Environmental conditions: Apple iTunes in the UK

Environmental conditions: Apple iTunes in the UK 1. Introduction The following report will carry out an assessment of the macro and micro environmental conditions that are likely to impact upon Apple iTunes within the United Kingdom. The analysis which will be carried out will include an assessment of the degree of the threat or the opportunities posed by the existing and potential competition. iTunes is a digital media player application which is used for playing and organising digital and video files. iTunes also connects to the iTunes store via the internet to purchase and download music, music videos, television shows, applications, games, audio books and podcasts. The Music industry has radically changed in the last couple of years, thanks to the increasing penetration of broadband, which has made it increasingly convenient for music lovers to buy via the web, this has the effect of promoting digital downloads. Content owners have been hit by the increasing problem of illegal downloading which has had the effect of devaluating the value of music for an entire generation of youth. (Mintel 2009) After its launch in 2002 Apples iTunes has come to dominate the music delivery business in many countries around the world, including the United Kingdom. Using a number of tools which look at both the micro and macro environment, and various analysis I will draw many conclusions whether there is a likelihood of continued success for Apple iTunes in the future. 2. What is Apple iTunes? iTunes is a free application for your Mac or PC it organises your digital music and video on your computer. It syncs all your media with you iPod, iPhone and Apple TV. It is also a store on your computer; it has everything you need to be entertained anywhere, anytime. (Apple 2010) Apple iTunes was developed in early 2002 and has developed ever since in relation to Apples continued success with their portable media player the iPod. Ever since 2002 many new features have been added to iTunes such as in April 2003 when version 4.0 of Apple iTunes was released which added the feature of the iTunes Store, to make it the success of what it is today. (Apple 2004) 3. Apple iTunes Market Position The music industry has witnessed a massive change over the last few years; this is due to many reasons. One fundamental change has been the increasing user usage of broadband technology, the increased speed and more people adopting the technology has led to consumers to view downloading music via the web to be convenient and simple. This development originally led many of the traditional high street retailers such as HMV to start selling music online in CD format. In more recent times music both single tracks and albums have become more and more easily accessible for the average consumer due to the continued popularity of services such as Apple iTunes. 3.1 Market Data on The Music Industry In January 2009 the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) predicted that the UK will spend over  £600 million on digital music in 2012 (Mintel 2009). As you can see from (Appendix 2) downloads are dominated by singles or the download of individual tracks. But iTunes and other digital competitors are looking at improving the way in which they are marketing to consumers hopping to persuade them to purchase more albums digitally. Also in (Appendix 2) using BPI figures it shows the demand for single downloads has increased by a massive 340% from 2004-2009, where by the sale of single music in physical format has decreased by 850%. The same trend can be seen for album sales as well. As you can see from the table in (Appendix 1) pre-recorded music sales are continually moving from the traditional music stores, supermarkets etc to the internet to services such as iTunes. Over a period from 2007-2009 there was a 6% increase of sales of pre-recorded music on the internet, where as other means of selling/distributing pre-recorded music saw a considerable decrease year on year over the same period. The music industry has seen revenue decrease by 4% in 2008 and it is predicted that this trend will likely continue. Although digital distribution of music will ensure the costs involved when selling music will be dramatically lower, this will lead to increased profit margins for legal music sales in the future. Mintel has forecasted that the music market will continue for the next few years until 2013 to continue to decline. The market will see a dramatic fall of 33% of current prices from 2008-2013, 2009 saw the biggest drop which was 16% (Appendix 3). This is all due to a number of contributing factors, the main being that economic conditions are poised to remain uncertain which hampers consumer confidence. (Mintel 2009) 3.2 Music Market Industry Key Points/Findings The music industry has changed in recent years due to the major rise in downloadable content which is seen as more appropriate due to the rise of the portable media player as well as it being much easier for consumers to get hold of music, by simply downloading. The following will outline some key findings from the Music Industry which Apple iTunes operate within. * The music market for digital download retailers market share will continue to grow with many new entrants looking to move into the market where Apple iTunes dominate by offering digital rights management (DRM) free tracks. (Mintel 2009) * The Dominance of iTunes will remain until new entrants are established. (Mintel 2009) Over recent years ever since the download revolution began there has been one major retailer, iTunes. They have been seen as a threat to major music labels, to counter this threat major labels have granter DRM free tracks to many other retailers to encourage completion in the market place. This move looks to have changed the market place in the future by allowing the consumer to have more choice where they choose to purchase/download there music. (Harvey 2009) 3.2 Competitors It is vitally important when analysing the market which Apple iTunes operate within to outline their competitors. Many different competitors can affect Apples performance within the market, the competitors can be categorised into direct, close, substitute or indirect competitors. It is vitally important to analyse all of these competitors because they will all affect Apple iTunes in some aspect. As you can see from (Appendix 5) it shows all of the possible competitors within the industry, Apple in 2008 had a market share of 80% Apple the market leader with an 80 per cent market share (Lynch 2009) which means there are at least 25 firms who are in (Appendix 5) and many other firms battling it out for the remaining 20% of the market. Apple have been able to gain such a large market share with little or no competition due the agreement they had with the major record labels such as Sony/BMG, Vivendi Universal, Warner and EMG up until 2007 Apple were the market leaders and were starting to begin to dictate prices to the record labels which began to make them worried that they had originally given away to much to Apple iTunes. The record companies realised that Apple had gained dominance of the music on-line delivery industry and could dictate prices to the record companies. As a result, the record companies decided to drop DRM completely and encourage other delivery companies to enter the industry they needed some competition for Apple. (Lynch 2009) Once DRM free music began to be readily available it enticed many new businesses into the market, in the table in (Appendix 5) you can see the many firms who have seen how successful iTunes has been and they would like to gain some of the success which Apple has created for itself with iTunes. Direct competitors are those who offer a very similar service to what iTunes offers firms such as Amazon, HMV Digital, and Tesco Digital are all looking to break the dominance of Apple by offering a similar service but by offering the tracks at much cheaper price, due to them wanting to break into the industry. While Apple raised prices, competitors cut theirs. Amazon, the online retailer, cut the price of many of its top-selling music downloads on Monday to 29p as it competes for a larger share of the digital music market. (Ahmed 2009) Close competition are businesses which offer a similar service to what iTunes offers but are not in direct completion, these are firms such as subscription based services of Napster, Sky Songs and eMusic as well as bundled download services run by both Nokia and Omnifone which are Comes With Music and Music Station respectively as well as services run by the major mobile networks within the UK such as O2 and Orange. Competition which is classed as substitutes to the service which iTunes offers are firms which offer a different service to iTunes but could be used instead by potential customers. These are businesses such as Spotify and We7 who offer free music for users but the service contains many adverts which make the service free, the revenue is all advertisement driven. Also substitute services are business which use the latest web technology which is streaming, firms such as YouTube, MySpace Music and Last.fm are all services which are free and legal allow users to listen to music online but not actually download and put onto a portable media player, such as the iPod. New services like Spotify give us hope for the future, but physical sales continue to fall and even digital services struggle to compete with free illegal music. (Mostrous 2010) Substitute services such as Spotify which are free to the consumer may the future of music as they offer a service which costs nothing and is legal. Indirect competition, is a service which is completely different to what is offered by iTunes. Sony has started to promote and sell the e-book reader, which is a similar idea to the iPod but instead of music allows users to download books and read them on a screen. It seems the traditional gift wrapped tome is being trumped by downloads, after Amazon customers bought more e-books than printed books for the first time on Christmas Day. The department store chain John Lewis highlighted the popularity of e-readers this Christmas, reporting a jump in sales of Sonys eBook readers. (Allen 2009) The music market when from physical music CDs etc to digital downloads, now the book market looks to go a similar way by offering the user to read books in a digital format. 4. Macro Environmental Factors The macro environment is the major external and uncontrollable factors that have an influence on the organisations ability to make decisions and also can affect the strategy and the performance. The macro environment looks to include many factors such as economic, legal, social, political and technological changes. (Grant 2005) Included in the following section of the report a PESTEL analysis will be carried out of Apple iTunes which is a framework which looks at the macro environmental factors any business faces in the external environment, also an industry life cycle will be carried out. 4.1 PESTEL Analysis This model is a way of looking at Apple iTunes macro environment; it looks at the six key factors of the external environment, Political, Economic, Social, Technological, Environmental and Legal. The following section of the report will use this framework to look at the key factors effecting Apple iTunes in the macro environment. (Masterson 2004) Firstly, political this looks at if there are any pressures from the government or associated bodies, also any potential pressure from other business such as the major record labels such as Sony/BMG in Apple iTunes case. A breakthrough occurred when Apple iTunes made a deal with the record industry in 2002 which revolutionised the music industry. For the first time it was possible to download music for a payment without the problems of DRM which had become frustrating for consumers. By 2008 iTunes was the market leader with a massive market share of 80%, before this in 2007 the major record companies began to realise they had given away too much to Apple. iTunes had gained dominance in the market and were in a position to dictate prices to the record companies, this had the result in record companies dropping DRM and encouraging new entrants into the market to compete with Apple iTunes. The first two new entrants which tried to break up the dominance of iTunes were Nokia and Amazon. (Lynch 2009) Censorship can cause a great deal of problems for a service such as iTunes, in the build up to the Olympic Games in Beijing, China iTunes was selling on its iTunes Store a Tibetan album. Due to the political unrest between Tibet and China, the Chinese government blocked the use of the iTunes Store Parts of iTunes are blocked in China; access to iTunes store is completely restricted in the majority of China. (Branigan 2008) Next is Economic, which looks at how Apple iTunes will be affected by the macroeconomic environment. The UK economy still remains in a recession which has effects for all of Apple iTunes potential customers within the UK market, consumers are unlikely to be willing to purchase luxury goods such as the music iTunes offer within its online store. This is due to levels of disposable income is not at the levels of previous times, also due to low levels of disposable income Apple iTunes will see very few new customers as people who have not experienced downloading music before may not even have a computer so will not go out and purchase one in these times. Although many experts believe the UK economy will begin to show some growth in the near future, the economy will still be in a recession, officially the recession has not yet ended. Analysts believe that fourth quarter figures will show the economy returning to growth. (BBC Business News 2009) It is extremely important for Apple to be a ware of the economic factors within the macro environment. Thirdly social, this looks at the demographics and the trends within the market which Apple iTunes operate within. This part of the PESTLE analysis will outline a few key trends which detail the market place Apple iTunes operate within. * 16-24 year olds are more likely to favour downloading music.(Mintel 2009) * Over 45s are less likely to download, due to being concerned about quality and equipment and compatibility issues, this is linked to the understanding of technical development, also unsure what is legal and what is not. (Mintel 2009) * The amount of Internet usage is a massive influence on consumers views. (Mintel 2009) The above trends allow Apple iTunes to target certain sectors of the market place, they would look to continue to target their products to the 16-24 market place, but would look to develop a bigger customer group within the over 45s by possibly educating these customers on how iTunes works. Next is Technological, technology is changing constantly at an unprecedented rate and has created many opportunities which Apple iTunes have adopted. The broadband revolution has meant a facility has been created for consumers to access music at a reduced price compared to standard hard copy media. Also continued innovation by Apple for new products, such as the lasts iPhone 3GS has meant more people are using the iTunes service, fastest, most powerful iPhone yet the 3GS (Blake 2009) The Music industry has radically changed in the last couple of years due to technology, thanks to the increasing penetration of broadband, which has made it increasingly convenient for music lovers to buy via the web, this has the effect of promoting digital downloads. Environmental is the fifth factor of the PESTEL framework this looks at the how the performance of Apple iTunes effects the environment which they operate within. Apple is aware of the environmental factors within the industry and is trying to offset the damages they cause, We account for everything, including out products. Apple reports environmental impact comprehensively, we do this by focusing on our products what when we design them, what happens when we make them and what happens when you take them home and use them. (Apple Environment 2010) Apple seems to be very aware about that negative impacts of production and of consumers using their products, they are aware of the need for themselves to be socially responsible. Finally legal, this is a massive aspect for a firm such as Apple iTunes as there are many legal aspects to how they operate within the market place. Also it is important they are aware of the illegal actions potential customers carry out within the market. Illegal downloads is continuing to grow despite the many actions carried out across the industry, The issue of illegal downloading remains a problem that is set to persist. Although various efforts are being made by those in the sector to minimise the problem there is no easy solution. (Mintel 2007) Below are two key findings for the UK market which Apple iTunes need to be aware of as it shows that UK consumers are attracted to the prospect of illegal downloads. * Consumers favour illegal downloads due to their lack of cost. * Heavy downloaders are further encourages to continue by the lack of legislation against file sharing from the authorities. (Mintel 2007) 4.2 Industry Life Cycle The industry life cycle is the supply-side equivalent of the product life cycle; it is made up of four key phases, Introduction (Emergence), Growth, Maturity and Decline. There are two main factors which are fundamental which lead to industry evolution; they are demand growth and the creation and diffusion of knowledge. Demand growth is when the life cycle and the changes with in it are defined primarily by changes in an industries growth rate over time. The second major driving force of the industry life cycle is knowledge. New knowledge in the form of production innovation is responsible for an industrys creation. The dual process of both knowledge creation and knowledge diffusion is to exert a major influence on industry evolution. (Grant 2005) Apple iTunes are positioned on the industry life cycle on the maturity stage, (Appendix 4) they have just entered the maturity stage from experiencing rapid growth to be the market leaders in digital music distribution. They show many of the characteristics of the maturity stage, they are dealing with the mass market having many millions of customers although they need to be aware that potential customers now are begging to become more sensitive to price due to the current economic climate but more so due to the ever increasing competition of price within the market place. The omnipresent iTunes has triumphed over its digital-market competition, providing three-quarters of the online sales in the market. But it isnt the only show in town: there is a huge amount of competition, not just on the service offered but mainly on the price which music is sold for. (Robin 2008) Other characteristics which show that Apple iTunes are in the maturity stage are that they are introducing new produ cts that are continually being innovative by adapting the iTunes service, such as adding additions to the iTunes Store and extra features. 5. Micro Environmental Factors The Micro Environment factors are that what affects an organisations immediate area of operations. It affects the decision making and the overall performance of the business; the factors which it looks at are customers, distribution channels and competitors. (Grant 2005) In this section of the report I will look to adapt the porters five forces model which will then be applied to Apple iTunes, which will allow for analysing the five key forces that shape the industry. 5.1 Porters 5 Forces Porters five forces analysis helps firms to analyse the strength of competitive threats and is particularly useful to Apple iTunes as it allows them to analyse the competitive environment. The model focuses on the competition and the bargaining power in the supply chain suppliers through to customers. The model is made up of five forces they are threat of new entrants, bargaining power of buyers, threat of substitutes, bargaining power of suppliers and the industry competitors. (Masterson 2004) Firstly threat of new entrants this looks at the activities of potential competitors as well as existing competitors within the market place. In 2007 the major record labels began to realise that they had given iTunes too much power over the digital music market and were able to dictate the price they wanted to pay to the major record labels, Apple iTunes was now the biggest firm in the industry with over 80% of the market. As a result, the record companies decided to drop DRM completely and encourage other delivery companies to enter the industry they needed some competition for Apple. (Lynch 2009) DRM free tracks were introduced to create new entrants into the market, which it has succeeded in doing which has meant Apple iTunes now has many major competitors to its dominance. iTunes have the highest market share in the industry at present and due to the increased competition that has developed but they still have not taken away iTunes dominance, new firms who come into the market must be aware that the only way they are going to be successful is if they are innovative. Also to prevent new entrants into the market iTunes has the power to set a price for its downloads at whatever it sees fit due to how successful and respected the Apple brand is, this price may be lower than what new firms into the market may be able to afford which would prevent them from competing in the market. Next is the bargaining power of Apple iTunes suppliers this will look at the relationships developed between the record labels and how these relationships have changed over time. iTunes suppliers are the record labels such as such as Universal, Sony, Warner Music and EMI, in 2009 they believed that they could make more money out of the industry by making iTunes charge more for the tracks which they sell in there iTunes store. Apple were made to charge 99p for their highest price track, the music labels insisted that it would be in Apples interest for future development of the industry as it would mean more revenue to be available to promote new artists and prevent piracy. Apple iTunes caved in to pressure from the record companies and introduced variable pricing yesterday, raising the top price for a song to 99p. (Ahmed 2009) Originally before the record industry decided to offer DRM free tracks, iTunes were the only business in the market and they had complete control over the recor d labels and could charge the prices they wanted. But now due to the increased competition the record labels want to create iTunes now have to listen to their suppliers more, and sometimes take on board what they recommend even if they dont believe it will have a positive impact on their business. Thirdly is the bargaining power of the buyers these are customers who use the Apple iTunes service; this will look at what power the customers have over iTunes. iTunes is the largest service online which offers users the ability to download digital music, but customers within the UK are extremely price sensitive especially in this current economic climate where currently the UK is in recession (BBC Business News 2009) When services such as Amazon are offering users the chance to download identical digital music tracks which are DRM free for 29p compared to iTunes 99p consumers may wish to use Amazons service rather than iTunes. Amazon, the online retailer, cut the price of many of its top-selling music downloads on Monday to 29p as it competes for a larger share of the digital music market. (Ahmed 2009) The next force which the model looks at is the threat of substitutes within the market, the market is full of competitors but the majority are very similar to the service which iTunes offers its customers. The threat of substitutes though is great, due to the industry which iTunes operates within. Technology is ever developing, if a new firm was to enter the market and adapt new technology which no other firm had looked at, they would be an innovative service which may be looked upon by consumers as something different and one which they may want to try and use on a regular basis. It is vitally important that Apple iTunes continues to innovate by introducing new ideas and features to its products so that they continue to be the market leaders. As with Amazon in the Ahmed 2009 article, iTunes were persuaded to increase their prices even though Amazon who are trying to gain a foothold into the market continued to have their prices 70p cheaper per track, which could lead Amazon becoming a substitute to the service which iTunes offers. (Ahmed 2009) Finally the inter rivalry of competitors this looks at various factors such as competitive edge, price wars and the market growth rate etc. The digital music market is highly competitive; the market is growing very rapidly. The main aspect of the market is that every business within the market are selling the same digital music to which iTunes are offering all at different prices, this is due the record labels introducing DRM free tracks to create competition for iTunes within the music download market. iTunes are not the cheapest within the market place but have been able to develop a brand image which has led them to major success, they are the market leaders and continue to innovate new successful products. 6. SWOT Analysis SWOT analysis is a general management tool, which consists of four main factors. Two of which are internal factors which look at the micro environment they are the strengths and weaknesses of Apple iTunes. Whilst the other two factors are external to the business looking at the macro environment they are the opportunities and threats of the industry Apple iTunes operates within and are unable to change. Strength is something that iTunes has or something that it carries out, that is considerably better than its competitors. iTunes is a service which is owned and run by Apple; they are a very successful company who have developed many different products such as computers and in more recent years the leading portable media player the iPod. (Apple 2010) The strength of their brand image and its loyal band of customers has meant that iTunes has been able to build on the success of previous products to ensure that Apple iTunes is a success. Relationships were created with the leading record labels early on in the development of iTunes so that they could become the industry leaders in the market; by 2008 they had 80% of the market. (Lynch 2009) The strengths of iTunes are that it is a service offered by a business which has already had major success in the market place with the leading digital music player the iPod, users who have an iPod automatically use iTunes to put music onto their pl ayer which has meant they have been massively successful. Weaknesses are parts of iTunes that are worse than the competition within the market or aspects of iTunes which they could improve upon. iTunes have been forced by record labels to make the cost of using their service higher than many of its competitors; iTunes highest price for the latest music in the charts is 99p where as the main competitor which is Amazon has their highest track at 79p. Amazon is already in second place in terms of market share for digital music, although it started its service only 18 months ago. (Ahmed 2009) In recent times it is believed that Apple are worried that they may be close to market saturation in the future due to not seeing any increase in the sales of their digital music player the iPod which is the hardware which is directly linked to iTunes. Traders were worried by news that iPod sales were no higher than in the previous year. It is vitally important that Apple continue to innovate new products to continue the dominance of Apple iTunes. (Clark 2 008) Opportunities are developments in the external environment which iTunes could look to adapt into their business to improve the service which they offer to their customers. Technology is ever developing and Apple iTunes continually need to be aware of the developments so they are early adopters and can implement the changes into the services they offer their customers. Recently iTunes has developed new features such as television episodes, video and applications which have been added to the iTunes service. But the next opportunity which they could look to adopt is the potential to read books, magazines and newspapers on say for example the latest iPod. Apple is believed to be looking into this, following the market leaders Sony into this market. There are electronic reading devices in existence already, such as Sonys e-Reader and Amazons Kindle. But, publishers hope the unquestioned design talents of Apple will ensure that its latest product is the vehicle that enables them to transfo rm their business models. After all, the iPod has converted millions to the idea of paying to download songs and, to a degree, has revived the music industry, becoming the worlds largest music retailer in the process. (Burrell 2010) Threats are something that is going on in Apple iTunes external environment which is likely to cause them potential future problems. Apple iTunes have been hit by the increasing problem of illegal downloading, which had the effect of devaluing the music for an entire generation of youth. It is estimated that over 95% of all music downloaded is done via illegal methods, which means the music industry and services such as iTunes lose out on the revenue gained by these potential extra sales. Despite strong growth in digital music sales, the industry body for world music estimated that more than 95% of downloaded music was not paid for. (Mostrous 2010) 7. Future Success for Apple iTunes There are many factors involved when discussing if there is potential for future success for Apple iTunes, the report above has look at the industry/market which Apple iTunes operate within and then used that analysis to look at both the micro and macro environment using various models to analyse the prospect of future success for Apple iTunes. There are many factors involved when discussing if there is potential for future success for Apple iTunes, in January 2009 the BPI predicted that the UK spend over  £600 million on digital music in 2012. (Mintel 2009) This should allow Apple iTunes to see that there is still some potential growth within the market even though Apple are worried that they may be close to saturation within the market, due to the sales of the iPod not increasing from 2008 to 2009. Continually there seems to be growth within the industry from 2004-2009 at a massive rate of 340%, (Appendix 2) this rate increase over that period is not going to be sustainable into the future in the current market place due the increased competition and the increased level of illegal downloading activity. iTunes should be aware of this, but if there are more and more successful artists being introduced into the industry there is still potential for more growth in the market for Apple iTunes. DRM free tracks introduced into the market in 2007 meant that Apple had gone from being the only major player in the market, to an industry which now has hundreds of competitors. This meant consumers had much more choice of where they should purchase there digital music from. The record companies realised that Apple had gained dominance of the music on-line delivery i

Teacher Cadet Essay

Often times we do not consider how a teacher has influenced us. Teachers influence whether we realize it or not can alter a student’s perspective on life. A great many of my previous teachers have left a lasting impression on me that will never be forgotten. I do admit there were much contentment, anguish and memorable things that directly connects me to them. Without my teachers, it is highly impossible for me to stand and be here today. One name in particular stands firm among others and that is Mr. Jesse L. Barrett. Mr. Barrett was my English II Honors teacher my sophomore year in high school. Sadly, he was only my English teacher for one year. I honestly could not have asked for a better teacher. At the same time as making me smile and laugh, he ultimately helped me to be successful in life. Initially, I did not enjoy English as much anymore due to a bad string of teachers who lectured endlessly on random topics other than English. He changed my outlook on life and helped me regain my passion for English. Mr. Barrett motivated me to not settle for mediocre work and to do my absolute best in anything I strived for. I never imagined that I would encounter a teacher that was as meticulous as Mr. Barrett. Everything he did had a specific place and order. He never accepted late work because we were in an honors class that required you to be punctual. This taught me how to be prompt, a skill that will help when I attend college next fall. Mr. Barrett honestly loved teaching and you could hear it in his voice; the way he would sound so excited when we read the Great Gatsby. He creates this atmosphere that causes students to feel comfortable and at ease. Everyone anticipated going to class and were quick to engage in current book discussions. Conveying information to students so they will fully comprehend the standard is his specialty. Although he was very kind and helpful when any issue developed, he was a very strict and concerned educator. Discipline was highly enforced in his classroom which influenced me to be the best student I could possibly be. Mr. Barrett has this method where he asks for input and invites the student to participate in class activities. For example, He would divide the class into groups according to our grade averages. Using this method, I quickly discovered that students in the group are in fact helping one another in answering the questions. It is a very exceptional way in learning English. During the activity, students can consult him and ask questions as well. Before the class ends, he would take out 10 to 20 minutes to summarize his teaching and sometimes even motivate us with stories that he encounters during his days outside of school. Whether he knows it or not, Mr. Barrett has influenced me tremendously. It is amazing how one individual can have such an impact on students. He simply guided me to success and I am honored to have been in such a rigorous and competitive class. Challenging me was really the driving force that connected me to him because I never felt as if the work was too easy or vague. Today, I honestly still believe he has helped me in such a way that it will follow me into my post-secondary career.

Hcs430 Master

| Course Design GuideCollege of Natural SciencesHCS/430 Version 5Legal Issues in Health Care: Regulation and Compliance| Copyright  © 2012, 2011, 2009, 2006, 2004 by University of Phoenix. All rights reserved. Course Description This course covers the broad range of topics affected by health law and regulation ranging from patient rights to corporate responsibilities. Public and private health care regulatory agencies are examined as well as their impact on the operation of health care as a business. Legal issues ranging from professional malpractice to corporate wrongdoing are also discussed. PoliciesFaculty and students/learners will be held responsible for understanding and adhering to all policies contained within the following two documents: University policies: You must be logged into the student website to view this document. Instructor policies: This document is posted in the Course Materials forum. University policies are subject to change. Be sure to read the policies at the beginning of each class. Policies may be slightly different depending on the modality in which you attend class. If you have recently changed modalities, read the policies governing your current class modality.Course Materials Fremgen, B. F. (2012). Medical law and ethics: An interactive look at the decision, dilemmas, and regulations in healthcare practice today (4th ed. ). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. All electronic materials are available on the student website. Software This course will require the use of the Microsoft ® Office software listed in the University of Phoenix Hardware/Software Agreement. If you have questions regarding the terms of this agreement, please contact your academic counselor. Week One: The Legal Environment of the Health Care Industry| | Details| Due| Points|Objectives| 1. 1 Relate the general nature, sources, and functions of the law to the health care industry. 1. 2 Identify the governmental and other agencies that impact the health care industry and the regulatory scheme they administer. 1. 3 Analyze the regulatory issues and trends that impact the health care industry. 1. 4 Explain the function and process of individual and organizational licensure, accreditation, certification, and authorization. | | | Reading| Read the Week One Read Me First. | | | Reading| Read Ch. 1 of Medical Law and Ethics. | | Reading| Read Ch. 2 of Medical Law and Ethics. | | | Reading| Read Ch. 3 of Medical Law and Ethics. | | | Participation/weekly summary| Participate in class discussion. Each response should be 100+ words for substance points. The weekly summary should be 100+ words. | 4 days out of 7| . 52| Discussion Questions| Respond to weekly discussion questions, There are three DQ’s each must be between 200-300 words There will be points deducted if each DQ’s are not within the word count (200-300 words). * | Wednesday, Thursday,Friday| . 06. 04. 4| Learning Team InstructionsWeekly Team Review| Review the Week One objectives and discuss insights and questions that may have arisen. | | | Learning Team InstructionsAssignment| Submit the Team Dispute and describe how each team member will work towards developing a finish product in week five (5). | Monday| 1. 00| IndividualArticle or Case Law Search| Note: If an assignment is late, it will be subject to a 10% PER DAY deduction, no papers are accepted after four days. Find an article or a current legal case that involves one of the following issues: [I strongly uggest you use the following as topic headings so that I can follow your paper, thanks! ]A critical regulatory issue in health careA critical regulatory issue specific to institutional health careWrite a 700- to 1,050-word analysis of the article or the legal case that explains how the issue relates to the nature, sources, and functions of the law. | Monday| 10| Week Two: Contract and Criminal Law in Health CareLabor Laws Impacting Health Care Organizations and Individuals| | Details| Due | Points| Objectives| 1 2. Identify the various components of criminal law that professionals in the health care industry must understand to avoid violations. 2. 6 Recognize the elements of enforceable contracts and the types of contracts that are applicable to health care providers. 2. 7 Describe how equal-employment opportunity laws are applied to ensure an equitable workplace. 2. 8 Define the health and safety laws that must be applied by health care organizations and providers in ensuring a safe and productive workplace. | | | Reading| Read the Week Two Read Me First. | | | Reading| Read Ch. of Medical Law and Ethics. | | | Reading| Read Ch. 8 of Medical Law and Ethics. | | | Reading| Read this week’s Electronic Reserve Readings. | | | Participation/weekly summary| Participate in class discussion. Each response should be 100+ words for substance points. The weekly summary should be 100+ words. | 4 days out of 7| . 70| Discussion Questions| Respond to weekly discussion que stions, There are three DQ’s each must be between 200-300 words There will be points deducted if each DQ’s are not within the word count (200-300 words). | Wednesday, Thursday,Friday | . 5. 75. 75| Learning Team InstructionsWeekly Team Review| Review the Week Two objectives and discuss insights and questions that may have arisen. | | | Learning Team Instructions| Submit the Learning Team Charter| Monday| 1. 00| Learning TeamEmployee Handbook Nondiscrimination Progress Summary| Submit a progress summary for the Employee Handbook Nondiscrimination assignment. Summarize, in approximately 350 words, the team’s progress on the assignment. Address the following in your summary:Which team members are responsible for which deliverables?What has worked well? What challenges have you encountered? How did you overcome those challenges? Will you change anything about the way you are working together or approaching the assignment? Why or why not? Format your paper consistent with APA guidelines. | Monday| 5. 00| IndividualRegulatory Agency Paper| Note: If an assignment is late, it will be subject to a 10% PER DAY deduction, no papers are accepted after four days. Read the instructions in the University of Phoenix Material: Regulatory Agency Paper, and select one option to complete the assignment.Select and complete one of the following assignments:————————————————- Option 1: Health Care Segment Agency PaperResource: Regulatory Agency Paper Grading Criteria * Write a 1,400- to 1,750-word paper that identifies a governmental or other agency, such as JCAHO, that governs the health care industry or a particular segment of the industry. Answer the following questions about your chosen agency: * What is the agency’s structure? * What is the organization’s effect on health care? * What is an example of the agency carrying out its dutie s? What regulatory authority does the agency have in relation to health care? * What is the agency’s process for accreditation, certification, and authorization? Cite at least two sources. Format your paper consistent with APA guidelines. ————————————————- Option 2: Prison Health Care Agency Paper Resource: Regulatory Agency Paper Grading CriteriaIdentify a governmental agency that regulates prison health care. Write a 1,400- to 1,750-word paper that explains the role and impact of the agency on prison healthcare.Answer the following questions about your chosen agency: * What is the agency’s role? * What is the agency’s impact on health care? * What is an example of the agency carrying out its duties? * What regulatory authority does the agency have in relation to health care? * What is the agency’s process for accreditation, certification, and authorization? * * Cite at least two sources. Format your paper consistent with APA guidelines. | Monday| 20| ————————————————- ———————————————— ————————————————- ————————————————- Week Three: Organizational and Professional Responsibility/Liability| | Details| Due| Points| Objectives| 2 3. 9 Describe the elements of negligence and intentional torts that could bring financial liability to health care organizations and individuals. 3. 10 Identify principles of agency law that impact responsibility and accountability in health care organizations . 3. 1 Describe standards of care and potential liability for health care professionals and organizations. 3. 12 Analyze appropriate ongoing risk management and quality assurance programs for health care. | | | Reading| Read the Week Three Read Me First. | | | Reading| Read Ch. 6 of Medical Law and Ethics. | | | Reading| Read Ch. 9 of Medical Law and Ethics. | | | Reading| Read this week’s Electronic Reserve Readings. | | | Participation/weekly summary| Participate in class discussion. Each response should be 100+ words for substance points.The weekly summary should be 100+ words. | 4 days out of 7| 1. 00| Discussion Questions| Respond to weekly discussion questions, There are three DQ’s each must be between 200-300 words There will be points deducted if each DQ’s are not within the word count (200-300 words). | Wednesday, Thursday,Friday | . 75. 75. 75| Nongraded Activities and PreparationWeek Four Preparation | Begin working on the Week Four assignments. | | | Learning Team InstructionsWeekly Team Review| Review the Week Three objectives and discuss insights and questions that may have arisen. | | Learning TeamEmployee Handbook Nondiscrimination Section | Create the â€Å"Equal-employment opportunity laws† section and the â€Å"Health and safety laws† section of the employee handbook, which must be between 1,400 to 1,750 words total. Include answers to the following questions: What nondiscrimination issues must be addressed? What should the organization’s position be in response to nondiscrimination issues? How might the nondiscrimination policy and health and safety laws impact the organization’s liability? How might the nondiscrimination policy and health and safety laws impact employees?How will you address state and federal laws regarding nondiscrimination and health and safety laws in your handbook sections? What are some ethical considerations involved in the design of these sections? What are some crimi nal law issues to consider in relationship to equal-employment opportunity laws and health and safety laws? What is your responsibility in regards to criminal law? Format your paper consistent with APA guidelines. Submit the assignment. | | 10| ————————————————- ————————————————-Week Four: Health Care Issues in the Relationships of Providers, Third-Party Payers, and Patients| | Details| Due| Points| Objectives| 3 4. 13 Describe legal issues and applicable laws that apply to and regulate managed care. 4. 14 Describe state and federal statutory and regulatory enactments relative to patients’ rights and responsibilities. 4. 15 Identify principles of patient consent and the resulting implications for the health care industry. 4. 16 Identify the status of physi cians’ rights and responsibilities in the delivery of health care. | | | Reading| Read the Week Four Read Me First. | | Reading| Read Ch. 4 of Medical Law and Ethics. | | | Reading| Read Ch. 5 of Medical Law and Ethics. | | | Reading| Read this week’s Electronic Reserve Readings. | | | Participation/weekly summary| Participate in class discussion. Each response should be 100+ words for substance points. The weekly summary should be 100+ words. | 4 days out of 7| 1. 00| Discussion Questions| Respond to weekly discussion questions, There are three DQ’s each must be between 200-300 words There will be points deducted if each DQ’s are not within the word count (200-300 words). | Wednesday, Thursday,Friday | . 4. 04. 06| Learning Team InstructionsWeekly Team Review| Review the Week Four objectives and discuss insights and questions that may have arisen. | | | Learning TeamHuman Resources Presentation Outline| Complete a slide-by-slide outline of your Human Res ources Presentation using Microsoft ® PowerPoint ®. Consider the layout and the speaker’s notes for each slide in addition to the wording on the slide. Include the following in your outline: On each slide, * list the main topics. list two or three subtopics. * In the speaker’s note section, * describe the layout or appearance of the slide. nclude a brief description of the text the speaker notes will contain. | | 5| IndividualProfessional Regulation and Criminal Liability Paper| Note: If an assignment is late, it will be subject to a 10% PER DAY deduction, no papers are accepted after four days. Research your state’s statutes that regulate health care professionals, including licensure, credentialing, certification, and registration requirements. In addition, research areas of potential criminal liability relating to these procedures, as well as professional misconduct.Write a 1,400- to 1,750-word paper that summarizes your findings in relation to one type o f health care professional, such as a physician, nurse, pharmacist, or nurse practitioner. Include the following components: * Iidentifies state statutes that regulate health care professionals. * Relates areas of potential criminal liability to regulations, as well as professional misconduct. * Iidentifies the civil complaint process for patients or consumers to use in the event of suspected professional misconduct or incompetence. Explains the role of the respective regulatory agencies in investigating allegations and determining and applying any appropriate disciplinary action. * Identifies potential criminal liabilities for the health care professional that are related to abuses perpetrated in practices involving these procedures, as well as professional misconduct. * Describes appropriate risk management strategies and quality assurance programs to reduce the risk of liability and negligence. Explains the process to follow in the event that criminal charges were filed for the d escribed criminal behavior.Format your paper consistent with APA guidelines. | | 30| ————————————————- ————————————————- Week Five: Legal Issues in Information and Technology Management| | Details| Due| Points| Objectives| 4 5. 17 Explain the components and implications of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). 5. 18 Identify all statutory, regulatory, and common law requirements of confidentiality in the health care industry. 5. 19 Explain legal and ethical obligations relating to the documentation, retention, storage, and use of medical records. . 20 Analyze the legal and ethical implications of using technology or informatics in the health care industry. | | | Reading| Read the Week Five Read Me First. | | | Reading| Read Ch. 10 of Me dical Law and Ethics. | | | Reading| Read this week’s Electronic Reserve Readings. | | | Participation| NONE IN THIS WEEK – Just the Zip thread for attendance| | | Discussion Questions| NONE IN THIS WEEK| | | Learning Team InstructionsLearning Team Evaluation| Submit the Learning Team Evaluation. Each team member must submit a separate copy to the instructor. | | Learning TeamHuman Resources Presentation | As senior members of the human resources team, you have been asked to give a presentation on the state of the union to the board of directors. The presentation must include past, present, and future legal issues. Create a 12- to 15-slide Microsoft ® PowerPoint ® presentation with detailed speaker notes summarizing your findings to the board. Use complete sentences, with correct grammar and punctuation, to fully explain each slide as if you were giving an in-person presentation.In your presentation, include at least two main points for each of the following bullet s:State and federal statutory and regulatory enactments related to patients’ rights and responsibilitiesCurrent principles of patient consent and the resulting implications for the health care industryThe current state and future trends of physicians’ rights and responsibilities in the delivery of health careCurrent components and implications of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) Brief summary of current and future trends for statutory, regulatory, and common law requirements of confidentiality in he health care industryCurrent and future legal and ethical obligations relating to the documentation, retention, storage, and use of medical records * Format your presentation consistent with APA guidelines. | | 10| ————————————————- ———————————— Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€- ————————————————- ————————————————- ————————————————- ————————————————- ———————————————— ————————————————- Points for each week below: ————————————————- ————à ¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€- ————————————————- Points: ASSIGNMENT| WK 1| WK 2| WK 3| WK 4| WK 5| Participation| 0. 52| 0. 70| 1. 00| 1. 00|   | DQ 1| 0. 06| 0. 75| 0. 75| 0. 04|   | DQ 2| 0. 04| 0. 75| 0. 75| 0. 04|   | DQ 3| 0. 04| 0. 75| 0. 75| 0. 06|   | Team Dispute| 1. 00|   |   |   |   | Case Law/Individual| 10. 0|   |   |   |   | Team Charter|   | 1. 00|   |   |   | Regulatory Agency/Individual|   | 20. 00|   |   |   | Summary of Research|   | 5. 00|   |   |   | Employee Handbook|   |   | 10. 00|   |   | Regulatory/Criminal/Individual|   |   |   | 30. 00|   | Team PowerPoint|   |   |   | 5. 00|   | Team Final Project PowerPoint|   |   |   |   | 10. 00| Course point total – 100| 11. 66| 28. 95| 13. 25| 36. 14| 10. 00| Note: If an assignment is late, it will be subject to a 10% PER DAY deduction; no papers are accepted after four days. ————————————————-

Biology Evolution, Energy, Information, And Systems

Biology, the study of life and living organisms, is complex and encompasses a multitude of theories and ideas. In AP Biology, the fourth unit covered was genetics. Chapters 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, and 18 in the textbook, Campbell’s Biology in Focus, not only discusses the four main ideas of biology: evolution, energy, information, and systems, but it also gives examples of each in order to help guide the reader’s understanding of the concepts. The first big idea of AP Biology is: â€Å"the process of evolution drives the diversity and unity of life.† Chapter 11 in the textbook encompasses this main idea through discussing alleles, phenotypic variations, and genetic variation. An individual receives two alleles, different versions of a†¦show more content†¦Another factor affecting populations is genetic diseases and disorders. X-linked recessive diseases most often occur and males (which they inherited from their mothers), since men only have one X chromo some and a single recessive gene, without a dominant one to cover it up, will be expressed. For example, hemophilia, a condition in which the ability of blood to clot is severely reduced, was spread to royal families across Europe, including the thrones of Britain, Germany, France, Russia, and Spain, after Queen Victoria, a carrier of the disease, passed it to many of her descendants. The AP Biology course’s second key concept is: â€Å"biological systems utilize energy and molecular building blocks to grow, reproduce, and to maintain homeostasis.† One of the main points encompassed in this idea is cell differentiation, the process by which cells specialize in structure and function, highlighted in chapter 16. Cell specialization is an overarching concept that connects to the idea that the coordination of specific events is necessary for the normal development of an organism. In an embryo, cytoplasmic determinants, material substances in an egg that influence the course of development, receive signals from the environment and neighboring cells. The uneven distribution of these molecules creates gradients that determine the orientation, such as the anterior and posterior, of the organism.Show MoreRelatedEvolution Of A Common Single Celled Origin1278 Words   |  6 PagesIn the course of AP Biology, there are four â€Å"Big Ideas†. The first one is â€Å"The process of evolution drives the diversity and unity of life†. The second is â€Å"Biological systems utilize free energy and molecular building blocks to grow, to reproduce and to maintain dynamic homeostasis†. 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