Unit 6D tnlriting TASK B (pase oae)

Checklist for evaluating paragraphs

o Have you included material from at least two sources?
r Does the paragraph develop the topic clearly and logically?
r Do the citations support your main argument?
. Have you used a range of reporting verbs / structures?
. Are the references correctly presented in terms of names, dates, spelling,
and punctuation?

Unit 88 Speaking TASK Z (page roe)

IEE
Technology opens up many domestic and foreign opportunities for businesses who are ready to take
advantage of them.

Opportunities
New goods and services - Companies can create new and improved goods and services, r,evive old
products, and consequently enter new markets. Furthermore, as a result of innovation, they can also
more valuable products, designs, and brand names. The
_ejqgC with large market shares and have
banish firm Lego is a good example of a firm using technology to rerlew a d*linrng product, the toy
building brick. The Lego brick is now sold with electronic tethnology, allowing customers to build a
range of moving robots,
Global organization - Technology makes it easier for a company to become global. lt can also be
economically active in many different locations. Technology has therefore made the rapid growth of
the multinational corporation easier. Companies can now have subsidiaries in many countries, but
their business strategies, production, and distribution can still be controllA by their head office in
one country. So, for exampletmultinational corporations like Unilever are able to employ around a
quarter of a million people in 100 countries and sell their products in 150 countries.
Small firms - Technology can make it easier for small firms to compete with large ones. For example,
the internet enables allfirms to communicate with f ustomers both at a national and at international
level, and to sell their goods and services at relatively low cost, Small'companies can design their
own websites for as little as a few thousand pounds. Firms producing for niche markets, can use the
web to reach customers who are of little interest to larger distributors such as the American firm GLOSSARY
Wal-Mart. niche market (n) a small and
specialized market
souRCEr Hamilton, L. & Webster, P (2009). p,199. fhe hternotional Business Environmenl Oxford: oxford subsidiaries (n p/) smaller
University Press. companies partly or wholly owned
by another company
Unit 88 SPeaking TASK 5 lqlF:10?l

@
TechnologY and Business
Whiletechnologyoffersmanyopportunitiesforbusinesses,itcanalsoposemanythreatsand
challenges.
Businesseshavetopreparefornewtechnologyandtotakeadvantageoftheopportunities
offeredbytechnologytodevelopnewproductsandnewmethodsofproductionanddistribution,
tocreatenewmarkets,andtotakeadvantageofnewwaysoforganizingtheirbusiness.lnnovation are not
and it can be risky, especially for firms who
involves changes in products or processes
goodatmanagingchangeeffectively,becausenewproductsmaynotsucceedandnewproduction
processesmaynotdelivertheexpectedbenefits'Mostinnovationsfail.lnlTprojects,thefailUrerate
intheUKhasbeenestimatedbyanalystsatmorethanBo%andthatratehasnotchangedmuch
since the mid-1990s.
lffirmsarenotprepared,newtechnologycanresultinthemgoingoutofbusiness.Theeconomist
JosephSchumpetercalledthistheprocessof,creativedestruction'.Hearguedthatinnovationover
aperiodoftime,bybringinginnewproducts,newsourcesofsupply,andnewtypesoforganisation
the chief
could create a form of competition that
threatens a company's very existence. For example,
executiVeofProctorandCamblesaid,,Peopleaskmewhatllosesleepover.lfsomeoneannounced
analternativetoWashingpowderforlaundry,suddenlyl,VegotanUSsllbillionbusinessthat,sat
retailer, underestimated the threat
Times,22December 2005) HMV the UK music
risk,(Financiol price fell
physical cDs and in music downloading lts share
from online competition both in terms of
sharply.
EvenfirmsWithmonopolypositionscanfindthemselvesthreatenedbynewtechnology'ln
thetelecommUnicationsinou,t,v,nationalmonopolistssuchasBlDeutscheTelekomandFrance
Telecomwhoownednetworksoftelephonelines,foundthemselvesunderthreatfrommobile
systems'
phone companies and from firms using satellite
may come from outside existing boundaries of an industry' companies like
such competition
Amazon,usingtheWebasanewbusinessmodel,havemadeasignificantimpactontraditional
digital technology
provide a greater choice of books' it also uses
booksellers. Not only does Amazon internet has
millions of pages ln the travel business' the
that allows customers to read extracts from providers in
and established airlines' and the new online
created competition between travel agents the travel
have shaken up
a battle to win customers. online agents
such as Expedia and rravelocity

bookingbusiness,whilelow.costairtineslikeRyanairandeasyjethaveusedtheinternettocutthe
costsoftheirreservationSystems.Thishasmadethemevenmorepricecompetitive,andhasforced
theirestablishedrivals,,u.n.,BA,AirFranceandKLM,toextendtheironlinereservationservice.
Asaconsequence,moreandmoreflightsandtrlpsarebeingbookedovertheinternetratherthan
throughcallcentresorhigh-Streettravelagents.Somecommentatorsestimatedthatonlinebooking airline
billion travel market in zo05' US railway and
accounted for a third ot"tne usR', U55200
onrine (The Economist, 29 september 2005)'
customers book armost harf o{ their trips

tjonol Business Environment 0xford: 0xford

UniversitY Press