Telecommunications Management - Com. 4480
Richard A. Gershon, Ph.D.
School of Communication
Western Michigan University
1903 West Michigan Ave.
Kalamazoo, MI 49008
Tel. (269) 387-3182 (Office)
Email: Richard.Gershon@wmich.edu
Web Site: http://homepages.wmich.edu/~gershon/
Telecommunications Management 4480: Course Description
The fields of media and telecommunications are at an historic crossroads in their evolution and
development. Changes in technology, most notably the Internet and digital media arts, are changing
many of our basic assumptions regarding information, news and entertainment content. This class
examines the business strategy and management principles involving five sectors of the media and
telecommunications field, including: Broadcast Television, Cable Television, Telephony, Satellite and
Wireless Communication and the Internet & Electronic Commerce. The second part of this course
examines a number of management and planning issues that are essential to the training of today's media
and telecommunications professional. They include: 1) Strategic Planning, 2) Finance and Budgeting,
3) Marketing, 4) Leadership and 5) Innovation & Technology Management.
An important goal of this course is to understand the relationship and convergence patterns between
the broadcast, cable, telephone and Internet communication industries. It is incumbent upon today's
manager to understand both the program software as well as the different delivery platforms. In my
view, today’s student of telecommunications management needs to be equally conversant whether its
negotiating intellectual property rights, understanding the technical parameters of Voice Over Internet
Protocol or recognizing the business implications of satellite delivered radio and what it means to the
principles of localism. This same student needs to understand that a communication satellite that
transmits voice, data and video communication is equal to the task whether its televising the Olympic
games from Beijing, China, facilitating an MP3 music file transfer via the Internet, or engaging in an
electronic funds transfer on the London stock market. The main driving force behind such convergence
is the digitalization of media and information technology. The 21st century promises a very different
set of industry players than was the case in past years. The future will allow for the full integration of
voice data and video services and give new meaning to the term "programming."
Required Reading & Materials



Richard A. Gershon, Telecommunications & Business Strategy (Taylor & Francis, New York: 2008)
Jim Collins, Good to Great, (New York, NY: 2001, Harper-Collins).
A complete set of Power Point slides covering weekly presentations will be available for purchase at
the university bookstore.
1
COURSE OUTLINE
___________________________________________________________________________________
Class Meeting Times
Reading Assignments
___________________________________________________________________________________
Week 1.
TELECOMMUNICATIONS ECONOMICS I.
Principles of Market Structure, Supply and Pricing
Gershon, Ch. 1.
The Telecommunications Industry Structure
Elements of Market Structure
1. Seller Concentration
2. Product Differentiation
3. Barriers to Entry
4. Buyer Concentration
5. Demand Growth
Principles of Supply and Pricing
Three Factors that can Influence Supply
Time Management – Discussion
Week 2.
TELECOMMUNICATIONS & STRATEGIC PLANNING I.
Gershon, Ch. 2.
What is Strategic Planning?
Environmental Scanning
SWOT Model
External Factors
Internal Factors
Understanding Core Competency
Organizational Culture
Total Quality Management and Six Sigma
Case Study: The Walt Disney Company
Professionalism in the Workplace I. – Discussion
Week 3.
TELECOMMUNICATIONS & STRATEGIC PLANNING II.
Collins, Ch. 1
Strategy Formulation
Corporate Growth Strategies
Competitive Business Strategies
Mergers & Acquisitions Strategy
Strategy Implementation
Principles of Change Management
Reengineering Process
Evaluation and Control
Case Study: the AOL-Time Warner Merger
Professionalism in the Workplace II. – Discussion
WestCom Project Assignment – Project Instructions
2
End of Unit I.
________________________________
Week 4
EXAM I.
_________________________________
Week 4.
BROADCAST TELEVISION I.
The Business of Broadcasting
Demographic Considerations
The Broadcast Industry Structure
Television Networks
Program Distributors
Network Affiliates
Independent Television Stations
Public Broadcasting
The Advertisers
Week 5.
BROADCAST TELEVISION II.
Broadcast Station Organization
Sales
Programming
News Department
Engineering
Business
Responsibilities of the General Manager
Broadcast Program Strategies
Syndication
Audience Research
Broadcast Marketing and Sales
Case Study: Fox Television
Research Strategies – Discussion
Week 6.
Gershon, Ch. 3.
Collins, Ch. 2.
CABLE TELEVISION I.
Gershon, Ch. 11.
Collins, Ch. 3.
Gershon, Ch. 4.
Collins, Ch. 4.
The Cable Television Industry Structure
Cable Operator
Program Distributor
Cable Television Distribution Network
Hybrid-Fiber Coaxial (HFC) Network
Principle of Cable Networking
Cable Television Impact on Broadcast Television
Cable Television Franchise
The Franchise Renewal Process
What is Management – Discussion?
3
Week 7.
CABLE TELEVISION II.
Cable System Management
Cable Television Programming
Basic and Expanded Cable
Marketing Cable and Enhanced Services
Pay Per View Television
High Speed Internet Access
High Definition Television
Cable Telephony
Case Studies: HBO and MTV
Customer Service
Finance and Budgeting – Discussion
Gershon, Ch. 12.
Collins, Ch. 5.
End of Unit II.
________________________________
Week 8.
EXAM II.
________________________________
Week 8.
TELECOMMUNICATIONS ECONOMICS II.
Principles of Public Utilities Common Carriers and Information Carriage
Gershon, Ch. 5.
Public Utilities
Natural Monopolies
Cyclical Patterns of Services
Essential Services
Public Utilities: Rights and Responsibilities
Principle of Common Carrier Telephone Services
Telephone Communication and Competition
Telecommunications and Deregulation
Deregulation Paradox
Case Study: WorldCom
Management Ethics – Discussion
Week 9.
TELEPHONY
The Divestiture of AT&T
The Telephone Industry Structure
Local Exchange Carriers
Telephony and Intelligent Networking
Basic v. Enhanced Information Services
Voice, DSL, VOIP and IPTV Services
Case Study: Verizon
Marketing – Discussion
4
Gershon, Ch. 6. & 13.
Collins, Ch. 6.
Week 10
SATELLITE AND WIRELESS COMMUNICATION
Gershon, Ch. 7 & 8.
Satellite and Wireless Communication Carriers
General Categories of Service Requests
Billing and Customer Service Issues
Telephone Maintenance and Repair
Request for Small Business Consulting
Competitive Challenges in the Telephone Market
Telecommunications and Small Business Consulting
Case Study: Intelsat
__________________________________________
Week 10
WESTCom PROJECT ASSIGNMENTS DUE
__________________________________________
Week 10.
THE INTERNET AND ELECTRONIC COMMERCE
Electronic Commerce
Business-to-Consumer
Providing Information (I-commerce )
Advertising and Marketing
Customer Support Services
Business-to-Business
Supply Chain Management.
Just-in-Time Manufacturing
Global Inventory Management
Enterprise Resource Planning
Case Study: Google
Decision-making and Risk – Discussion
Week 11.
Gershon, Ch. 9.
Collins, Ch. 7.
TRANSNATIONAL MEDIA & TELECOMMUNICATIONS
What makes a Global Corporation Global?
The Transnational Media Corporation
Five Reasons for Engaging in Foreign Direct Investment
Risks Associated with Foreign Direct Investment
Global Competition Issues
Global Outsourcing
Case Study: News Corp. Ltd.
5
Gershon, Ch. 10.
Collins, Ch. 8.
Week 12.
INNOVATION & TECHNOLOGY MANAGEMENT
Three Kinds of Innovation
Innovation and Product Life Cycle
The Innovator’s Dilemma
Innovation and Change Management
Case Studies: Apple Computer
Change Management – Discussion
End of Unit III.
________________________________
Week 13
EXAM III.
________________________________
6
Gershon, Ch. 15.
Collins, Ch. 9.