Friday, January 24, 2020

Intellectual Property Rights and the Piracy War in China Essay

Introduction With a population of 1.357 billion (2013)3, China is the most populated country in the world. Along with the huge population comes a market that is unmatched by any other country of the world. Both domestic companies and foreign companies want to tap into this large market that just recently embraced capitalism and entered into the World Trade Organization. China also provided a labor force that is able to tackle both white-collar and blue-collar job positions. This made foreign companies rush both monetary and technological resources into China to utilize the manufacturing and development power. Both Microsoft and Sun have created research and development centers to implement and design software applications in China. Domestic companies are not far behind either, for example, China's own Evermore Software is on the rise to challenge Microsoft's office suite with its own.4 With the boom of technology in China and the new capitalism ideas, China also has a huge piracy problem. According to the International Intellectual Property Alliance's 2003 report on China, the piracy problem in China creates $1.85 billion in 2002 alone with 90% piracy rates for all copyrighted materials.5 This piracy problem affects negatively on China's global relations and economic improvements. China's current copyright laws are still in its teenage years, and the fast pace of technological advancement isn't helping either. In this paper, I will attempt to describe the piracy problem in China, discuss how the Chinese government is dealing with it, present the global effect, and finally arrive at what would be an ethical solution to piracy fitting for China's situation. The Piracy Problem Asia... .../ch.html#top 4. Joris Evers, IDG News Service, Chinese company to challenge Microsoft's Office, http://www.infoworld.com/article/04/01/26/HNdemochina_1.html 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 17. International Intellectual Protection Association Country Paper on China http://www.iipa.com/countryreports.html 13. Fan Zhang and Dennis Xie, Chinese Copyright Protection Has Storied History, Strong Future, http://www.sourcetrix.com/docs/Whitepaper-China_Intellectual_Property.pdf 14. Cheng-China Huang, A Brief Chronology of China's Intellectual Property Protection, http://www.american.edu/ted/hpages/ipr/cheng.htm 15. The Copyright Law of China, http://www.ncac.gov.cn/ 16. Copyright Protection Center of China, http://www.ccopyright.com.cn/ 18. June 11, 2002, People's Daily, http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/200206/11/eng20020611_97613.shtml

Thursday, January 16, 2020

Laissez Faire Leadership Essay

Managers and supervisors who adopt the laissez-faire leadership style delegate responsibility for the accomplishment of work objectives and decision-making power to their employees. For example, a CEO of a large, new-car dealership may allow departments — such as NEW CAR SALES, used car sales and service — to operate on their own without his direct supervision. In this case, the CEO sets expectations for the departments’ operations, revenues and costs and provides the needed resources to accomplish particular business objectives. However, the department managers and employees determine how they will achieve the objectives. Implementation of Laissez-faire Leadership This laissez-faire system works best in groups of experienced, educated and highly skilled employees such as staff specialists or consultants who are accustomed to working in team environments. In our example of the car dealership, the NEW CAR SALES, used car sales and service department teams each possess specific skills and have received specialized training. So each team may work best when it establishes its own work schedules, works independently and makes decisions as a group, rather than at the direction of its CEO. In this example, laissez-faire leadership is especially effective because many department problems are well defined, a course of action is frequently predetermined, resources are readily available and limited CEO interaction is required for the team to work effectively. Advantages of Laissez-faire Leadership â€Å"Hands-off† leadership allows each team’s skilled members to brainstorm to identify appropriate solutions to problems and implement these decisions rapidly. As a result, the business avoids the cost involved in some meetings, such as the opportunity cost of not completing other tasks, missed sales calls and lost customer face time. Laissez-faire leadership works well in a creative environment where employees are free to implement innovative solutions. In our example, the sales team works with the finance department to identify creative financing options for potential buyers. The service department, meanwhile, employs up-to-date technology and mechanics skilled in contemporary engines.

Wednesday, January 8, 2020

Gratitude Quotes That Come Straight From the Heart

Jean Baptiste Massieu, the famous deaf educator, made a statement that is now considered a French proverb: Gratitude is the memory of the heart. Indeed, appreciation comes when you feel grateful from the depths of your heart. The head keeps an account of all the benefits you give and receive, but the heart records the appreciation, humility, and generosity that one feels when someone showers you with kindness. If someone has done you a favor, given you a gift, or simply been a good friend, they deserve a thank you. Your relationships will be stronger, and youll feel like a good person by focusing on such positive emotions. Here are gratitude-themed quotes that fill your heart and inspire you to express appreciation at every opportunity. Alfred Painter: Saying thank you is more than good manners. It is good spirituality. Ralph Marston: Make it a habit to tell people thank you. To express your appreciation sincerely and without the expectation of anything in return. Truly appreciate those around you, and you’ll soon find many others around you. Truly appreciate life, and you’ll find that you have more of it. Maya Angelou: I want to thank you, Lord, for life and all that’s in it. Thank you for the day and for the hour, and the minute. Toni Mont: To say thank you is in recognition of humanity. Joseph Addison: Gratitude is the best attitude. There is not a more pleasing exercise of the mind than gratitude. It is accompanied with such an inward satisfaction that the duty is sufficiently rewarded by the performance. Fred De Witt Van Amburgh: None is more impoverished than the one who has no gratitude. Gratitude is a currency that we can mint for ourselves, and spend without fear of bankruptcy. Edwin Arlington Robinson: Two kinds of gratitude: The sudden kind we feel for what we take; the larger kind we feel for what we give. Lionel Hampton: Gratitude is when memory is stored in the heart and not in the mind. Oscar Wilde: The smallest act of kindness is worth more than the grandest intention. James Matthew Barrie: Those who bring sunshine to the lives of others cannot keep it from themselves. Gordon T. Watts: The depth and the willingness with which we serve is a direct reflection of our gratitude. John Wooden: Things turn out best for people who make the best of the way things turn out. John F. Kennedy: As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them. Alice Walker: Thank you is the best prayer that anyone could say. I say that one a lot. Thank you expresses extreme gratitude, humility, understanding. Courtland Milloy: Nothing purchased can come close to the renewed sense of gratitude for having family and friends. Benjamin Franklin: To the generous mind, the heaviest debt is that of gratitude, when it is not in our power to repay it. Ralph H. Blum: There is a calmness to a life lived in gratitude, a quiet joy. Melody Beattie: Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. Terri Guillemets: As each day comes to us refreshed and anew, so does my gratitude renew itself daily. The breaking of the sun over the horizon is my grateful heart dawning upon a blessed world. G. B. Stern: Silent gratitude isnt much use to anyone.