Understand the Indian college-going casual internet gamer No research was found on the above mentioned research field, inspite of extensive search. An exploratory research in this field is hence in order. The phenomena of Internet gaming and hence out study will be largely restricted to SEC A and SEC B in India ( JuxtConsult study,2009 ). This is due to the current limitations of internet penetration. Though a comprehensive study needs to be done on all existing and potential casual gamers, the proposed dissertation will be limited to college going gamers only. This will be so keeping in mind the time constraints of the dissertation. The research objectives: Find out reasons why college-goers play casual internet games What are usage patterns of casual internet-gaming in India Explore the casual gaming phenomena First we need to know the platforms where casual internet games are being played by college-goers. After that we will find the reasons why these gamers are hooked on to casual internet gaming. We will then find the relations between the usage pattern and the reasons of usage and explore this area of casual gaming from the consumer perspective. This will give us various hypothesis which then can be verified. Hence it will help develop a consumer-centric approach which is currently missing in the industry. A deep understanding of the casual internet gamers in India is necessary for this approach. The researchs objective is to develop this new approach for the industry and academia alike within the constraints of a research (college-going students only). PROPOSED RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODOLOGY To find out the whys and hows of the Indian Casual gaming industry, a qualitative research will be in place. Here we are trying to understand the usage and behavior of the college going audience with respect to casual gaming, which requires a qualitative approach. Secondary research- Being an area which appears to be hardly studied, the starting point would be studies done on gaming in India, for example à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" IAMAI-IMRB report NASSCOM Animation Gaming Report IGDA reports These reports give an insight on the demographics of the Indian gamer and are a good place to start. A secondary research on the subject of Casual online gaming will tell us where to find the gamers and challenges of the Industry. It will basically give an industry point of view. With the help of these reports and an extensive online research, we will be able to find out the platforms where the gamers are playing casual games, for example- Dedicated Casual gaming websites Social media networks Mobiles Film/brand promotion websites A comprehensive list of all the casual gaming platforms on the internet will be made. Once we know where to find the college going casual gamer, we can move on to the next stage, which is to probe him/her. Apart from this, casual gaming phenomena in other countries will be studied where research has already been done on the subject. Quantitative studies on Indian gaming industry will be studied to form a strong base for the qualitative research to be undertaken. Primary research- We will through the secondary research know where to find the Indian casual gamer. We will then do a primary research to find the reasons why people play casual games. In- depth Interviews- To find out the reasons why people play casual internet games 15 in-depth interviews will be conducted keeping in mind that all possible platforms are covered. The hows and whys of the college going gamers will be found out. Questionnaire- To understand the usage patterns of the casual internet gamers, a qualitative questionnaire will be in order. It will give us the various attitudes of the gamers along with consumption patterns of the college-going gamers. We will be able to find out which games they are playing, when they are playing and how they are playing. A questionnaire will have a sample size of around 40 people from the college-going gamers. The results of the in-depth interview and questionnaire along with the secondary research will then be used to develop the psychographic profiling of the casual internet gamer. This will be done using the TGI software tool. The universe will be derived by the intensive secondary research. Sample size is proposed to be 15 in-depth interviews and 40 gamers (20 men and 20 women) for the questionnaire, keeping in mind our target, the college going gamers. Mere numbers are irrelevant here as our focus is on developing a deep understanding on the subject. As this is a qualitative study, a probability sampling method is ineffective and expensive; hence we will do non-probability sampling with convenience, quota and snow-ball sampling techniques. A content analysis technique will be undertaken. The analysis will be with a systematic description of behavior asking who, what, where, where and how questions within formulated systematic rules to limit the effects of analyst bias. Being an exploratory research, this will be a good basis to begin with. EXPECTED CONTRIBUTION The Indian gaming industry is estimated to grow at a CAGR of 49% to reach USD 830 million by 2012 which was USD 167 million in 2008. Casual internet gaming is an area of the industry which is popular and growing. And it is also an area where on an extensive search no concrete research could be found. Hence this area of research appeals to both the industry and academia. No consumer centric approach in this field has yet been observed. This research will perhaps be the first of its kind where the psychographic profiling of the college going casual internet gamers will be done and basic STP constructs on the same will be developed. For the industry, this approach will help them develop and deliver better products and being an exploratory research, for the academia the research output will provide further scope for researching in the field. This research only focuses on College going gamers. There are a lot of other segments which can be studied. Also, casual gaming is just a subset of computer gaming, which in itself is a large field to research on, given the dearth of studies done in the Indian context, leaving scope for further researches, using this research as a basis. Casual Internet Gamers in India Casual Internet Gamers in India Casual Internet Gaming in India is the area of dissertation which will be researched. A phenomenon relatively new to the world, casual internet gaming is an area which is yet to be researched and fully understood. Computer gaming is an area close to my heart, as well as an exciting and challenging field to work on, where the markets are still evolving and promising great potential in the near future. Electronic gaming itself is a very wide subject which hasnt been properly researched, especially in India. Internet gaming is a subset to it, but again an area so vast that it cant be covered in one research. Going down further, I chose casual internet gaming because of the following reasons- Casual gaming is by far the most popular mode of gaming on internet in India. Internet speeds in India allows only casual gaming to grow currently. Social media is proving to be an ideal platform for their growth No research on this topic has been done so far. We are yet to understand why people and Indians in particular are attracted towards casual gaming. Till now, Indian Marketers have not taken a consumer-centric approach to make and deliver casual games. There is great scope in the field, as Indians discover casual gaming and get hooked on to it through various platforms According to a recent study by JuxtConsult , Of the 47 million Internet users, 39 million are based in urban areas, while only 8 million reside in the rural. Hence Internet penetration is largely limited in India and speeds are still slow. In such a scenario, the only games that can work well are casual games because they dont need high end computer/gaming systems, nor are the speed requirements a constraint. In fact, being the only mode of gaming which is viable, it has been the focus of the gaming industry as well. From dedicated websites like zapak to integration of casual games to social media networks like facebook, casual games are available across the internet. The surprising part is that no one has really tried to understand the reason for their popularity or the potential profitability of these games. The growth of Indias casual games market comes in line with the overall growth of the countrys games market and industry. According to founder of CasualGaming.biz, Gaurav Mirchandani the industry has changed substantially over the past few due to the growth of internet users in India whom now have broadband access in their homes, at work, and in restaurants and hotels. This change has sparked a new emergence of casual gaming in India as a leisure and as lead to new small companies setting up offices for game development outsourcing mostly for flash and PC downloadable games. The Industry focus has been on delivering casual games across platforms to the maximum possible user base. However, no thought has been given to the consumer and their needs. The Industry lacks a consumer-centric focus in game development and delivery. A deeper understanding of why these games are being played, and by whom they are being played is necessary to improve the standards and profitability of casual gaming as a business. As the world moves towards the virtual avenues provided by the technological revolution, internet gaming assumes significance as the next major frontier of the world. Brands are already investing in this area and can really cash on into this profitable business. Internet now provides people the choice of playing with other individuals over the cyber space. The constant advances in technology open up new possibilities regularly, taking computer gaming to new heights each time. Hence, the objective of the research will be to understand the psyche of the Indian casual gamer. This will help the Indian gaming industry understand the consumers better and hence deliver better products to them. Not only that, it will also help them improve the profitability of the business, by understanding what is relevant to the gamers, and what is not. This will be an exploratory study into the realm of casual gaming in India. Given the time constraints of a dissertation, I will be able to focus on limited aspects of casual gaming. Hence I am choosing only those aspects of the area, like why do gamers behave as they do and where and when they play games, which are important both for the Industry and the academia. Again due to the time constraints and vastness of the topic, everything cannot be covered in one research. Hence a study on the college-going gamers will be conducted. LITERATURE REVIEW Very little literature is available on consumers of Casual Gaming in India. I studied the gaming industry in general to find references to casual and internet gaming, especially in the Indian context. Gaming: India is All Set! -Rao, K. Rajesh (rajesh, 2008) Prospects for Animation Gaming Industry in India. -Kuruvila, A. O. (A.O, 2008) (Computer gaming on the go in India, 2004) India: The Final Frontier for Games? (Silicon india, 2008) Zapak Taking Casual Games seriously! (Vimali, 2008) Casual Gaming A Big Draw for VCs. (Khanna, 2008) Games people play (Marketing Management, 2007) Casual video gaming is now serious business (2007) Casual Computer Games Go Upscale (2007) Nothing casual about it Rajiv Fernando 2009 The article presents the authors views concerning the development of the gaming industry in India. He relates that the new generation is characterized by the evolution of interactive digital content and distributed model of games services. The author perceives good opportunities for game developers and providers associated with the increase of Internet penetration and digital content. The article starts off with a preface of the Global and Indian gaming and animation industry and goes on to dwell upon the statistics of the industry in India. It then follows up with a SWOT analysis of the Indian gaming Industry Reports on the report released by British Broadcasting Corp. in 2005 regarding the mobile gaming market segment in India. Increase in the number of mobile phone users in October 2004; Factors that influenced the growth in the mobile gaming sector; Number of game developers and mobile companies that provide games to their subscribers. The article provides an overview of the computer games industry worldwide, particularly in India. It explains the technology trends that might influence the advent of these games including powerful cellular telephones, cloud gaming and the growth of broadband networks. A historical background on the emergence of these electronic games is also presented. The article discusses the success of the online games introduced by Zapak Digital Entertainment in India. Zapak is influential to the success of the gaming industry through the launching of massive multiplayer online games (MMOGs), hardcore games and large format gaming cafÃÆ' ©es. The companys strategies in creating value chain for its customers and distribution network are mentioned. The article presents the views of the author on various issues related to the electronic games industry in India. It focuses on the casual gaming business. The author addresses the problems on piracy and financing animation and gaming projects in the country. Future opportunities for the casual gaming space are also cited. The article discusses conflicting studies concerning the target audience for casual games. A study by Information Solutions Group found that casual gamers are predominately female. In-game advertisement firm Eyeblaster backed this data up, claiming that the majority of casual gamers are females that are more than thirty years old. However, a study by Ipsos Insight showed that more than half of computer and video gamers are male, data that is backed up by a Universal McCann study about console gamers. The article reports on the growing competition among firms in the video games industry in New York City. According to IDC Research, revenues from casual video games are expected to increase by 68 percent to $750 million in 2007 and are forecasted to reach $2 million by 2009. Wade Tinney, co-founder of Large Animal Games, said that it is important for firms in the industry to be well-funded so that they can move quickly and make products that compete with those with other companies. The article talks about the demographics of casual gamers worldwide according to the various studies that have been conducted. It also talks about the distribution of these games and what the game developers are doing to fight off competition in the casual gaming segment. It takes the zapak example to show that casual games are here to stay. It further tells about the future plans of zapak and compares the groeth of casual gaming in India with increase in internet penetration.It re-iterates that industry observers believe that online games had great potential for growth in the Indian gaming market, as it overcame the problem of piracy. Sify eyes kids for gaming biz (2007, Infotech.indiatimes.com) Web 2.0: Online Communities, Personalization and the Web OS. (Singh, 2006) Casual Games White Paper -IGDA ,2003 The 2009-2014 Outlook for PC Casual Games in India Icon Group International, Inc. 2008 Insights on Casual Games, Nielson, 2009 Casual gaming study conducted by NPD Group China Gaming 2008à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å"2012 Forecast and Analysis Casual Gaming Market Update James Kuai and Peter Shackelfor 3Q 2007 2004 China Casual Game Research Report (2005) It shows the interest of the industry in the casual gaming industry and an attempt to focus on the needs of the consumers, finally. I talks about Sify and its plan to acquire casual games and make them available all across Sifys cyber cafes. The article reports developments on Web 2.0 in India. Social networks and casual gaming continue to prevail in the major themes of Web 2.0. Online communities emphasize the notion of more sharing and connectivity on the Internet, as well as a strong focus on personalization. Another interesting phenomenon in the Web 2.0 world is the emerging space of online casual gaming. This article is on the International Casual Games industry. Numerous players continue to enter the market, business models are constantly changing, and new customers are found every day. This paper helps define the industry, and give everyone a base level of understanding of all aspects of this space. It is not intended to go into minute detail on any one subject, but provides broad understanding to the major factors involved in the casual game industry. This econometric study covers the latent demand outlook for PC casual games across the states, union territories and cities of India. Latent demand (in millions of U.S. dollars), or potential industry earnings (P.I.E.) estimates are given across over 5,000 cities in India. This report does not discuss the specific players in the market serving the latent demand, nor specific details at the product level. Nor does the report cover actual sales data (which are simply unavailable, in a comparable or consistent manner in virtually all of the cities in India) This study looks at data from more than 800 casual games for PC computers, which are defined as inexpensive to produce, straightforward in concept, easy to learn and simple to play. They say that casual gamers return more often to games and therefore play more often than hardcore gamers. The study, which surveyed nearly 3,000 U.S. gamers, identified 14 specific types of gamer within 39 different game genres. Casual gamers were divided into 10 classifications. The study also offered data that would seem to dispel the myth that casual gamers dont invest as much time playing games as core gamers do. This IDC study examines the dynamics of the China gaming market and focuses on online gaming. It looks at market drivers, dynamics, and strategies; the competitive landscape; and includes profiles of the top 10 vendors as well as a 2008à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å"2012 forecast. The concentration of the China online gaming market improved significantly in 2007. The revenue sum of the top 10 vendors occupied 91.8% of the total market. Casual Gaming Market Update provides in-depth analysis of the current dynamics and future directions of the rapidly growing casual gaming industry in the USA, including quantitative forecasts, competitive analysis, consumer perspectives, and profiles of leading companies in the casual gaming value chain. According to iResearch, market size of China online casual game industry was RMB 25 million in 2003 and it reaches to RMB 410 million in 2004 with growth rate of 356%. The fast growth of online casual game industry is mainly attributable to the market success of QQ game platform and Shanda BnB. iResearch forecasts that market size of China online casual game industry will keep fast growth in the following years: its is estimated that market size of China online casual game will reach RMB 1.78 billion in 2007. The literature review failed to reveal any concrete consumer research done in the field of Casual gaming in India. Apart from references in articles in business and technology magazines, only two proper journal articles were found on the subject. No survey, scholarly article, book, dissertation etc on this topic covering the consumer angle and pertaining to India was found. Being a new research area, this is not surprising, but only logical. Hence we find a huge research gap here, particularly in the Indian context. RESEARCH OBJECTIVES FRAMEWORK We see that there is a wide research gap in this area. At best surveys, statistics and reports are available on the subject. While the consumers have been studied in the west and Asian markets like China, an Indian study to understand the consumer was not found on an extensive search. Therefore, in the proposed research we plan to- Understand the Indian college-going casual internet gamer No research was found on the above mentioned research field, inspite of extensive search. An exploratory research in this field is hence in order. The phenomena of Internet gaming and hence out study will be largely restricted to SEC A and SEC B in India ( JuxtConsult study,2009 ). This is due to the current limitations of internet penetration. Though a comprehensive study needs to be done on all existing and potential casual gamers, the proposed dissertation will be limited to college going gamers only. This will be so keeping in mind the time constraints of the dissertation. The research objectives: Find out reasons why college-goers play casual internet games What are usage patterns of casual internet-gaming in India Explore the casual gaming phenomena First we need to know the platforms where casual internet games are being played by college-goers. After that we will find the reasons why these gamers are hooked on to casual internet gaming. We will then find the relations between the usage pattern and the reasons of usage and explore this area of casual gaming from the consumer perspective. This will give us various hypothesis which then can be verified. Hence it will help develop a consumer-centric approach which is currently missing in the industry. A deep understanding of the casual internet gamers in India is necessary for this approach. The researchs objective is to develop this new approach for the industry and academia alike within the constraints of a research (college-going students only). PROPOSED RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODOLOGY To find out the whys and hows of the Indian Casual gaming industry, a qualitative research will be in place. Here we are trying to understand the usage and behavior of the college going audience with respect to casual gaming, which requires a qualitative approach. Secondary research- Being an area which appears to be hardly studied, the starting point would be studies done on gaming in India, for example à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" IAMAI-IMRB report NASSCOM Animation Gaming Report IGDA reports These reports give an insight on the demographics of the Indian gamer and are a good place to start. A secondary research on the subject of Casual online gaming will tell us where to find the gamers and challenges of the Industry. It will basically give an industry point of view. With the help of these reports and an extensive online research, we will be able to find out the platforms where the gamers are playing casual games, for example- Dedicated Casual gaming websites Social media networks Mobiles Film/brand promotion websites A comprehensive list of all the casual gaming platforms on the internet will be made. Once we know where to find the college going casual gamer, we can move on to the next stage, which is to probe him/her. Apart from this, casual gaming phenomena in other countries will be studied where research has already been done on the subject. Quantitative studies on Indian gaming industry will be studied to form a strong base for the qualitative research to be undertaken. Primary research- We will through the secondary research know where to find the Indian casual gamer. We will then do a primary research to find the reasons why people play casual games. In- depth Interviews- To find out the reasons why people play casual internet games 15 in-depth interviews will be conducted keeping in mind that all possible platforms are covered. The hows and whys of the college going gamers will be found out. Questionnaire- To understand the usage patterns of the casual internet gamers, a qualitative questionnaire will be in order. It will give us the various attitudes of the gamers along with consumption patterns of the college-going gamers. We will be able to find out which games they are playing, when they are playing and how they are playing. A questionnaire will have a sample size of around 40 people from the college-going gamers. The results of the in-depth interview and questionnaire along with the secondary research will then be used to develop the psychographic profiling of the casual internet gamer. This will be done using the TGI software tool. The universe will be derived by the intensive secondary research. Sample size is proposed to be 15 in-depth interviews and 40 gamers (20 men and 20 women) for the questionnaire, keeping in mind our target, the college going gamers. Mere numbers are irrelevant here as our focus is on developing a deep understanding on the subject. As this is a qualitative study, a probability sampling method is ineffective and expensive; hence we will do non-probability sampling with convenience, quota and snow-ball sampling techniques. A content analysis technique will be undertaken. The analysis will be with a systematic description of behavior asking who, what, where, where and how questions within formulated systematic rules to limit the effects of analyst bias. Being an exploratory research, this will be a good basis to begin with. EXPECTED CONTRIBUTION The Indian gaming industry is estimated to grow at a CAGR of 49% to reach USD 830 million by 2012 which was USD 167 million in 2008. Casual internet gaming is an area of the industry which is popular and growing. And it is also an area where on an extensive search no concrete research could be found. Hence this area of research appeals to both the industry and academia. No consumer centric approach in this field has yet been observed. This research will perhaps be the first of its kind where the psychographic profiling of the college going casual internet gamers will be done and basic STP constructs on the same will be developed. For the industry, this approach will help them develop and deliver better products and being an exploratory research, for the academia the research output will provide further scope for researching in the field. This research only focuses on College going gamers. There are a lot of other segments which can be studied. Also, casual gaming is just a subset of computer gaming, which in itself is a large field to research on, given the dearth of studies done in the Indian context, leaving scope for further researches, using this research as a basis.