Business Case Study: Everyday.com.my

1. Rome was not built in a day, but it could be faster for tech industry.

LivingSocial Malaysia has its roots in Everyday.com.my which started as an online shopping directory in 2009 and transitioned into a group buying site in 2011. Everyday.com.my officially joined the LivingSocial network in January this year after the global group buying site acquired South Korean deal provider TicketMonster Inc that had bought Everyday.com.my in May 2011.

2. Niche / Unique Selling Point

The social e-commerce landscape is changing. Not everybody goes for cheap deals; instead they look for added value, distinctive experience and strong benefits. We want to provide a different experience to customers through specially selected deals that have certain uniqueness. It's about customising the experience and adding value as a package.

3. Market competition

The worldwide group buying frontier is dominated by Groupon Inc, including in Malaysia. The local group buying market is competitive with about 68 players now.

4. Target setting

LivingSocial Malaysia expects to be among the top three group buying websites in the country this year on the back of greater brand awareness and better deals. Through its daily deal e-mails and alerts, LivingSocial introduces members to handpicked local businesses, products or services at savings of 50% or more.

Full article: LivingSocial aims to be a top 3 deal provider
http://www.thesundaily.my/news/389927

Theme Parks - Catroon Network in Thailand and Legoland Malaysia

Cartoon Network's first theme park to come to Bang Saray

Bang Saray will host the world's first Cartoon Network-themed water park which, once open in 2013, should further boost Chon Buri's attraction. Welcoming 5 million tourists a year, Chon Buri is now one of the most popular tourist destinations in Thailand. Last year, Pattaya was voted "Golf Destination of the Year 2012 for Australasia and Asia" by IAGTO. Bang Saray is 16km from Pattaya. The waterpark will feature exciting signature attractions including a gigantic family wave pool, a winding adventure river, speed-racing slides, family raft rides and one of the world’s largest interactive water play fortresses for kids. It is being developed in conjunction with Amazon Falls Co Ltd, an attractions and resorts developer in Thailand. Phase one of the waterpark is already underway and when completed will cover 14 acres of coastal plains in Bang Saray, just 15 minutes from Pattaya Beach City. Cartoon Network AMAZONE is set to attract up to 800,000 visitors a year when fully operational.

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/business/Cartoon-Networks-first-theme-park-to-come-to-Bang--30176855.html

Legoland Malaysia to open on Sept 15, 2012

The RM700 million theme park sits on a 76-acre land in Iskandar Malaysia, Johor. The park, with seven special themes namely Lego kingdom, imagination, land of adventure, lego technic, the beginning, lego city and miniland, is especially designed for families with children from two to 12 years of age. The centrepiece of the park is MINILAND. Here, on a scale of 1:20, famous Asian towns and landscapes have been recreated from over 25 million LEGO bricks, with loving attention to detail. To make MINILAND as realistic as possible, people, animals, cars, ships, trains and aeroplanes can be moved at the touch of a button – together with the appropriate background noises. Legoland Malaysia General Manager Siegfried Boerst said over 35,000 annual passes had been sold and 60 per cent of the buyers were Malaysians. The annual passes, priced at RM195 per adult and RM150 per child, are valid until end of 2013. Notes: Other Legoland theme parks across the world are in Denmark, the United Kingdom, Germany and Florida and California in the USA. It is the second after Legoland Billund park, Denmark, to house the Observation Tower, where visitors are lifted up 41 metres for an excellent view of the Legoland theme park as the tower revolves to make a complete circle in 50 seconds.

http://www.btimes.com.my/Current_News/BTIMES/articles/20120425155004/Article/index_html

A Date With Bloggers - Julie's Biscuit

A follow up from A Date With Bloggers Project - focus on the main sponsor, Julie's biscuit. There are 2 categories: A Date with Bloggers Category and Public Bloggers Category. Total prizes worth RM 3100 (in kind and in cash) to be given away to contestants.

成龙筹备偶像团体进军南韩 + iPad 点菜

当今社会打造的是一个浮华耀眼的环境，目所能及非财富就是声名。所以人们的追求也不同以往，不是想着一夜暴富就是一夜成名，至于其手段和方法则有待考证了。是我们的时代造就了这样一代又一代如此不务实的人，还是我们的一代又一代人成就着这个如此浮躁的社会？也许这个“时代”和“个人”的问题，就如同现在的“追星现象”一般，究竟谁是谁的看客，还有待一个合理的解释。~ 谢德金

A few info related to Korean entertainment industry and the use of Apps:

成龍籌備韓團進軍韓國

韓流吹襲，港星成龍決定親自籌備偶像團體進軍南韓市場。此新團為男子團體，一共有五名成員 ─ 四名韓國人、一名中國人，團體名稱以成龍自己的名字 (Jackie Chen) 為靈感，將團體取名為 JJ Cece (JJCC)，預計九月出道。

http://kpopn.com/2012/05/18/123423/

First Day of Super Junior’s ‘Super Show 4′ Concert at Tokyo Dome draws in 50,000 fans

On May 12th, 50,000 ELF‘s witnessed the first of Super Junior‘s two day ‘Super Show 4‘ performances at the prestigious Tokyo Dome. First Day of Super Junior’s ‘Super Show 4′ Concert at Tokyo Dome draws in 50,000 fans. Super Junior will hold their second performance at the Tokyo Dome tomorrow on May 13th in front of another sold out crowd of 50,000 fans.

http://www.allkpop.com/2012/05/first-day-of-super-juniors-super-show-4-concert-at-tokyo-dome-draws-in-50000-fans

韓流泡沫化？

韓國時報 (Korea Times) 5月18日的報導中指出由韓國文化體育與觀光部的調查結果中，有 60% 的人認為韓流會逐漸消失。 風格過於相似 有 20.5% 的民眾認為主因是風格太過相似。韓團間的舞蹈、歌詞、服裝；戲劇中滿了緋聞、復仇和秘密的固定模式都越來越難以打動聽眾和觀眾。 韓流能夠席捲世界，主要就是因為風格較不相同，但要能夠延續全盛時期的盛況，就必須再做出點改變，以更獨特的風格避免被其他國家的風潮蓋過。當今大紅、大賺的音樂、影劇，都是因為跳脫出既有模式、充滿奇妙的想像力，如幫助 J.K 羅琳翻身的《哈利波特》系列 ─ 從床邊故事晉升為小說、電影，甚至主題樂園。 而這股潮流也替韓國帶來了相當可觀的觀光商機，比如說《冬季戀歌》取景處 ─ 春川南怡島去年就替韓國帶來了 230 萬美元 (約台幣 6,794 萬) 的收入，其中有約 40 萬名遊客是來自海外。

http://kpopn.com/2012/05/23/124056/

三亞海鮮iPad點菜防宰客

海南省三亞市由6月起，為防止海鮮排檔欺客宰客，將使用iPad等設備進行「電子點菜」。三亞市物價局新聞發言人陳金波說，採用電子點菜系統以後，顧客的消費單可以自動保存到電腦，一旦出現價格糾紛或者舉報投訴，三亞物價部門可以通過政府網絡監管後台進行監督和查處。

http://www.sinchew-i.com/node/298175?tid=213

Related: 南韩偶像梦工厂

A Date With Blogger Project

Pre-event report on Red Tomato Newspaper, Issue 138, Page 22 (18th May 2012 - 24th May 2012) - 200,000 copies issued.

Post-event report on Red Tomato Newspaper, Issue 140, Page 26:

What's Wrong With Conventional Education System?

If we would just be honest with our high school students ahead of time, it would save many of them a whole lot of pain later. Below are some scattered notes somehow related to the conventional education system.

The typical high school student is simply told to get into the "best school" that he or she can and to take out whatever loans are "necessary" to pay for that education. Our high school students are assured that those student loans will be paid back easily once they get "good jobs" following graduation. But the truth is that there are some other things that high school students should be told before they go off to college as well...Another education VS training example from the article 19 Things High School Students Should be Told Before Going to College

You are unlikely to earn RM3,000 in your first job. <- This is yet another cold hard truth that sounds sarcastic (or ironic?), from a report by local newspaper - Employers: Fresh graduates not suitable and are ‘liabilities’

Take a look on Rules #8 by Bill Gates:

Your school may have done away with winners and losers, but life has not. In some schools, they have abolished failing grades and they'll give you as many times as you want to get the right answer. This doesn't bear the slightest resemblance to anything in real life.

Related:
在家教育行得通

Education VS Training

The term "Pavlov's dog" has come to signify the difference between education and training. In simple terms, ring a bell and Pavlov's dogs salivated and got hungry, even if ther was not any food around.

conditioned reflex - Pavlov's dog is used to describe someone who merely reacts to a situation automatically instead of using critical thinking.

Modern advertising uses conditioned reflex extensively. The financial-services industry does the same thing. People work hard for their money and, without thinking, turn their money over to banks and pension funds.

It is common to see so-called financial experts saying, "Go to school. Get a job. Save money. Cut up your credit cards, and get out of debt. Your house is an asset. Live below your means. Invest for the long term in a well-diversified portfolio of stocks, bonds, and mutual funds." This is not financial education. This is financial training, the same training that Pavlov used on his dogs and that advertisers use to sell cigarattes (4 High-Yield "Sin Stocks" You Can't Afford to Ignore), antacids, and insurance.

In the name of financial education, schools also bring in financial planners who train young minds to believe that "investing for the long term in a well-diversified portfolio of stocks, bonds, and mutual funds" is the smart thing to do.

Mindlessly sending your money to complete strangers is not the end result of good financial education. It is the end result of dog training.

Run On Banks: Greece

Fear is a powerful motivator. If my money was going to drop 50% I'd take it out ASAP, wouldn't you?

Run on banks started in Greece ... It is imperative that we all understand that just because the global financial system works a certain way today does not mean that it must always work that way...Read more at The Bank Runs in Greece Will Soon be Followed by Bank Runs in Other European Nations

If you have a few minutes, watch an incredible speech by a 12-year-old Canadian girl named Victoria Grant. In this 6 minute speech, she details how the bankers are defrauding the people of Canada and how the Canadian government does not actually need to borrow a single penny from the bankers....If a 12-year-old girl can figure this out, then why can't the rest of us?

Check out the video where Victoria Grant spells out the fraud the banks are committing against the people. Victoria Grant explains why her homeland, Canada, and most of the world, is in debt. April 27, 2012 at the Public Banking in America Conference, ...