Hi Friends,

Even as I launch this today ( my 80th Birthday ), I realize that there is yet so much to say and do. There is just no time to look back, no time to wonder,"Will anyone read these pages?"

With regards,
Hemen Parekh
27 June 2013

Now as I approach my 90th birthday ( 27 June 2023 ) , I invite you to visit my Digital Avatar ( www.hemenparekh.ai ) – and continue chatting with me , even when I am no more here physically

Friday, 16 May 2003

NAPSTER VS. APPLE

Kartarya
Nagwekar
Abhi / Nagwekar
Inder / Pooja
NAPSTER
▶ Developed unique file-sharing technology
▶ Bilateral swapping of files amongst 70 million users
▶ No revenue-model
▶ Encouraged “piracy” & violated copyrights of record-companies
▶ Posed serious threat to music industry’s survival. Created unhealthy / predatory competition & turned record companies into “Enemies.”
▶ No record of how many songs got “swapped”
APPLE
▶ Uses an existing file-downloading technique
▶ Central database from which every user downloads
▶ Pay-per-download (¢99 cents / song). ≈ #2 million in 2 weeks!
▶ Legally “purchased” copyrights (for each song) in its database from original owners (i.e. Record Companies)
▶ Created an “additional revenue model” for record companies. Created cooperation / “collaboration” with Record companies.
▶ Nearly 2 million songs “sold” in 2 weeks. I am sure record companies can see, thru admin tool, how many & what royalty earned by each.
To:
Kartavya
Abhi / Nagwekar
Inder / Pooja
Nagle Saheb
In enclosed pages, I have tried to simplify comparison between
→ What Sadagopan has to say about “iMusicStore”
→ What I envisage about our “Webservice”
Resume Storage and Tariffs
Header: In our own WebService (Global Recruiter) – VIRTUAL EMPLOYMENT EXCHANGE
Topic: What shall we do? Why? How?
Inspiration:
Apple’s iMusic – What it does / How / Why
→ iMusic stores digital music that can be readily served to the customer instantaneously.
Implementation in Our Webservice:
▶ Our Webservice will store 2 types of resumes:
Goal:
We should target 2 million resumes 6 months from now (say, by Dec. 2003).


Ecosystem Strategy – Inspired by Apple
Header: In our own WebService (Global Recruiter) – VIRTUAL EMPLOYMENT EXCHANGE
Topic: What shall we do? Why? How?
Our Strategy for VEE (Virtual Employment Exchange):
We must make sure we create additional “revenue streams” for all the intermediaries/brokers who are likely to feel threatened by our attempt to set up VEE.
Of thesejobsites & placement agencies are going to feel most threatened by VEE.
So, we must create “Additional Revenue Streams” for both.
In earlier notes, explained how to take into confidence these stakeholders by:
→ Showing them how they stand to make more money by joining VEE.
→ Simultaneously, we must create new media channels, e.g.:
Cybercafes, etc.
So that we are not at the mercy (“lock-in”) of jobsites & placement agencies.
Header:
APPLE’S iMUSIC
In our own WebService (Global Recruiter)
VIRTUAL EMPLOYMENT EXCHANGE, what shall we do? Why? How?
Left Column:
Apple brought a practical viability to the service by taking the key stakeholders, viz., recorded music bigwigs, music authors and even the stores into confidence. Apple has brought pragmatism to online music delivery.
Right Column:
Our virtual employment exchange (VEE) too must make sure that we create additional “Revenue-streams” for all the “intermediaries/brokers” who are likely to feel threatened by our attempt to set up VEE.
Table (Middle):
Affected Parties
Bottom Note:
Of these, jobsites & placement agencies are going to feel most “threatened” by VEE.
So, we must create “Additional Revenue streams” for both.
In my earlier notes, I have explained how to take into confidence these Key Stakeholders, by showing them how they stand to “make more money” by joining VEE.
Simultaneously, we must create NEW media/channels eg. TV Channels / Mobile phone operators / Cybercafes etc., so that we are not at the mercy (Lock-In) of Jobsites & Placement Agencies.




When you try copying beyond three times, the system reorders playlists and creates reasonable inconvenience. Apple hopes to get over mass-copying & resultant piracy thru this process.
Also, the model is a “sale” model, not a “renting” model.

“Who, and how many – corporates (or Placement Agencies? Jobsites?) would want to buy thousands of resumes just because these are available for Rs.1/- each?”
There is a distinct “possibility” of a jobsite or a placement agency, wanting to “buy” 20,000 resumes (@ Rs.1/- each). After all, there are thousands of “Agencies” selling e-mail IDs database at 0.0001 paise each! – and there are enough buyers at this price!

“Who” recruits
Whom, and
When, and
How.

This news item appeared in today’s paper.

NAPSTER | APPLE

Only yesterday, I sent to you a note about NAPSTER. Then I saw this news-item in today’s Econ-Times. There are important lessons to be learned, as far as our Webservice vs. job-sites who are bound to look upon us as a serious threat.


Subject: Learning from Others

In yesterday’s Fin. Exp., an article by S. Sadagopan (Director – IIT Bangalore) compares Napster with Apple’s “iMusicStore” service.

If we are wise, we must learn from the mistakes made by others (– and it is so very easy to make “mistakes” on internet!).

Obviously, Apple has learned from the mistakes made by Napster. In turn, we must closely watch the Apple experiment & make “course correction” along the way of implementing our webservice.


  • A subscriber’s own “private” database.

  • 3P’s common/central database (built-up through projects Manhattan / Ego / Cyber / JAWS / resumes deposited by jobseekers to avail of our “free resume-blasting service” / resumes submitted on our website to download Butterfly version, etc.)

▶ A subscriber can access both databases freely. However, downloading from his own private database will be free, whereas he will pay Rs. 10/resume to download from 3P central database (unless the resume happens to be one which was originally donated/deposited by him).

▶ Same fee/tariff for download/email/print?

Apple brought practical viability to the service. By taking the key stakeholders—recorded music bigwigs, music authors, and even the stores—into confidence, Apple has brought pragmatism to online music delivery.

Stakeholders Affected:

  • Newspapers (Loss of Advt. Revenue)

  • Jobsites (Loss of Corp. Subscribers)

  • Placement Agencies (Loss of Revenue)

  • Postal Dept (Loss of Revenue)

  • Courier Companies (Loss of Revenue)

  • Ad/HR Agencies (Loss of Revenue)

  • [Blank Placeholder]

  • TV Channels (JAWS)

  • Mobile Phone Operators (MMS Job-Alerts)

  • What it does

  • HOW it does

  • Why it does

  • Newspapers (Loss of Advt. revenue)

  • Jobsites (Loss of Corporate Subscribers)

  • Placement Agencies (Loss of Revenue)

  • Postal Dept (Loss of revenue)

  • Courier Companies (Loss of revenue)

  • Advt. Agencies (Loss of revenue)

  • ?

Job Seekers ⇄ Employers / Corporates

APPLE’S iMUSIC

  • What it does

  • How

  • Why

Apple has worked out arrangements with several recorded music players.

In our own WebService (Global Recruiter) VIRTUAL EMPLOYMENT EXCHANGE, what shall we do? Why? How?

We too, must convince the jobsites to become our “Licensees” (of our Webservice). To succeed in our efforts to rope in jobsites, we would

  • → first need to build-up a resume database of a million resumes (3P central database)

  • → get a few large, respectable Corporates to subscribe to our Webservice (even if we have to agree to very low “Transaction fees”)

  • → need to rope-in some reasonably well-known “NON-JOBSITES (PORTALS)” as our licensee (e.g. Rediff, which, in last quarter earned Rs.15 crores & lost Rs.30 crs!).

  • → need to start our “Licensing Campaign” with smaller jobsites. Presumably, currently they have very few corporate clients because their resume-database is so small. We must convince them that by becoming our licensee, they would be able to sign-up many many Corporate-clients, since, now, their Corporate-clients would have “access” to 3P’s central database of 1 million resumes! And they can sign-up such (new) Corporate clients for a “sign-up” amount of as low as Rs.500/-! Since a licensee’s long-term/continuous revenues are linked to the “Transaction-Fees”.

APPLE’S iMUSIC

  • What it does

  • How

  • Why

Apple provides freedom to do whatever you want with the downloaded Songs (such as sharing with your buddies).

In our own WebService (Global Recruiter) VIRTUAL EMPLOYMENT EXCHANGE, what shall we do? Why? How?

Our Webservice too, revolves around the concept of “selling” of resumes (Rs.10/resume).

Any Corporate Subscriber of our webservice can (upon appropriate/advance payment) download any no. of resumes and do whatever he wants to do with it! (– including resell, if he wants!). He can give it away free to anyone, if he wants to.

By giving/selling a resume, it does not disappear from our database and we can “sell” it again & again, indefinitely. Our online “Disclaimer” will say that, we take no responsibility re: its genuineness/ up-to-dateness/accuracy etc.


APPLE’S iMUSIC

  • What it does

  • How

  • Why

Apple permits up to three copies for downloaded songs.

In our own WebService (Global Recruiter) VIRTUAL EMPLOYMENT EXCHANGE, what shall we do? Why? How?

In our Webservice, it is possible for a subscriber to download one resume (by paying Rs.10/- to click on download button) and then make 100 copies – and may “resell” each copy for Rs.1/- only!

Although, theoretically, this is possible, the question is,

Corporates are highly unlikely to “buy” resumes unless this “buying process” is integral part of a Webservice – where, you can, FIRST, search the resume database (of millions) – narrow down to a few & then “buy.”

But,

WE MUST FIND A SOLUTION TO SUCH PIRACY! HOW?


APPLE’S iMUSIC

  • What it does

  • How

  • Why

Apple also allows download to any standard device.

It is a compelling idea that has the potential to rewrite the rules of the digital music industry. Watch as the drama unfolds over the next couple of quarters.

In our own WebService (Global Recruiter) VIRTUAL EMPLOYMENT EXCHANGE, what shall we do? Why? How?

I do not think, at this stage, we need to work on this. I expect Corporate HR managers to download on their office PC (or home PC).

Virtual Employment Exchange (VEE) is an equally compelling idea where, the “Exchange Owner” gets his “cut” (X% commission as transaction-fees), no matter,

You can only “imagine” a scenario where thousands of Subscribers (Corporates), are annually recruiting Lakhs of executives, by conducting millions of “transactions” on our Webservice! – and, we are getting paid (that too in advance) for each mouse-click.

(E.g.: Last month 40 million subscribers of NTT Do-Co-Mo, received 950 SMS messages EVERYDAY! No wonder DOCOMO is literally minting money!)











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