monster hunter marketing analysis
TRANSCRIPT
Erik Faust
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Conquering the West:
Should CAPCOM change the Marketing Mix for the Monster Hunter brand in
European and US markets?
Erik Faust
+49 152 51660967
Liebigstraße 19
26871 Papenburg
Lower Saxony, Germany
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I. Table Of Contents 2
II. Introduction 3
III. Findings 7
1. SWOT & The Current Marketing Mix 7
2. Fishbone Analysis 9
IV. Analysis 10
1. Improving Promotion & Lewins Force Field 10
2. Human Resources Analysis 11
3. Financial Analysis 12
V. Conclusions and Recommendations 13
VI. Works Cited 15
VII. Appendix 17
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II. Introduction
CAPCOM is a Japanese public limited company operating on the highly competitive
video game market. One of its Boston Matrix ‘Star’ series is the brand ‘Monster
Hunter’ (MH)1. The video game series entered the Japanese market in 20042 and soon
experienced an immense market growth. A high product quality and regular
innovation3 caused sales of the Monster Hunter brand to become a key revenue stream
for its owners. MH4U became one of the best-selling video games in CAPCOMs
history4 in 2015. Currently, the financial situation of CAPCOM is looking well5.
Sales figures and a multitude of positive reviews6 are Key Performance indicators for
both marketing and finance in Japan.
Today, MH is omnipresent in the native
gaming industry7. The product portfolio of
the family brand has been diversified to
encompass a manga8 series, action figures,
clothing, jewelry and other merchandise.
The series is even said to be a social phenomenon9,
leading to an incredible customer loyalty and identity as well as brand awareness.
1 CAPCOM CO., LTD. "Financial Review." CAPCOM. February 3, 2015. Accessed March 11, 2015. 2 Hayashi, M. Kirie. Monster Hunter Illustrations. 1st ed. Vol. 1. Udon Entertainment, 2011. 3 Warruz, Mitch. "Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate Needs a Wii U Release to Expand in the West." Pause Your Game.
February 12, 2015. Accessed March 11, 2015. 4Kaszor, Daniel. "Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate Review: Unwelcoming but Shockingly Deep, MH4 Could Steal
Destiny Players." Financial Post. February 23, 2015. Accessed March 15, 2015. 5 CAPCOM CO., LTD. "Financial Review." CAPCOM. February 3, 2015. Accessed March 11, 2015. 6 Kaszor, Daniel. "Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate Review: Unwelcoming but Shockingly Deep, MH4 Could Steal
Destiny Players." Financial Post. February 23, 2015. Accessed March 15, 2015. 7 Nakamura, Toshi. "Why Monster Hunter Is So Popular In Japan (And Struggles Everywhere Else)." Kotaku.
January 1, 2013. Accessed March 15, 2015. 8 Hayashi, M. Kirie. Monster Hunter Illustrations. 1st ed. Vol. 1. Udon Entertainment, 2011. 9 Nakamura, Toshi. "Why Monster Hunter Is So Popular In Japan (And Struggles Everywhere Else)." Kotaku.
January 1, 2013. Accessed March 15, 2015.
Monster Hunter Phone Cases
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Customers may collaborate and play together, and this social interaction in one of the
unique-selling-points for MH games10. To strengthen the MH brand, the business
organizes fan
gatherings11 as a form
of below-the-line
promotion.
In western markets
however, Monster
Hunter has yet to reach
this market leader
position12. While
customer loyalty is
strong13, brand awareness is not as large as in Japan14.
Market growth with the domestic target segments is limited, as the MH brand may
reach a saturation point. With a view to further market growth, the public limited
company may consider market penetration on European and US markets as a growth
strategy.
Analysing PEST factors with a view to the customer, we find that cultural and social
factors amount to different demands on the markets CAPCOM is operating on15.
10 Nakamura, Toshi. "Why Monster Hunter Is So Popular In Japan (And Struggles Everywhere Else)." Kotaku.
January 1, 2013. Accessed March 15, 2015. 11 Nakamura, Toshi. "Why Monster Hunter Is So Popular In Japan (And Struggles Everywhere Else)." Kotaku.
January 1, 2013. Accessed March 15, 2015. 12 Stanton, Rich. "Why Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate Could Already Be the Game of the Year." The Guardian.
March 17, 2015. Accessed March 19, 2015. 13 Warruz, Mitch. "Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate Needs a Wii U Release to Expand in the West." Pause Your
Game. February 12, 2015. Accessed March 11, 2015. 14 Warruz, Mitch. "Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate Needs a Wii U Release to Expand in the West." Pause Your
Game. February 12, 2015. Accessed March 11, 2015.
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Culturally, western customers are more frustrated about not understanding the product
and there is a greater demand for storyline16. Technological factors amount to another
difference. The gaming platform market is an oligopoly with several market leaders.
Any video game is playable only on these platforms, which for CAPCOM means that
there are a large number of potential target segments. This is visualized in Figures 2
and 3. Also, in Europe and the US, stationary consoles have a larger market share than
portable platforms17.
Independent ratings are a KPI allowing CAPCOM to benchmark with the competition - and visualize continuous
improvement
15 Nakamura, Toshi. "Why Monster Hunter Is So Popular In Japan (And Struggles Everywhere Else)." Kotaku.
January 1, 2013. Accessed March 15, 2015. 16 Ching Yi Ngai, Anita, “Cultural Influences On Video Games: Players’ Preferences In Narrative And Game-
Play” (Master Thesis., University of Waterloo, 2004). 17 Warruz, Mitch. "Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate Needs a Wii U Release to Expand in the West." Pause Your
Game. February 12, 2015. Accessed March 11, 2015.
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III. Findings
Figure 4: SWOT Analysis (Monster Hunter in Western Markets)
Strengths Weaknesses
Strong brand loyalty
High quality innovative product
Low price18
Large amount of financial resources19
Existing distribution channels for other
game series
High purchase power of customers20
Very helpful online community21
o Contributes to brand image
o Causes several opportunities
Lack of brand awareness
Lack of social and cultural market
knowledge
o Effective promotion strategies not
established
o Especially in recreational
markets, intrinsic market
knowledge is necessary22
Product based on Japanese market
research
Opportunities Threats
Marketing the social interaction of the
game23 (Social)
o Opportunity for word-by mouth
promotion24
Using popularity of YouTube channels
for promotion (Technological)
No Market Saturation (Economic)
New western investors as an external
source of finance (Economic)
12 year minimum rating allows for a
large customer range (Legal)
Violent competing games blamed for
violence (Political, Ethical)
Current game said to be the ‘most
accessible to western customer25 (Social)
Many existing fan forums26 may be used
to promote the game (Social)
Strong, established competition
(Economic)
o Larger brand awareness and
knowledge of western markets
Loss of financial resources in case of
failure (Economic)
More fragmented market, larger number
of target segments (Economic, Social)
Threat of online piracy (Social)
Sony products becoming more popular
than Nintendo consoles (Economic)
Smaller demand for fantasy games,
shooting games more popular (Social)
18 Kaszor, Daniel. "Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate Review: Unwelcoming but Shockingly Deep, MH4 Could Steal
Destiny Players." Financial Post. February 23, 2015. Accessed March 15, 2015. 19 CAPCOM CO., LTD. "Financial Review." CAPCOM. February 3, 2015. Accessed March 11, 2015. 20 Huber, Brooks. "4 Facts About Content Marketing to Gamers." Business Community. March 11, 2015.
Accessed March 15, 2015. 21 Stanton, Rich. "Why Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate Could Already Be the Game of the Year." The Guardian.
March 17, 2015. Accessed March 19, 2015. 22 Huber, Brooks. "4 Facts About Content Marketing to Gamers." Business Community. March 11, 2015.
Accessed March 15, 2015. 23 Stanton, Rich. "Why Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate Could Already Be the Game of the Year." The Guardian.
March 17, 2015. Accessed March 19, 2015. 24 Nakamura, Toshi. "Why Monster Hunter Is So Popular In Japan (And Struggles Everywhere Else)." Kotaku.
January 1, 2013. Accessed March 15, 2015. 25 Kaszor, Daniel. "Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate Review: Unwelcoming but Shockingly Deep, MH4 Could Steal
Destiny Players." Financial Post. February 23, 2015. Accessed March 15, 2015.
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1. The Current Marketing Mix
Product: CAPCOM on western markets offers a video game for the target segment of
portable gaming27. The games are of a high quality and CAPCOM regularly conducts
research and development with a view to innovation28. This is advocated by the Kaizen
school of management. Product tutorials are hard to understand, which is a
disadvantage on the western market. The Price is comparably low.
People: Cultural and social factors create a difference in demands CAPCOMs target
markets. This results in a lack of cultural market knowledge and expertise for
CAPCOM employees that conduct westward marketing.
Packaging: The packaging for MH products is artistically designed. At the same time,
the cases display the mascot of the game; currently a two-legged Dragon. This beast is
not common in western culture, and may not appeal to the customer.
Promotion: Advertising so far has been unsuccessful, if not even detrimental29, as for
example the video clip for MH330, which failed to represent either the Monster Hunter
corporate identity or the content of the game31. The unique-selling-point, the
multiplayer, is not emphasized in promotion32.
26 Kaszor, Daniel. "Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate Review: Unwelcoming but Shockingly Deep, MH4 Could Steal
Destiny Players." Financial Post. February 23, 2015. Accessed March 15, 2015. 27 Nakamura, Toshi. "Why Monster Hunter Is So Popular In Japan (And Struggles Everywhere Else)." Kotaku.
January 1, 2013. Accessed March 15, 2015. 28 Nakamura, Toshi. "Why Monster Hunter Is So Popular In Japan (And Struggles Everywhere Else)." Kotaku.
January 1, 2013. Accessed March 15, 2015. 29 Warruz, Mitch. "Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate Needs a Wii U Release to Expand in the West." Pause Your
Game. February 12, 2015. Accessed March 11, 2015.. 30 Monster Hunter, Official Youtube Channel. "Monster Hunter Tri - Crabs." YouTube. February 23, 2010.
Accessed March 11, 2015. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lTheDJt8kIY. 31 Warruz, Mitch. "Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate Needs a Wii U Release to Expand in the West." Pause Your
Game. February 12, 2015. Accessed March 11, 2015. 32 Nakamura, Toshi. "Why Monster Hunter Is So Popular In Japan (And Struggles Everywhere Else)." Kotaku.
January 1, 2013. Accessed March 15, 2015.
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2. Figure 5: Fishbone Analysis
Several factors amount to the largest
problem Monster Hunter faces: The
lack of brand awareness. The large
customer loyalty suggests that once a
customer has purchased a product,
he/she is satisfied with it. However,
small sales figures lead to the
conclusion, that potential customers
have not been attracted to the product
by appropriate promotion.
As can be seen in this
fishbone, a majority of
causes is related to
promotion. Hence, this
analysis suggests an
improvement in westward
Monster Hunter marketing.
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IV. Analysis
1. Improving Promotion
The fishbone and the SWOT show, that CAPCOM should adjust its promotion
strategy. These tools reveal, that the culture gap causes a lack of social and
cultural market expertise, in turn resulting in promotion that does not appeal to
the potential customer. To conduct more efficient promotion, CAPCOM should
gain more knowledge of their potential customers33. They may consider
establishing a separate marketing department for MH in the western markets.
Figure 6: Lewins Force Field
33 Huber, Brooks. "4 Facts About Content Marketing to Gamers." Business Community. March 11, 2015.
Accessed March 15, 2015.
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The weighting of the driving and restraining forces suggests the appropriateness of this
expansion strategy. Such an investment is only possible, if the necessary financial
resources required are present and the Human Resources management can overcome
the culture gap.
2. Human Resources Analysis
In order to apply effective marketing, CAPCOM should invest into a marketing
department in a strategically advantageous position. This team would organize fan
gatherings to strengthen the brand image and conduct primary market research to
continuously improve the Monster Hunter brand image. Elton Mayo proved in the
Hawthorne study, that such a team would work most productively in natural groups.
The company has two options to guarantee this relationship-based motivation, which is
advocated by Herzberg.
1. Promote workers and send them to the newly established department. This use
of the Peter Principle motivates workers; further the marketing team would
already be familiar with the Monster Hunter brand and the CAPCOM corporate
culture. A drawback is that the workers would need to be trained about the
western market. This could be a competitive disadvantage.
2. Hire a team of marketing experts locally. Their benefit would be the appropriate
market knowledge. However, the employees would need to be trained in the
corporate values. External recruitment is costly and time-consuming. In
communication with the CAPCOM headquarters, the culture gap may also
harm communication.
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3. Financial Analysis
Distribution channels are already established, as CAPCOM offers other products on
the European and North American markets. Hence, infrastructure-related costs would
not increase significantly. Establishing a new department however is a large
investment, and CAPCOM will have to consider its finance. From CAPCOMs balance
sheet34 I have calculated the following ratios.
𝐶𝑢𝑟𝑟𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑅𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜 =𝐶𝑢𝑟𝑟𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝐴𝑠𝑠𝑒𝑡𝑠
𝐶𝑢𝑟𝑟𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝐿𝑖𝑎𝑏𝑖𝑙𝑖𝑡𝑖𝑒𝑠× 100% =
66,506
25,547× 100% = 230%
This ratio represents CAPCOMs current liquidity. It is able to pay back creditors at the
moment.
𝐺𝑒𝑎𝑟𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑅𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜 =𝐿𝑜𝑎𝑛𝑠
𝐸𝑞𝑢𝑖𝑡𝑦× 100% =
32,735
65,593× 100% = 49.9%
The gearing ratio is a measure of financial leverage, to what degree a firm is able to
finance its own investments. CAPCOMs gearing ratio is far below 100%, which not
only means an investment is possible, but further advocates such an investment. Due
to the Yen’s recent weakness35, retained finance depreciates, whereas investments do
not. Based on financial grounds, the investment is not only justified, but necessary.
34 CAPCOM CO., LTD. "Financial Review." CAPCOM. February 3, 2015. Accessed March 11, 2015. 35 Back, Aaron. "A Yen Too Weak Even for Japan." Wall Street Journal. March 11, 2015. Accessed March 15,
2015. http://www.wsj.com/articles/a-yen-too-weak-even-for-japanheard-on-the-street-1426129681.
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V. Conclusions and Further Recommendations
CAPCOM should look for MH market growth outside Japan. In order to establish
itself as a market leader, a western marketing department is required, seeing as
CAPCOMs social and cultural market knowledge is limited. While costly, such a
department will allow CAPCOM to analyse and respond to market opportunities
effectively and adjust its portfolio to the demands of potential customers. Experts
should be recruited externally and a matrix structure should be implemented; this way
the company allows common objectives to be set. A common goal provides a focus to
all employees, facilitates communication and allows for MBO. Also, managers will be
able to benchmark and continuously improve. To minimize the impact of the culture
gap, expatriates may be poached.
MHs brand awareness outside Japan is limited. Therefore, CAPCOM should conduct
asset-led-marketing. The greatest Monster Hunter unique-selling-points are the
innovative nature of the product36 and the social interaction while playing37 . With a
view to the first, promotion should represent this innovation, by for example showing
the unique Felyne comrades. Furthermore, the current mascot is seen as a generic
Wyvern, common to many other video games. MH management may display a more
unique creature on packaging and in trailers. Also, as a unique-selling-point,
multiplayer should be displayed all trailers.
36 Warruz, Mitch. "Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate Needs a Wii U Release to Expand in the West." Pause Your
Game. February 12, 2015. Accessed March 11, 2015. 37 Nakamura, Toshi. "Why Monster Hunter Is So Popular In Japan (And Struggles Everywhere Else)." Kotaku.
January 1, 2013. Accessed March 15, 2015.
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Further, western video game consumers demand higher-quality graphics38. In view of
its Kaizen policy of continuous improvement, CAPCOM should respond to supply this
demand, as well as the emphasis on storyline39. Large alterations to the product would
be costly, but CAPCOM may consider implementing more detailed product tutorials,
because large difficulty repels the average western gamer40.
In order to appeal to more target segments, CAPCOM should consider selling its
product not only for Nintendo, but also for Sony platforms. This would appeal to the
more stationary-console oriented western customer41. Sony would be a more
appropriate partner than Microsoft for several reasons: like CAPCOM, Sony has a
large number of Japanese employees, which will facilitate communication and avoid
the culture gap. Sony and CAPCOM have collaborated in the past42. The Sony PS4 has
entered a growth phase in 2015, meaning that there is a large customer base for games
on this platform. A joint vernture could promote Sony in Japan and CAPCOM in the
west.
MH has become popular in Japan due to the multi-player aspect of the product.
CAPCOM should 1) make it possible for Japanese and Western players to play
together to strengthen the worldwide brand identity and 2) conduct below-the-line fan
gatherings to strengthern the western brand identity.
38 Ching Yi Ngai, Anita, “Cultural Influences On Video Games: Players’ Preferences In Narrative And Game-
Play” (Master Thesis., University of Waterloo, 2004). 39 Ching Yi Ngai, Anita, “Cultural Influences On Video Games: Players’ Preferences In Narrative And Game-
Play” (Master Thesis., University of Waterloo, 2004). 40 Stanton, Rich. "Why Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate Could Already Be the Game of the Year." The Guardian.
March 17, 2015. Accessed March 19, 2015. 41 Warruz, Mitch. "Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate Needs a Wii U Release to Expand in the West." Pause Your
Game. February 12, 2015. Accessed March 11, 2015. 42 Nakamura, Toshi. "Why Monster Hunter Is So Popular In Japan (And Struggles Everywhere Else)." Kotaku.
January 1, 2013. Accessed March 15, 2015.
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VI. Works Cited
Secondary Market Research/Articles:
Huber, Brooks. "4 Facts About Content Marketing to Gamers." Business 2 Community. March 11,
2015. Accessed March 15, 2015. http://www.business2community.com/content-marketing/4-facts-
content-marketing-gamers-care-01181020.
Kaszor, Daniel. "Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate Review: Unwelcoming but Shockingly Deep, MH4
Could Steal Destiny Players." Financial Post. February 23, 2015. Accessed March 15, 2015.
http://business.financialpost.com/2015/02/23/monster-hunter-4-ultimate-review-unwelcoming-but-
shockingly-deep-mh4-could-steal-destiny-players/?__lsa=181f-f843.
Nakamura, Toshi. "Why Monster Hunter Is So Popular In Japan (And Struggles Everywhere Else)."
Kotaku. January 1, 2013. Accessed March 15, 2015. http://kotaku.com/5980436/why-monster-hunter-
is-so-popular-in-japan-and-struggles-everywhere-else.
Stanton, Rich. "Why Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate Could Already Be the Game of the Year." The
Guardian. March 17, 2015. Accessed March 19, 2015.
http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2015/mar/17/monster-hunter-4-ultimate-game-of-year.
Warruz, Mitch. "Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate Needs a Wii U Release to Expand in the West." Pause
Your Game. February 12, 2015. Accessed March 11, 2015.
http://pauseyourgame.com/2014/11/monster-hunter-4-ultimate-needs-a-wii-u-release-to-expand-in-
the-west/.
Bibliography:
Hayashi, M. Kirie. Monster Hunter Illustrations. 1st ed. Vol. 1. Udon Entertainment, 2011.
Ching Yi Ngai, Anita, “Cultural Influences On Video Games: Players’ Preferences In Narrative And
Game-Play” (Master Thesis., University of Waterloo, 2004).
Kyle, Naomie; Scoville, Max; Altano, Brian and Hatfield, Daemon. “The State of Japanese
Gaming.” IGN video. September 30, 2013. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gFUZ56GTNSQ.
Definitions:
"Investopedia - Educating the World about Finance." Investopedia. Accessed March 16, 2015.
http://www.investopedia.com/.
"More Articles." BusinessDictionary.com. Accessed March 16, 2015.
http://www.businessdictionary.com/.
"Entrepreneur - Start, Run and Grow Your Business." Entrepreneur. Accessed March 16, 2015.
http://www.entrepreneur.com/.
Statistical/Financial Data From:
Back, Aaron. "A Yen Too Weak Even for Japan." Wall Street Journal. March 11, 2015. Accessed
March 15, 2015. http://www.wsj.com/articles/a-yen-too-weak-even-for-japanheard-on-the-street-
1426129681.
CAPCOM CO., Ltd. "Consolidated Balance Sheets." CAPCOM IR. Accessed March 15, 2015.
http://www.capcom.co.jp/ir/english/finance/lease.html.
CAPCOM CO., LTD. "Financial Review." CAPCOM. February 3, 2015. Accessed March 11, 2015.
http://www.capcom.co.jp/ir/english/finance/review.html.
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Hartung, Adam. "Microsoft Should Consider Getting Out of Gaming." Forbes. February 18, 2014.
Accessed March 15, 2015. http://www.forbes.com/sites/adamhartung/2014/02/18/microsoft-should-
give-xbox-one-to-nintendo/.
Richter, Felix. "Infographic: Sony Trumps Nintendo in Shrinking Console Market." Statista
Infographics. June 11, 2014. Accessed March 15, 2015. http://www.statista.com/chart/2345/video-
game-console-sales/.
Sahdev, Ishaan. "This Week In Sales: Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate Week 2." Siliconera. October 22,
2014. Accessed March 11, 2015. http://www.siliconera.com/2014/10/22/week-sales-template-monster-
hunter-4-ultimate-week-2/.
Picture Credits:
"Felyne Kill Moments." Monster Hunter Wiki. Accessed March 11, 2015.
http://monsterhunter.wikia.com/wiki/User_blog:PaganZombie/Best_ChaCha/Felyne_Kill_Moments.
"IOS And Android Devices Account For 60% Of Mobile Gaming Market." GizmoCrazed RSS.
Accessed March 11, 2015. http://www.gizmocrazed.com/2011/11/ios-android-devices-60-percent-
mobile-gaming-market/.
"MHFU: Felyne Comrade." Monster Hunter Wiki. Accessed March 11, 2015.
http://monsterhunter.wikia.com/wiki/MHFU:_Felyne_Comrade.
"Monster Hunter Español." Wiki Monster Hunter Español. Accessed March 12, 2015.
http://es.monsterhunter.wikia.com/wiki/Wiki_Monster_Hunter_Español.
"Search Results for "Monster Hunter"" IGN. Accessed March 12, 2015.
http://uk.ign.com/search?q=Monster Hunter.
"Specjalności Monster Hunter." Monster Hunter Forum. Accessed March 11, 2015.
http://monsterhunterforum.ugu.pl/showthread.php?tid=355&page=2.
"Stygian Zinogre." Monster Hunter Wiki. Accessed March 11, 2015.
http://monsterhunter.wikia.com/wiki/Stygian_Zinogre.
Hutchings, Jan. "Capcom Releases Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate Information and Screenshots at TGS."
JTM GAMES. September 20, 2012. Accessed March 11, 2015.
https://jtmgames.wordpress.com/2012/09/20/capcom-releases-monster-hunter-3-ultimate-information-
and-screenshots-at-tgs/.
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VII. Appendix
Disclaimer: the contents of this appendix are not of central importance to the essay,
and are not required to the final conclusion. In this section, further market research is
published, as well as a list of key definitions.
1) PESTLE analysis
Political:
Violent games are blamed for aggression
o MH as non-violent game benefits
Rating of 12 years minimum age
o Wide customer range possible
Japanese government is supporting domestic popular culture spreading in the
west
Economic:
Strong competition
Sony experiencing market growth while Nintendo sales decline
Lower sales for handheld gaming consoles
No market saturation for similar games
Weak Yen
New investors accessible
High purchase power of customers
Social:
Opportunity for social marketing
o Facebook and YouTube groups exist and may be used for promotion
Threat of piracy
Smaller demand for Fantasy genre
Customers prefer console gaming
‘Classic’ image of Japanese games
Gaming seen as a solitary exercise
Good image of MH online community
Rise of competitive gaming
Demand for online multiplayer
o MH products offer free multiplayer
Technological:
Popularity of YouTube channels posting gaming videos
o Opportunity for non-costly, below the line promotion
Demand for realistic graphics
Rise of new technologies (Oculus Rift)
Rise of e-commerce and software unit sales
o Minimising cost (Kaizen)
o Larger threat of piracy
Very advanced infrastructure technology for online multiplayer
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Legal:
Rating of 12 years minimum age
o Wide customer range possible
Piracy not effectively legally pursued
Ethical:
Helpful, friendly online community
No human violence displayed
o Children friendly
Game as social tool
o Not viewed as much as lonesome activity
2) Key concepts defined
Asset: A resource with economic value that an individual, corporation or country
owns or controls with the expectation that it will provide future benefit.
Asset-Led-Marketing: A marketing strategy in which the attributes of the product
(the asset) are used to market the product.
Corporate Identity: An enduring symbol of how a firm views itself, how it wishes
to be viewed by others, and how others recognize and remember it.
Culture Gap: Differences between two cultures that prevent mutual understanding.
Some differences may include the customs, behaviors and values of each culture.
Expatriate: An individual living in a country other than their country of citizenship,
often temporarily and for work reasons.
Kaizen: Kaizen is the practice of continuous improvement. Kaizen was originally
introduced to the West by Masaaki Imai in his book Kaizen: The Key to Japan’s
Competitive Success in 1986. Today Kaizen is recognized worldwide as an
important pillar of an organization’s long-term competitive strategy.
Key Performance Indicator: A set of quantifiable measures that a company or
industry uses to gauge or compare performance in terms of meeting their strategic
and operational goals.
Public Limited Company: The standard legal designation of a company which has
offered shares to the general public and has limited liability.
Unique Selling Point: The factor or consideration presented by a seller as the
reason that one product or service is different from and better than that of the
competition.