SWOT:
ANDROID LTD
A PROJECT REPORT
SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE AWARD OF M.COM
DEGREE OF
MASTER IN COMMERCE
(MANAGEMENT)
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UNIVERSITY OF MUMBAI,
LALA LAJPATRAI COLLEGE, MAHALAXMI, MUMBAI
SUBMITTED BY
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SUPERVISED BY
OCTOBER 2014
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
I am overwhelmed with pleasure and deep sense of gratitude to our college & University of Mumbai for assigning us
such an opportunity to do this project which opened our vision towards research experience of the theory
implications and practical applications studied in this M.Com Course.
I take this opportunity to express my profound gratitude and deep regards to my guide ___________________ for
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The blessing, help and guidance given by him/her time to time shall carry me a long way in the journey of life on
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of my assignment.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
A SWOT ANALYSIS (ALTERNATIVELY SWOT MATRIX) IS A STRUCTURED PLANNING METHOD USED TO
EVALUATE THE STRENGTHS, WEAKNESSES, OPPORTUNITIES AND THREATS INVOLVED IN A PROJECT
OR IN A BUSINESS VENTURE. A SWOT ANALYSIS CAN BE CARRIED OUT FOR A PRODUCT, PLACE,
INDUSTRY OR PERSON. IT INVOLVES SPECIFYING THE OBJECTIVE OF THE BUSINESS VENTURE OR
PROJECT AND IDENTIFYING THE INTERNAL AND EXTERNAL FACTORS THAT ARE FAVORABLE AND
UNFAVORABLE TO ACHIEVE THAT OBJECTIVE. SOME AUTHORS CREDIT SWOT TO ALBERT HUMPHREY,
WHO LED A CONVENTION AT THE STANFORD RESEARCH INSTITUTE (NOW SRI INTERNATIONAL) IN THE
1960S AND 1970S USING DATA FROM FORTUNE 500 COMPANIES. HOWEVER, HUMPHREY HIMSELF DOES
NOT CLAIM THE CREATION OF SWOT, AND THE ORIGINS REMAIN OBSCURE. THE DEGREE TO WHICH
THE INTERNAL ENVIRONMENT OF THE FIRM MATCHES WITH THE EXTERNAL ENVIRONMENT IS
EXPRESSED BY THE CONCEPT OF STRATEGIC FIT.
STRENGTHS: CHARACTERISTICS OF THE BUSINESS OR PROJECT THAT GIVE IT AN
ADVANTAGE OVER OTHERS.
WEAKNESSES: CHARACTERISTICS THAT PLACE THE BUSINESS OR PROJECT AT A
DISADVANTAGE RELATIVE TO OTHERS
OPPORTUNITIES: ELEMENTS THAT THE PROJECT COULD EXPLOIT TO ITS ADVANTAGE
THREATS: ELEMENTS IN THE ENVIRONMENT THAT COULD CAUSE TROUBLE FOR THE
BUSINESS OR PROJECT
IDENTIFICATION OF SWOTS IS IMPORTANT BECAUSE THEY CAN INFORM LATER STEPS IN
PLANNING TO ACHIEVE THE OBJECTIVE. FIRST, THE DECISION MAKERS SHOULD CONSIDER
WHETHER THE OBJECTIVE IS ATTAINABLE, GIVEN THE SWOTS. IF THE OBJECTIVE IS NOT
ATTAINABLE A DIFFERENT OBJECTIVE MUST BE SELECTED AND THE PROCESS REPEATED. USERS
OF SWOT ANALYSI
S NEED TO ASK AND ANSWER QUESTIONS THAT GENERATE MEANINGFUL INFORMATION FOR
EACH CATEGORY (STRENGTHS, WEAKNESSES, OPPORTUNITIES, AND THREATS) TO MAKE THE
ANALYSIS USEFUL AND FIND THEIR COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE.
THIS REPORT PROVIDES WITH A STUDY SWOT ANALYSIS, AND ITS IMPLEMENTATION WITH
REFERENCE TO ANDROID
SR.NO
1.
INDEX OF CONTENTS
CHAPTER 1:
INTRODUCTION
2.
3.
1.1
WHAT IS SWOT ANALYSIS?
1.2
IDENTIFYING SWOT
1.3
ENVIRONMENTAL SCAN
CHAPTER 2: THE PURPOSE OF A SWOT ANALYSIS
2.1
WHEN TO USE SWOT
2.2
THE ELEMENTS OF A SWOT ANALYSIS
2.3
UNDERSTANDING SWOT ANALYSIS
2.4
PROS AND CONS
CHAPTER 3: SIMPLIFYING ANDROID
3.1
OPERATING SYSTEM
3.2
GOOGLE’S ANDROID & ITS HISTORY:
3.2 A)
4.
5.
WHAT IS ANDROID
3.2 B) HISTORY OF ANDROID
CHAPTER 4: SWOT ANALYSIS OF ANDROID
4.1
STRENGTHS
4.2
WEAKNESSES
4.3
OPPORTUNITIES
4.4
THREATS
CHAPTER 5: WEBLIOGAPHY
1.INTRODUCTION TO SWOT ANALYSIS
PAGE NO.
1.1 WHAT IS SWOT ANALYSIS?
A SWOT analysis (alternatively SWOT matrix) is a structured planning method used to evaluate the strengths,
weaknesses, opportunities and threats involved in a project or in a business venture. A SWOT analysis can be
carried out for a product, place, industry or person. It involves specifying the objective of the business venture or
project and identifying the internal and external factors that are favorable and unfavorable to achieve that objective.
Some authors credit SWOT to Albert Humphrey, who led a convention at the Stanford Research Institute (now SRI
International) in the 1960s and 1970s using data from Fortune 500 companies. However, Humphrey himself does not
claim the creation of SWOT, and the origins remain obscure. The degree to which the internal environment of the
firm matches with the external environment is expressed by the concept of strategic fit.
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Strengths: characteristics of the business or project that give it an advantage over others.
Weaknesses: characteristics that place the business or project at a disadvantage relative to others
Opportunities: elements that the project could exploit to its advantage
Threats: elements in the environment that could cause trouble for the business or project
Identification of SWOTs is important because they can inform later steps in planning to achieve the objective.
First, the decision makers should consider whether the objective is attainable, given the SWOTs. If the objective is
not attainable a different objective must be selected and the process repeated.
Users of SWOT analysis need to ask and answer questions that generate meaningful information for each category
(strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) to make the analysis useful and find their competitive advantage.
1.2 IDENTIFYING SWOT
SWOT analysis aims to identify the key internal and external factors seen as important to achieving an objective.
SWOT analysis groups key pieces of information into two main categories:
1) Internal Factors – the strengths and weaknesses internal to the organization
2) External Factors – the opportunities and threats presented by the environment external to the organization
Analysis may view the internal factors as strengths or as weaknesses depending upon their effect on the
organization's objectives. What may represent strengths with respect to one objective may be weaknesses
(distractions, competition) for another objective. The factors may include all of the 4Ps; as well as personnel,
finance, manufacturing capabilities, and so on.
The external factors may include macroeconomic matters, technological change, legislation, and socio-cultural
changes, as well as changes in the marketplace or in competitive position. The results are often presented in the form
of a matrix.
SWOT analysis is just one method of categorization and has its own weaknesses. For example, it may tend to
persuade its users to compile lists rather than to think about actual important factors in achieving objectives. It also
presents the resulting lists uncritically and without clear prioritization so that, for example, weak opportunities may
appear to balance strong threats.
It is prudent not to eliminate any candidate SWOT entry too quickly. The importance of individual SWOTs will be
revealed by the value of the strategies they generate. A SWOT item that produces valuable strategies is important. A
SWOT item that generates no strategies is not important.
As part of the development of strategies and plans to enable the organization to achieve its objectives, that
organization will use a systematic/rigorous process known as corporate planning. SWOT alongside PEST/PESTLE
can be used as a basis for the analysis of business and environmental factors.
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Set objectives – defining what the organization is going to do
Environmental scanning
o Internal appraisals of the organization's SWOT, this needs to include an assessment of the present
situation as well as a portfolio of products/services and an analysis of the product/service life cycle
Analysis of existing strategies, this should determine relevance from the results of an internal/external
appraisal. This may include gap analysis which will look at environmental factors
Strategic Issues defined – key factors in the development of a corporate plan which needs to be addressed by
the organization
Develop new/revised strategies – revised analysis of strategic issues may mean the objectives need to change
Establish critical success factors – the achievement of objectives and strategy implementation
Preparation of operational, resource, projects plans for strategy implementation
Monitoring results – mapping against plans, taking corrective action which may mean amending
objectives/strategies.
1.3 ENVIRONMENTAL SCAN
In many competitor analyses, marketers build detailed profiles of each competitor in the market, focusing especially
on their relative competitive strengths and weaknesses using SWOT analysis. Marketing managers will examine each
competitor's cost structure, sources of profits, resources and competencies, competitive positioning and product
differentiation, degree of vertical integration, historical responses to industry developments, and other factors.
Marketing management often finds it necessary to invest in research to collect the data required to perform accurate
marketing analysis. Accordingly, management often conducts market research (alternately marketing research) to
obtain this information. Marketers employ a variety of techniques to conduct market research, but some of the more
common include:
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Qualitative marketing research, such as focus groups
Quantitative marketing research, such as statistical surveys
Experimental techniques such as test markets
Observational techniques such as ethnographic (on-site) observation
Marketing managers may also design and oversee various environmental scanning and competitive
intelligence processes to help identify trends and inform the company's marketing analysis.
Below is an example SWOT analysis of a market position of a small management consultancy with specialism in
HRM
Strengths
Reputation in marketplace
Weaknesses
Opportunities
Threats
Shortage of consultants at
Well established position
Large consultancies
operating level rather than
with a well defined market
operating at a minor level
partner level
niche
Expertise at partner level in
Unable to deal with multi-
Identified market for
Other small consultancies
HRM consultancy
disciplinary assignments
consultancy in areas other
looking to invade the
because of size or lack of
than HRM
marketplace
ability
The SWOT analysis in Social Work practice framework is beneficial because it helps organizations decide whether
or not an objective is obtainable and therefore enables organizations to set achievable goals, objectives, and steps to
further the social change or community development effort. It enables organizers to take visions and produce
practical and efficient outcomes in order to effect long-lasting change, and it helps organizations gather meaningful
information in order to maximize their potential. Completing a SWOT analysis is a useful process regarding the
consideration of key organizational priorities, such as gender and cultural diversity, and fundraising objectives.
2. THE PURPOSE OF A SWOT ANALYSIS
The SWOT analysis enables companies to identify the positive and negative influencing factors inside and outside of
a company or organization. Besides businesses, other organizations, in areas such as community health and
development and education have found much use in its guiding principles. The key role of SWOT is to help develop
a full awareness of all factors that may affect strategic planning and decision making, a goal that can be applied to
most any aspect of industry.
SWOT is meant to act primarily as an assessment technique, though its lengthy record of success among many
businesses makes it an invaluable tool in project management.
"A good SWOT analysis serves as a dashboard to your product or services and when done correctly can help you to
navigate and implement a sound strategy for your business regardless of company size or sector," said Vipe Desai,
founder and CEO of HDX Hydration Mix. "We continue to revisit ours every year to keep it updated due to constant
shifts in market trends. It's a crisp and simple way to communicate the most important aspects of our brand."
2.1 WHEN TO USE SWOT
SWOT is meant to be used during the proposal stage of strategic planning. It acts as a precursor to any sort of
company action, which makes it appropriate for the following moments:
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Exploring avenues for new initiatives
Making decisions about execution strategies for a new policy
Identifying possible areas for change in a program
Refining and redirecting efforts mid-plan
The SWOT analysis is an excellent tool in organizing information and presenting solutions, identifying roadblocks
and emphasizing opportunities.
"Performing a SWOT analysis is a great way to improve business operations and decision making," said Andrew
Schrage, founder and CEO of Money Crashers. "It allowed me to identify the key areas where my organization was
performing at a high level, as well as areas that needed work. Some small business owners make the mistake of
thinking about these sorts of things informally, but by taking the time to put together a formalized SWOT analysis,
you can come up with ways to better capitalize on your company's strengths and improve or eliminate weaknesses."
While the business owner should certainly be involved in creating a SWOT analysis, it could be much more helpful
to include other team members in the process.
"Our management team does a SWOT analysis quarterly," said Shawn Walsh, president and CEO of Paradigm
Computer Consulting. "The collective knowledge removes blind spots that, if left undiscovered, could be detrimental
to our business of our relationship with our clients."
Brandon Dudley, director of marketing and operations at The BusBank, also said that collaborative SWOT analyses
give employees a greater sense of understanding and involvement in the company.
2.2 THE ELEMENTS OF A SWOT ANALYSIS
A SWOT analysis focuses entirely on the four elements included in the acronym, allowing companies to identify the
forces influencing a strategy, action, or initiative. Knowing these positive and negative impacting elements can help
companies more effectively communicate what elements of a plan need to be recognized.
When drafting a SWOT analysis, individuals typically create a table split up into four columns so as to list each
impacting element side-by-side for comparison. Strengths and weaknesses won’t typically match listed opportunities
and threats, though some correlation should exist since they’re tied together in some way.
Royce Leather Gifts marketing director Billy Bauer noted that pairing external threats with internal weaknesses can
highlight the most serious issues faced by a company.
"Once you've identified your risks, you can then decide whether it is most appropriate to eliminate the internal
weakness by assigning company resources to fix the problems, or reduce the external threat by abandoning the
threatened area of business and meeting it after strengthening your business," Bauer said.
Internal factors
The first two letters in the acronym, Strengths and Weaknesses, refer to internal factors, which means the resources
and experience readily available to you. Examples of areas typically considered include:
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Financial resources, such as funding, sources of income and investment opportunities.
Physical resources, such as your company’s location, facilities and equipment.
Human resources, such as employees, volunteers and target audiences.
Current processes, such as employee programs, department hierarchies and software systems.
When it comes to listing strengths and weaknesses, individuals shouldn’t try to sugarcoat or glaze over inherent
weaknesses or strengths. Identifying factors both good and bad is important in creating a thorough SWOT analysis.
"Using the SWOT analysis has, more than once, saved me from myself, keeping me from taking on projects that
would likely have been too much for my small company," said Tom Atkins, founder of Quarry House.
Mitchell Weiss, business professor at the University of Hartford, recommended fully analyzing your strengths and
weaknesses first.
"Companies can't hope to take advantage of or control the external factors until the internals have been objectively
assessed," he said.
External factors
Every company, organization and individual is influenced and affected by external forces. Whether connected
directly or indirectly to an opportunity or threat, each of these factors is important to take note of and document.
External factors typically reference things you or your company does not control, such as:
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Market trends, such as new products and technology or shifts in audience needs.
Economic trends, such as local, national and international financial trends.
Funding, such as donations, legislature and other foundations.
Demographics, such as a target audience’s age, race, gender and culture.
Supreme Graphics, a commercial print manufacturer, was struggling to compete with the digital industry in
retaining its larger advertising and marketing clients.
"We used a SWOT analysis to identify a new market opportunity in small manufacturers that needed ink-on-paper
projects," said Michael Frishberg, Supreme Graphics' vice president of sales and marketing. "This provided organic,
non-disruptive growth."
On the other hand, Lynn Sheehan, co-founder and CEO of CPAreviewforFREE, noted that a SWOT analysis helped
her company fully analyze its pricing structure, which would have been a threat to its success.
The SWOT analysis is a simple, albeit comprehensive strategy in identifying not only the weaknesses and threats of
a plan, but also the strengths and opportunities available through it. While an excellent brainstorming tool, the fourcornered analysis prompts entities to examine and execute strategies in a more balanced way. However, it is not the
only factor in developing a business strategy.
"A SWOT analysis is helpful in broadly addresses questions to develop a business plan, but it doesn't go far enough,"
said Worthworm and SkyMall co-founder Alan Lobock. "The exercise alone won't identify your key value drivers of
your business. Planning without first knowing your goals and the metrics by which you will measure your progress
toward achieving those goals is inefficient and misguided."
2.3 UNDERSTANDING SWOT ANALYSIS
A SWOT analysis is a strategic balance sheet of an organization; that is the strengths of the organization, the
weaknesses of the organization, the opportunities facing the organization, and the threats facing the organization. It is
one of the cornerstone analytical tools to help an organization develop a preferred future. It is one of the time tested
tools that has the capacity to enable an organization to understand itself. To respond effectively to changes in the
environment, we must understand our external and internal contexts so we can develop a vision and a strategy that
link the two. We need to weave together our understanding of our organization and our actions to develop a future.
The purpose of the SWOT analysis is to provide information on our strengths and weaknesses in relation to the
opportunities and threats we face.
The analysis and subsequent lists (the outcome of a SWOT analysis is a point form list) is not valuable unless a
rigorous discussion takes place with background insight, and unless the list reflects the final views of the
organization. A major purpose of any strategic discussion is to arrive at a deeper level of insight. Any response to
threats and opportunities must be based on an intimate knowledge and understanding of the organization's strengths
and weaknesses. One outcome that should follow a SWOT analysis is an identification of distinctive competencies
(for further insight on the latter see: Prahalad/Hamel. "The Core Competencies of the Corporation." HBR. 1990).
The benefits of a SWOT analysis are that it provides learning and knowledge vital to the organization's survival and
prosperity. Nutt and Backoff talk about SWOT as a clarifier of the "tension fields" in organizations. It is a
juxtaposition of the ying and the yang of organizations. Another outcome of the SWOT analysis which is becoming
extremely important is an understanding of our boundaries and the development of boundary-spanning skills and
insight to help navigate the changing environment we face.
Some Techniques for SWOT:
Highs and Lows:
Divide the blackboard into the current year and the last two - three years. Individuals silently brainstorm all
organizational highs and lows. Transcribe all the high and lows and stick them on the wall. The group identifies
themes common to the highs, the lows, or both. The group analyses the data by answering these questions:
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What opportunities have we had? What did we do? Was it successful?
What threats have we had? How did we handle them? Which did we ignore?
What strengths do we rely on? Which do we ignore?
How do we deal with weaknesses? What have we done about them?
Eventually the discussion has to move on to how to behave in the future and how to benefit from the insight
generated.
Snowball Card:
Each person writes a SWOT analysis on a 5 x 7 (or larger) card and sticks the card on the wall. The group then
develops four lists of strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats, eliminating overlap, to discuss, compare, and
analyze. Prepare a list which reflects the common themes in the individual SWOT analyses. Clustering technique is
normally used to tease out themes.
Guidelines for SWOT Analysis:
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Keep it simple
Focus on your organization.
Look for patterns.
Look for action that can be taken within a year.
Don't get lost in the future.
Be rooted in the now.
2.4 PROS AND CONS
The success of this method is mainly owed to its simplicity and its flexibility. Its implementation does not require
technical knowledge and skills. SWOT analysis allows the synthesis and integration of various types of information
which are generally known but still makes it possible to organise and synthesise recent information as well.
It is worth pointing out that whereas SWOT analysis is often not seen strictly speaking as a Foresight method, it is
fruitful to consider it from this perspective. Indeed, Foresight is particularly useful for addressing the OT dimensions,
whereas SWOT analyses often fail because of poor examination of OT (opportunities and threats).
A correlation is made between the internal factors, strengths and weaknesses of the organisation, and the external
factors, opportunities and threats. An effort can be made to exploit opportunities and overcome weaknesses and at the
same time for the organisation to protect itself from the threats of the external environment through the development
of contingency plans.
The most common drawbacks of SWOT analysis are:
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The length of the lists of factors that have to be taken into account in the analysis;
Lack of prioritisation of factors, there being no requirement for their classification and evaluation;
No suggestions for solving disagreements;
No obligation to verify statements or aspects based on the data or the analysis;
Analysis only at a single level (not multi-level analysis);
No rational correlation with the implementation phases of the exercise.
Moreover, there are risks of:
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Inadequate definition of factors;
Over-subjectivity in the generation of factors (compiler bias);
The use of ambiguous and vague words and phrases
One has to be aware that this method is very commonly used by consulting firms and that for this reason some
people in the public/quasi-public sector have an aversion to it.
3. SIMPLIFYING ANDROID
3.1 OPERATING SYSTEM
An operating system is the most important software that runs on a computer. It manages the computer's
memory, processes, and all of its software and hardware. It also allows you to communicate with the
computer without knowing how to speak the computer's "language." Without an operating system, a
computer is useless.
Long gone are the days when mobile phones were just a device to make phone calls and occasional texts.
Now they are handheld computers, where we can send emails, play games, watch the news and make video
calls to loved ones. More commonly, these are known as 'Smartphones'.
We have operating systems to run our desktop computers and laptops, and Smartphones use them too, to
introduce advanced functions to a mobile phone that were only available on our computers before.
A mobile operating system, also referred to as mobile OS, is the Operating System that operates a smart
phone, tablet, PDA, or other digital mobile device. Modern mobile operating systems combine the features of
a personal computer operating system with other features, including a touch screen, cellular, Bluetooth, WiFi, GPS mobile navigation, camera, video camera, speech recognition, voice recorder, music player.
Phones aren’t like computers so you can’t install a different operating system (OS) if you don’t like the one
that came preloaded. A mobile OS reflects your lifestyle because it determines the choice of apps and phone
functionality.
3.2
GOOGLE’S ANDROID & ITS HISTORY:
3.2 A) WHAT IS ANDROID
Android is a Linux-based operating system designed primarily for touch screen mobile devices such as
Smartphone and tablet computers. Initially developed by Android, Inc., which Google backed financially and later
purchased in 2005, Android was unveiled in 2007 along with the founding of the Open Handset Alliance: a
consortium of hardware, software, and telecommunication companies devoted to advancing open standards for
mobile devices. The first Android-powered phone was sold in October 2008.
Android is open source and Google releases the code under the Apache License. This open source code and
permissive licensing allows the software to be freely modified and distributed by device manufacturers, wireless
carriers and enthusiast developers. Additionally, Android has a large community of developers writing applications
("apps") that extend the functionality of devices, written primarily in a customized version of the Java programming
language. In October 2012, there were approximately 700,000 apps available for Android, and the estimated number
of applications downloaded from Google Play, Android's primary app store, was 25 billion.
These factors have allowed Android to become the world's most widely used Smartphone platform, overtaking
Symbian in the fourth quarter of 2010, and the software of choice for technology companies who require a low-cost,
customizable, lightweight operating system for high tech devices without developing one from scratch. As a result,
despite being primarily designed for phones and tablets, it has seen additional applications on televisions, games
consoles and other electronics. Android's open nature has further encouraged a large community of developers and
enthusiasts to use the open source code as a foundation for community-driven projects, which add new features for
advanced users or bring Android to devices which were officially released running other operating systems.
Android had a worldwide smartphone market share of 75% during the third quarter of 2012, with 500 million
devices activated in total and 1.3 million activations per day. The operating system's success has made it a target for
patent litigation as part of the so-called "smartphone wars" between technology companies.
Android had a worldwide Smartphone market share of 75% during the third quarter of 2012, with 500 million
devices activated in total and 1.3 million activations per day. The operating system's success has made it a target for
patent litigation as part of the so-called "Smartphone wars" between technology companies
3.2 B) HISTORY OF ANDROID
Android, Inc. was founded in Palo Alto, California in October 2003 by Andy Rubin (co-founder of Danger),
Rich Miner (co-founder of Wildfire Communications, Inc.), Nick Sears (once VP at T-Mobile), and Chris White
(headed design and interface development at WebTV) to develop, in Rubin's words "smarter mobile devices that are
more aware of its owner's location and preferences". Despite the past accomplishments of the founders and early
employees, Android Inc. operated secretly, revealing only that it was working on software for mobile phones. That
same year, Rubin ran out of money. Steve Perlman, a close friend of Rubin, brought him $10,000 in cash in an
envelope and refused a stake in the company.
Google acquired Android Inc. on August 17, 2005, making it a wholly owned subsidiary of Google. Key employees
of Android Inc., including Rubin, Miner and White, stayed at the company after the acquisition. Not much was
known about Android Inc. at the time, but many assumed that Google was planning to enter the mobile phone market
with this move. At Google, the team led by Rubin developed a mobile device platform powered by the Linux kernel.
Google marketed the platform to handset makers and carriers on the promise of providing a flexible, upgradable
system. Google had lined up a series of hardware component and software partners and signaled to carriers that it
was open to various degrees of cooperation on their part.
Speculation about Google's intention to enter the mobile communications market continued to build through
December 2006. Reports from the BBC and the Wall Street Journal noted that Google wanted its search and
applications on mobile phones and it was working hard to deliver that. Print and online media outlets soon reported
rumors that Google was developing a Google-branded handset. Some speculated that as Google was defining
technical specifications, it was showing prototypes to cell phone manufacturers and network operators. In September
2007, InformationWeek covered an Evalueserve study reporting that Google had filed several patent applications in
the area of mobile telephony.
On November 5, 2007, the Open Handset Alliance, a consortium of technology companies including Google, device
manufacturers such as HTC and Samsung, wireless carriers such as Sprint Nextel and T-Mobile, and chipset makers
such as Qualcomm and Texas Instruments, unveiled itself, with a goal to develop open standards for mobile devices.
That day, Android was unveiled as its first product, a mobile device platform built on the Linux kernel version 2.6.
The first commercially available phone to run Android was the HTC Dream, released on October 22, 2008. The logo
for the new Android operating system was an apple green robot designed by California-based graphic designer Irina
Blok.
Since 2008, Android has seen numerous updates which have incrementally improved the operating system, adding
new features and fixing bugs in previous releases. Each major release is named in alphabetical order after a dessert or
sugary treat; for example, version 1.5 Cupcake was followed by 1.6 Donut. The latest release is 4.2 Jelly Bean. In
2010, Google launched its Nexus series of devices—a line of smartphones and tablets running the Android operating
system, and built by a manufacturer partner. HTC collaborated with Google to release the first Nexus smartphone,
the Nexus One. The series has since been updated with newer devices, such as the Nexus 4 phone and Nexus 10
tablet, made by LG and Samsung, respectively. Google releases the Nexus phones and tablets to act as their flagship
Android devices, demonstrating Android's latest software and hardware features.
4. ANDROID SWOT ANALYSIS
Google is one of the leading internet technology and advertising companies in the world. The company
specializes in internet search engines and related advertising services. It maintains a large index of web sites
and other online content, which are freely available through its search engine. The company generates
revenue primarily by delivering relevant, online advertising. Google is one of the premier internet brands in
the world and also holds strong market position in global search market. Its significant brand image coupled
with strong market position provides a competitive advantage to the company over its peers. However,
intense competition from online services may affect its revenue
growth and market position in the coming years.
4.1 STRENGTHS
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Android is backed up by Google in collaboration with Open Handset Alliance. The brand equity of Google
adds more credibility and attention to Android OS than any other mobile OS.
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Google being a leader in technology space is able to develop lot of Mobile Applications which can be
integrated with most of the Google Application with gmail access
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Unlike Apple’s iOS Android is compatible with most of the devices like HTC, Samsung, Motorola, Sony
Ericson, Micromax etc
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Android is an open source Mobile OS which has better flexibility and compatibility to many devices. This
makes developers to create many free Apps for Android market
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Ease in Notification: Any SMS message, email, message from chat applications, update notified in the home
screen
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Android is more cost effective and the licensing agreements are transparent and has lot of relaxations. This
favors Android mobile companies to price their products far cheaper compared other OS like Symbian, iphone,
Windows, RIM etc
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The Google Brand -- The fact that they are behind the Android platform gives it credibility and viability in
the eyes of potential partners, vendors, and developers.
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Device Selection – Unlike the Apple where you don’t have any options of hardware suppliers other than
Apple itself, the Android OS is open-source and any hardware
manufacturer who chooses to do so can use it on their handset.
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This gives consumers a great deal of selection from which to choose from while also decreasing the lead time
to the use of the latest hardware and technological advances in mobile electronics.
?
Competitive Pricing – The Android OS is very cost effective to develop for since it is open source and the
licensing arrangements are vendor friendly.
?
Google application and services integration – The fact that the Android platform integrates so many of the
Google services and applications into its base only strengthens its core capabilities and usefulness. Google
items such as GMAIL, Calendar, Reader, Listen, and of course GPS and Maps to name a few integrate
seamlessly with the Android OS and make it very simple for users to synchronize their data across platforms
from the desktop to the cloud and mobile platforms.
4.2 WEAKNESS
?
Multimedia support for Android mobiles is less unlike Apple which has a centralized repository called itunes.
?
As most of the apps are free, it has ads displayed either at the bottom or at the top of apps. This annoys the
user and reduces the user delight.
?
Most of the Android apps requires a constant internet connection to run
?
Since Android OS is used by many mobile manufacturers it has to wait for compatibility test with those
manufacturers before releasing upgraded version of its OS
?
Android is always prone to external threats like malwares as it is developer friendly and source code can be
manipulated
?
Multimedia Support – As oppose to Apple iPhone which has the extremely popular iTunes application and
marketplace, Android doesn’t have a fundamental or organized source of neither multimedia data nor an
integrated multimedia player.
?
Although there have been constant improvements in the field of apps on the Android platform, but still at this time
there is no place to go that comes remotely close to what Apple is offering on this front.
?
Reliance on device manufacturers to upgrade –Unlike, Apple controls when and how iPhone costumers will get
new hardware and software upgrades and upgrades core functionality.
?
On the other hand even when google releases a newer android version the costumers still have to wait till the
device manufacturers of their respective devices comprehensively test and adapt to the new code to make sure
that it works fine on their hardware configuration.
?
Google is working on this issue according to their announcements, as they plan to integrate more of their core
features of their services into the Android Operating System itself.
?
Less Mature – Android is not as established or as refined as the iPhones’ OS at this point, But constant
improvement is seen with every new release of the android, still a lot more is required to reach the same level of
sophistication as the Apple IPhone.
?
Lack of Enterprise Support – Blackberry and Microsoft still have most of their support from Enterprise usage.
Although Android has made some inroads in this market, but Android still has very small market share here. It
needs to continue developing Google Applications and better its integration abilities with Microsoft Exchange to
gain market share.
4.3 OPPORTUNITIES
?
Many mobile networks in US support Android, this was one of the reason for the heavy boost up in their sales
?
Android market share has tremendously increased to 35 percent and it is expected to grow double the times in
another 3 years
?
Android OS is developer friendly which can result in development of advanced apps compared to other OS
?
Better handset layouts, storage, connectivity, messaging, Multiple language support, web browser, Java
support, Multi touch, tethering, screen capture are some of the highlights of Android
?
Growth of developing countries in Asia and Africa is on the high, and hence it has triggered up sales of smart
phones
?
The Android Operating System has an amazing opportunity to get into the Tablet market right now. Google
cannot afford to play a waiting game watch Apple take over the tablet market and eat up major chunk of the
market share as it had done before with the release of iphone. An Android based tablet is a fantastic
opportunity if executed properly.
?
There have been quite a few inconsequential releases of Android tablets over the last year, but none of them
are what someone would consider a noteworthy product.
?
Either Google itself or a big name such as HP, Sony, Dell, ASUS, ACER need to release an amazing Android
tablet in order to get a huge market share. Not to forget Samsung galaxy tab with android is good but still
more sophistication is required to beat apple’s I pad
?
Developer Friendly – Unlike the recent actions of Apple which has alienated the developer community by
distancing with them.
?
Moreover the development tools of Iphone are difficult to use and the application approval process seems to
be terribly subjective at times.
?
This makes iPhone application development very tedious and non rewarding for developers On the other
hand developing for Android is very open and hassle free for the developer as Android development tools use
Java and even C/C++.
?
This allows developers to write applications for Android using languages they already know and widely used.
?
Furthermore Android Software development kit also provides an emulator so that application developers can
test their applications without relying on the physical hardware.
?
Google needs to take this opportunity and help developers for their efforts through better advertising revenue
and app sales into financial gains for the developer.
?
Developing Countries – Google has an opportunity to develop cheaper devices using Android platform in
developing countries of Asia and Africa.
?
The licensing for android is exceptionally manufacturer friendly and the start up cost is considerably less
when compared to other mobile operating systems.
?
The integration with so many of Google’s other free services it would be a sure success in these markets.
?
Smart phone market on the rise – The smart phone market is still very young and there is huge scope of
growth to take place over the next several years to a decade. “The market for smart phone apps will benefit
from growth of nearly 50% in 2011, according to new research.
?
The International Data Corporation (IDC) Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker estimates that the
worldwide smart phone market is expected to increase 49.2% in 2011, growing more than four times faster
than the overall mobile phone market”( Kay Ewbank, 2011,http://www.i-programmer.info/news/83mobliephone/2203-smartphone-survey.html) . The integration of cloud computing applications and services
to support the Android OS is the key to a maintained growth rate and increased market share potential for the
Android operating system.
?
Embedded electronic devices – The Android OS is perfectly poised to be ‘the’ major player in the embedded
electronic devices market as a leader in embedded devices operating system. With upsurge of new devices
becoming embedded with smart technologies and connectivity to the mobile networks and the internet, the
Android OS is in position to be the leader in this segment.
?
4.4 THREATS
Android faces a tough threat from Apple’s iOS and any act of making iOS compatible to other devices will
result in decline of Android’s market share
?
There are substitutes in Mobile OS like Symbian, RIM, iOS, Windows etc
?
Android is prone to security threats like malwares and viruses which can impasse the mobile
?
The biggest threat for Android is downloading of apps from un trusted sites may lead the entire system to
crash or affect few applications in the mobile phone
?
Android’s cheaper enables installation in low cost mobile which affects the user status quotient compared to
iphones, Symbian, RIM etc
?
Recent threat to Android was from Trojan virus through SMS and another threat is from its Tap Snake game.
?
Apple dominance – The biggest threat to google android is the Iphone and its ever growing popularity with
the consumers as it has more smoother and sophisticated interface. Moreover Apples bigger market share
gives them an influence over developers who like a revenue model that works for them.
?
The ever growing Apple market share allows them to charge users for access to premium content. Apple’s
recent policy changes shows its influence over developers and makes their huge market share very difficult to
walk away from, even when they adopt very unfriendly developer policies.
?
Increased Competition – Obviously, companies like RIM Blackberry and Microsoft are not going to let go of
their market share. In particular, the Blackberry platform which has very huge support in the enterprise
market. Moreover Nokia is also not giving up their hopes on the symbian platform and might cause an upset
to androids hopes of capturing the market if they develop a new and sophisticated smart phone interface
which provides their customers the ease of access for which Nokia is known for.
?
Platform Fragmentation – This is a huge threat to the Android platform. Although I have listed the more
options of hardware devices as strength above, the risk of fragmentation is real as well.
?
This is why Google is committed to developing ways to reduce this problem. Google does not want different
custom version of Android to emerge from their basic platform, which is something we saw with Linux.
?
This was one of the primary reasons for linux not making to the big leagues when comparing the market
shares. As Google itself controls the Android Market so they have considerable influence over device
manufacturers to meet their compatibility requirements.
?
Financial Implications
Google android is an open source Operating system for mobile phone and embedded electronic devices so at
this time there are no direct financial implications for Google at the moment as still most of the apps on its
marketplace are free.
But as android becomes more popular Google can charge android users for different apps available on its
market place. Although what Google wants to do is to make sure that there is an open source mobile OS large
enough in the market for its advertising business. Google is not about selling Android devices.
Google is all about search and advertising. Google is doing a pretty good job of it if we see the numbers.
Last year alone Android accounted for over $130 million from marketing revenues on android out of its total
$850million from mobile advertising, which is good for $5.90 average revenue per user.
?
Furthermore Google is expecting to reap up $1.3 Billion from it’s advertisement revenues from android in
2012 at $ 9.85 average revenue per user with about 133 million android users by then. Moreover Google is
expecting to reach over 300,000 Android activations per day very soon, which will also help them to reach
the goals set by Google CEO Eric Schmidt for android to become a $10 billion business with 1 billion users
of the platform, at $10 Average Returns Per Unit.
ANDROID SWOT ANALYSIS
STRENGTH
? IT IS SUPPORTED BY GOOGLE WHICH GIVES IT
MORE CREDIBILITY
? ANDROID IS COMPATIBLE WITH MANY PHONES
UNLIKE APPLE’S IOS
? IT IS AN OPEN SOURCE MOBILE OS WHICH IS
VERY FLEXIBLE IN COMPATIBILTY WITH
WEAKNESS
MOBILE PHONES
? FREE APPS FROM ANDROID MARKET
? COST-EFFECTIVE
? LESS MULTI-MEDIA SUPPORT COMPARED TO
APPLE iTUNES
? SINCE APPS ARE FREE MORE ADVERTISEMENTS
OPPORTUNITY
THREATS
ARE SHOWN
? CAN DEVELOP ADVANCED APPS
? PROVIDES A HUGE RANGE OF MOBILE
HANDSETS TO CHOOSE FROM
? GROWTH IN DEVELOPING ASIA
? TRIGGERED UP SALES
? IT IS PRONE TO MALICIOUS CONTENT AND
MALWARES AS IT IS DEVELOPER FRIENDLY
? DOWNLOADING APPS FROM UNTRUSTED
PROVIDERS MAY CRASH THE SYSTEM
? OTHER SUBSTITUTES
5. WEBLIOGRAPHY
http://www.businessnewsdaily.com/4245-swot-analysis.html
http://hustedia.com/blog/2010/06/21/hylanders-android-swot-analysis/
http://www.ukessays.com/essays/comp...s-of-google-android-computer-scienceessay.php
http://www.marketing91.com/android-swot-analysis/
http://www.antiessays.com/free-essays/Swot-Analysis-Android-444608.html
doc_676717410.docx
ANDROID LTD
A PROJECT REPORT
SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE AWARD OF M.COM
DEGREE OF
MASTER IN COMMERCE
(MANAGEMENT)
SUBMITTED TO
UNIVERSITY OF MUMBAI,
LALA LAJPATRAI COLLEGE, MAHALAXMI, MUMBAI
SUBMITTED BY
UNIVERSITY ROLL NO.
SUPERVISED BY
OCTOBER 2014
CERTIFICATION
I hereby certify that the work which is being presented in M.Com internal project report entitled
“__________________“ in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the award of the Master of Commerce in
Management and submitted to the Lala Lajpatrai College Of Commerce And Economics, Mahalaxmi, Mumbai400034 is an authentic record of my own work carried out under the supervision of __________________ the matter
presented in this project report has not been submitted by me for the award of any other degree elsewhere
Signature of Student
Signature of Supervisor
Internal Examiner
External Examiner
College Stamp
Principal
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
I am overwhelmed with pleasure and deep sense of gratitude to our college & University of Mumbai for assigning us
such an opportunity to do this project which opened our vision towards research experience of the theory
implications and practical applications studied in this M.Com Course.
I take this opportunity to express my profound gratitude and deep regards to my guide ___________________ for
his/her exemplary guidance, monitoring and constant encouragement throughout the course of this thesis.
The blessing, help and guidance given by him/her time to time shall carry me a long way in the journey of life on
which I am about to embark.
I also take this opportunity to express a deep sense of gratitude to him for his cordial support, valuable information
and guidance, which helped me in completing this task through various stages.
I am obliged to for the valuable information provided in this field. I am grateful for the cooperation during the period
of my assignment.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
A SWOT ANALYSIS (ALTERNATIVELY SWOT MATRIX) IS A STRUCTURED PLANNING METHOD USED TO
EVALUATE THE STRENGTHS, WEAKNESSES, OPPORTUNITIES AND THREATS INVOLVED IN A PROJECT
OR IN A BUSINESS VENTURE. A SWOT ANALYSIS CAN BE CARRIED OUT FOR A PRODUCT, PLACE,
INDUSTRY OR PERSON. IT INVOLVES SPECIFYING THE OBJECTIVE OF THE BUSINESS VENTURE OR
PROJECT AND IDENTIFYING THE INTERNAL AND EXTERNAL FACTORS THAT ARE FAVORABLE AND
UNFAVORABLE TO ACHIEVE THAT OBJECTIVE. SOME AUTHORS CREDIT SWOT TO ALBERT HUMPHREY,
WHO LED A CONVENTION AT THE STANFORD RESEARCH INSTITUTE (NOW SRI INTERNATIONAL) IN THE
1960S AND 1970S USING DATA FROM FORTUNE 500 COMPANIES. HOWEVER, HUMPHREY HIMSELF DOES
NOT CLAIM THE CREATION OF SWOT, AND THE ORIGINS REMAIN OBSCURE. THE DEGREE TO WHICH
THE INTERNAL ENVIRONMENT OF THE FIRM MATCHES WITH THE EXTERNAL ENVIRONMENT IS
EXPRESSED BY THE CONCEPT OF STRATEGIC FIT.
STRENGTHS: CHARACTERISTICS OF THE BUSINESS OR PROJECT THAT GIVE IT AN
ADVANTAGE OVER OTHERS.
WEAKNESSES: CHARACTERISTICS THAT PLACE THE BUSINESS OR PROJECT AT A
DISADVANTAGE RELATIVE TO OTHERS
OPPORTUNITIES: ELEMENTS THAT THE PROJECT COULD EXPLOIT TO ITS ADVANTAGE
THREATS: ELEMENTS IN THE ENVIRONMENT THAT COULD CAUSE TROUBLE FOR THE
BUSINESS OR PROJECT
IDENTIFICATION OF SWOTS IS IMPORTANT BECAUSE THEY CAN INFORM LATER STEPS IN
PLANNING TO ACHIEVE THE OBJECTIVE. FIRST, THE DECISION MAKERS SHOULD CONSIDER
WHETHER THE OBJECTIVE IS ATTAINABLE, GIVEN THE SWOTS. IF THE OBJECTIVE IS NOT
ATTAINABLE A DIFFERENT OBJECTIVE MUST BE SELECTED AND THE PROCESS REPEATED. USERS
OF SWOT ANALYSI
S NEED TO ASK AND ANSWER QUESTIONS THAT GENERATE MEANINGFUL INFORMATION FOR
EACH CATEGORY (STRENGTHS, WEAKNESSES, OPPORTUNITIES, AND THREATS) TO MAKE THE
ANALYSIS USEFUL AND FIND THEIR COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE.
THIS REPORT PROVIDES WITH A STUDY SWOT ANALYSIS, AND ITS IMPLEMENTATION WITH
REFERENCE TO ANDROID
SR.NO
1.
INDEX OF CONTENTS
CHAPTER 1:
INTRODUCTION
2.
3.
1.1
WHAT IS SWOT ANALYSIS?
1.2
IDENTIFYING SWOT
1.3
ENVIRONMENTAL SCAN
CHAPTER 2: THE PURPOSE OF A SWOT ANALYSIS
2.1
WHEN TO USE SWOT
2.2
THE ELEMENTS OF A SWOT ANALYSIS
2.3
UNDERSTANDING SWOT ANALYSIS
2.4
PROS AND CONS
CHAPTER 3: SIMPLIFYING ANDROID
3.1
OPERATING SYSTEM
3.2
GOOGLE’S ANDROID & ITS HISTORY:
3.2 A)
4.
5.
WHAT IS ANDROID
3.2 B) HISTORY OF ANDROID
CHAPTER 4: SWOT ANALYSIS OF ANDROID
4.1
STRENGTHS
4.2
WEAKNESSES
4.3
OPPORTUNITIES
4.4
THREATS
CHAPTER 5: WEBLIOGAPHY
1.INTRODUCTION TO SWOT ANALYSIS
PAGE NO.
1.1 WHAT IS SWOT ANALYSIS?
A SWOT analysis (alternatively SWOT matrix) is a structured planning method used to evaluate the strengths,
weaknesses, opportunities and threats involved in a project or in a business venture. A SWOT analysis can be
carried out for a product, place, industry or person. It involves specifying the objective of the business venture or
project and identifying the internal and external factors that are favorable and unfavorable to achieve that objective.
Some authors credit SWOT to Albert Humphrey, who led a convention at the Stanford Research Institute (now SRI
International) in the 1960s and 1970s using data from Fortune 500 companies. However, Humphrey himself does not
claim the creation of SWOT, and the origins remain obscure. The degree to which the internal environment of the
firm matches with the external environment is expressed by the concept of strategic fit.
?
?
?
?
Strengths: characteristics of the business or project that give it an advantage over others.
Weaknesses: characteristics that place the business or project at a disadvantage relative to others
Opportunities: elements that the project could exploit to its advantage
Threats: elements in the environment that could cause trouble for the business or project
Identification of SWOTs is important because they can inform later steps in planning to achieve the objective.
First, the decision makers should consider whether the objective is attainable, given the SWOTs. If the objective is
not attainable a different objective must be selected and the process repeated.
Users of SWOT analysis need to ask and answer questions that generate meaningful information for each category
(strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) to make the analysis useful and find their competitive advantage.
1.2 IDENTIFYING SWOT
SWOT analysis aims to identify the key internal and external factors seen as important to achieving an objective.
SWOT analysis groups key pieces of information into two main categories:
1) Internal Factors – the strengths and weaknesses internal to the organization
2) External Factors – the opportunities and threats presented by the environment external to the organization
Analysis may view the internal factors as strengths or as weaknesses depending upon their effect on the
organization's objectives. What may represent strengths with respect to one objective may be weaknesses
(distractions, competition) for another objective. The factors may include all of the 4Ps; as well as personnel,
finance, manufacturing capabilities, and so on.
The external factors may include macroeconomic matters, technological change, legislation, and socio-cultural
changes, as well as changes in the marketplace or in competitive position. The results are often presented in the form
of a matrix.
SWOT analysis is just one method of categorization and has its own weaknesses. For example, it may tend to
persuade its users to compile lists rather than to think about actual important factors in achieving objectives. It also
presents the resulting lists uncritically and without clear prioritization so that, for example, weak opportunities may
appear to balance strong threats.
It is prudent not to eliminate any candidate SWOT entry too quickly. The importance of individual SWOTs will be
revealed by the value of the strategies they generate. A SWOT item that produces valuable strategies is important. A
SWOT item that generates no strategies is not important.
As part of the development of strategies and plans to enable the organization to achieve its objectives, that
organization will use a systematic/rigorous process known as corporate planning. SWOT alongside PEST/PESTLE
can be used as a basis for the analysis of business and environmental factors.
?
?
?
?
?
?
?
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Set objectives – defining what the organization is going to do
Environmental scanning
o Internal appraisals of the organization's SWOT, this needs to include an assessment of the present
situation as well as a portfolio of products/services and an analysis of the product/service life cycle
Analysis of existing strategies, this should determine relevance from the results of an internal/external
appraisal. This may include gap analysis which will look at environmental factors
Strategic Issues defined – key factors in the development of a corporate plan which needs to be addressed by
the organization
Develop new/revised strategies – revised analysis of strategic issues may mean the objectives need to change
Establish critical success factors – the achievement of objectives and strategy implementation
Preparation of operational, resource, projects plans for strategy implementation
Monitoring results – mapping against plans, taking corrective action which may mean amending
objectives/strategies.
1.3 ENVIRONMENTAL SCAN
In many competitor analyses, marketers build detailed profiles of each competitor in the market, focusing especially
on their relative competitive strengths and weaknesses using SWOT analysis. Marketing managers will examine each
competitor's cost structure, sources of profits, resources and competencies, competitive positioning and product
differentiation, degree of vertical integration, historical responses to industry developments, and other factors.
Marketing management often finds it necessary to invest in research to collect the data required to perform accurate
marketing analysis. Accordingly, management often conducts market research (alternately marketing research) to
obtain this information. Marketers employ a variety of techniques to conduct market research, but some of the more
common include:
?
?
?
?
?
Qualitative marketing research, such as focus groups
Quantitative marketing research, such as statistical surveys
Experimental techniques such as test markets
Observational techniques such as ethnographic (on-site) observation
Marketing managers may also design and oversee various environmental scanning and competitive
intelligence processes to help identify trends and inform the company's marketing analysis.
Below is an example SWOT analysis of a market position of a small management consultancy with specialism in
HRM
Strengths
Reputation in marketplace
Weaknesses
Opportunities
Threats
Shortage of consultants at
Well established position
Large consultancies
operating level rather than
with a well defined market
operating at a minor level
partner level
niche
Expertise at partner level in
Unable to deal with multi-
Identified market for
Other small consultancies
HRM consultancy
disciplinary assignments
consultancy in areas other
looking to invade the
because of size or lack of
than HRM
marketplace
ability
The SWOT analysis in Social Work practice framework is beneficial because it helps organizations decide whether
or not an objective is obtainable and therefore enables organizations to set achievable goals, objectives, and steps to
further the social change or community development effort. It enables organizers to take visions and produce
practical and efficient outcomes in order to effect long-lasting change, and it helps organizations gather meaningful
information in order to maximize their potential. Completing a SWOT analysis is a useful process regarding the
consideration of key organizational priorities, such as gender and cultural diversity, and fundraising objectives.
2. THE PURPOSE OF A SWOT ANALYSIS
The SWOT analysis enables companies to identify the positive and negative influencing factors inside and outside of
a company or organization. Besides businesses, other organizations, in areas such as community health and
development and education have found much use in its guiding principles. The key role of SWOT is to help develop
a full awareness of all factors that may affect strategic planning and decision making, a goal that can be applied to
most any aspect of industry.
SWOT is meant to act primarily as an assessment technique, though its lengthy record of success among many
businesses makes it an invaluable tool in project management.
"A good SWOT analysis serves as a dashboard to your product or services and when done correctly can help you to
navigate and implement a sound strategy for your business regardless of company size or sector," said Vipe Desai,
founder and CEO of HDX Hydration Mix. "We continue to revisit ours every year to keep it updated due to constant
shifts in market trends. It's a crisp and simple way to communicate the most important aspects of our brand."
2.1 WHEN TO USE SWOT
SWOT is meant to be used during the proposal stage of strategic planning. It acts as a precursor to any sort of
company action, which makes it appropriate for the following moments:
?
?
?
?
Exploring avenues for new initiatives
Making decisions about execution strategies for a new policy
Identifying possible areas for change in a program
Refining and redirecting efforts mid-plan
The SWOT analysis is an excellent tool in organizing information and presenting solutions, identifying roadblocks
and emphasizing opportunities.
"Performing a SWOT analysis is a great way to improve business operations and decision making," said Andrew
Schrage, founder and CEO of Money Crashers. "It allowed me to identify the key areas where my organization was
performing at a high level, as well as areas that needed work. Some small business owners make the mistake of
thinking about these sorts of things informally, but by taking the time to put together a formalized SWOT analysis,
you can come up with ways to better capitalize on your company's strengths and improve or eliminate weaknesses."
While the business owner should certainly be involved in creating a SWOT analysis, it could be much more helpful
to include other team members in the process.
"Our management team does a SWOT analysis quarterly," said Shawn Walsh, president and CEO of Paradigm
Computer Consulting. "The collective knowledge removes blind spots that, if left undiscovered, could be detrimental
to our business of our relationship with our clients."
Brandon Dudley, director of marketing and operations at The BusBank, also said that collaborative SWOT analyses
give employees a greater sense of understanding and involvement in the company.
2.2 THE ELEMENTS OF A SWOT ANALYSIS
A SWOT analysis focuses entirely on the four elements included in the acronym, allowing companies to identify the
forces influencing a strategy, action, or initiative. Knowing these positive and negative impacting elements can help
companies more effectively communicate what elements of a plan need to be recognized.
When drafting a SWOT analysis, individuals typically create a table split up into four columns so as to list each
impacting element side-by-side for comparison. Strengths and weaknesses won’t typically match listed opportunities
and threats, though some correlation should exist since they’re tied together in some way.
Royce Leather Gifts marketing director Billy Bauer noted that pairing external threats with internal weaknesses can
highlight the most serious issues faced by a company.
"Once you've identified your risks, you can then decide whether it is most appropriate to eliminate the internal
weakness by assigning company resources to fix the problems, or reduce the external threat by abandoning the
threatened area of business and meeting it after strengthening your business," Bauer said.
Internal factors
The first two letters in the acronym, Strengths and Weaknesses, refer to internal factors, which means the resources
and experience readily available to you. Examples of areas typically considered include:
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?
?
?
Financial resources, such as funding, sources of income and investment opportunities.
Physical resources, such as your company’s location, facilities and equipment.
Human resources, such as employees, volunteers and target audiences.
Current processes, such as employee programs, department hierarchies and software systems.
When it comes to listing strengths and weaknesses, individuals shouldn’t try to sugarcoat or glaze over inherent
weaknesses or strengths. Identifying factors both good and bad is important in creating a thorough SWOT analysis.
"Using the SWOT analysis has, more than once, saved me from myself, keeping me from taking on projects that
would likely have been too much for my small company," said Tom Atkins, founder of Quarry House.
Mitchell Weiss, business professor at the University of Hartford, recommended fully analyzing your strengths and
weaknesses first.
"Companies can't hope to take advantage of or control the external factors until the internals have been objectively
assessed," he said.
External factors
Every company, organization and individual is influenced and affected by external forces. Whether connected
directly or indirectly to an opportunity or threat, each of these factors is important to take note of and document.
External factors typically reference things you or your company does not control, such as:
?
?
?
?
?
Market trends, such as new products and technology or shifts in audience needs.
Economic trends, such as local, national and international financial trends.
Funding, such as donations, legislature and other foundations.
Demographics, such as a target audience’s age, race, gender and culture.
Supreme Graphics, a commercial print manufacturer, was struggling to compete with the digital industry in
retaining its larger advertising and marketing clients.
"We used a SWOT analysis to identify a new market opportunity in small manufacturers that needed ink-on-paper
projects," said Michael Frishberg, Supreme Graphics' vice president of sales and marketing. "This provided organic,
non-disruptive growth."
On the other hand, Lynn Sheehan, co-founder and CEO of CPAreviewforFREE, noted that a SWOT analysis helped
her company fully analyze its pricing structure, which would have been a threat to its success.
The SWOT analysis is a simple, albeit comprehensive strategy in identifying not only the weaknesses and threats of
a plan, but also the strengths and opportunities available through it. While an excellent brainstorming tool, the fourcornered analysis prompts entities to examine and execute strategies in a more balanced way. However, it is not the
only factor in developing a business strategy.
"A SWOT analysis is helpful in broadly addresses questions to develop a business plan, but it doesn't go far enough,"
said Worthworm and SkyMall co-founder Alan Lobock. "The exercise alone won't identify your key value drivers of
your business. Planning without first knowing your goals and the metrics by which you will measure your progress
toward achieving those goals is inefficient and misguided."
2.3 UNDERSTANDING SWOT ANALYSIS
A SWOT analysis is a strategic balance sheet of an organization; that is the strengths of the organization, the
weaknesses of the organization, the opportunities facing the organization, and the threats facing the organization. It is
one of the cornerstone analytical tools to help an organization develop a preferred future. It is one of the time tested
tools that has the capacity to enable an organization to understand itself. To respond effectively to changes in the
environment, we must understand our external and internal contexts so we can develop a vision and a strategy that
link the two. We need to weave together our understanding of our organization and our actions to develop a future.
The purpose of the SWOT analysis is to provide information on our strengths and weaknesses in relation to the
opportunities and threats we face.
The analysis and subsequent lists (the outcome of a SWOT analysis is a point form list) is not valuable unless a
rigorous discussion takes place with background insight, and unless the list reflects the final views of the
organization. A major purpose of any strategic discussion is to arrive at a deeper level of insight. Any response to
threats and opportunities must be based on an intimate knowledge and understanding of the organization's strengths
and weaknesses. One outcome that should follow a SWOT analysis is an identification of distinctive competencies
(for further insight on the latter see: Prahalad/Hamel. "The Core Competencies of the Corporation." HBR. 1990).
The benefits of a SWOT analysis are that it provides learning and knowledge vital to the organization's survival and
prosperity. Nutt and Backoff talk about SWOT as a clarifier of the "tension fields" in organizations. It is a
juxtaposition of the ying and the yang of organizations. Another outcome of the SWOT analysis which is becoming
extremely important is an understanding of our boundaries and the development of boundary-spanning skills and
insight to help navigate the changing environment we face.
Some Techniques for SWOT:
Highs and Lows:
Divide the blackboard into the current year and the last two - three years. Individuals silently brainstorm all
organizational highs and lows. Transcribe all the high and lows and stick them on the wall. The group identifies
themes common to the highs, the lows, or both. The group analyses the data by answering these questions:
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What opportunities have we had? What did we do? Was it successful?
What threats have we had? How did we handle them? Which did we ignore?
What strengths do we rely on? Which do we ignore?
How do we deal with weaknesses? What have we done about them?
Eventually the discussion has to move on to how to behave in the future and how to benefit from the insight
generated.
Snowball Card:
Each person writes a SWOT analysis on a 5 x 7 (or larger) card and sticks the card on the wall. The group then
develops four lists of strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats, eliminating overlap, to discuss, compare, and
analyze. Prepare a list which reflects the common themes in the individual SWOT analyses. Clustering technique is
normally used to tease out themes.
Guidelines for SWOT Analysis:
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Keep it simple
Focus on your organization.
Look for patterns.
Look for action that can be taken within a year.
Don't get lost in the future.
Be rooted in the now.
2.4 PROS AND CONS
The success of this method is mainly owed to its simplicity and its flexibility. Its implementation does not require
technical knowledge and skills. SWOT analysis allows the synthesis and integration of various types of information
which are generally known but still makes it possible to organise and synthesise recent information as well.
It is worth pointing out that whereas SWOT analysis is often not seen strictly speaking as a Foresight method, it is
fruitful to consider it from this perspective. Indeed, Foresight is particularly useful for addressing the OT dimensions,
whereas SWOT analyses often fail because of poor examination of OT (opportunities and threats).
A correlation is made between the internal factors, strengths and weaknesses of the organisation, and the external
factors, opportunities and threats. An effort can be made to exploit opportunities and overcome weaknesses and at the
same time for the organisation to protect itself from the threats of the external environment through the development
of contingency plans.
The most common drawbacks of SWOT analysis are:
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The length of the lists of factors that have to be taken into account in the analysis;
Lack of prioritisation of factors, there being no requirement for their classification and evaluation;
No suggestions for solving disagreements;
No obligation to verify statements or aspects based on the data or the analysis;
Analysis only at a single level (not multi-level analysis);
No rational correlation with the implementation phases of the exercise.
Moreover, there are risks of:
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Inadequate definition of factors;
Over-subjectivity in the generation of factors (compiler bias);
The use of ambiguous and vague words and phrases
One has to be aware that this method is very commonly used by consulting firms and that for this reason some
people in the public/quasi-public sector have an aversion to it.
3. SIMPLIFYING ANDROID
3.1 OPERATING SYSTEM
An operating system is the most important software that runs on a computer. It manages the computer's
memory, processes, and all of its software and hardware. It also allows you to communicate with the
computer without knowing how to speak the computer's "language." Without an operating system, a
computer is useless.
Long gone are the days when mobile phones were just a device to make phone calls and occasional texts.
Now they are handheld computers, where we can send emails, play games, watch the news and make video
calls to loved ones. More commonly, these are known as 'Smartphones'.
We have operating systems to run our desktop computers and laptops, and Smartphones use them too, to
introduce advanced functions to a mobile phone that were only available on our computers before.
A mobile operating system, also referred to as mobile OS, is the Operating System that operates a smart
phone, tablet, PDA, or other digital mobile device. Modern mobile operating systems combine the features of
a personal computer operating system with other features, including a touch screen, cellular, Bluetooth, WiFi, GPS mobile navigation, camera, video camera, speech recognition, voice recorder, music player.
Phones aren’t like computers so you can’t install a different operating system (OS) if you don’t like the one
that came preloaded. A mobile OS reflects your lifestyle because it determines the choice of apps and phone
functionality.
3.2
GOOGLE’S ANDROID & ITS HISTORY:
3.2 A) WHAT IS ANDROID
Android is a Linux-based operating system designed primarily for touch screen mobile devices such as
Smartphone and tablet computers. Initially developed by Android, Inc., which Google backed financially and later
purchased in 2005, Android was unveiled in 2007 along with the founding of the Open Handset Alliance: a
consortium of hardware, software, and telecommunication companies devoted to advancing open standards for
mobile devices. The first Android-powered phone was sold in October 2008.
Android is open source and Google releases the code under the Apache License. This open source code and
permissive licensing allows the software to be freely modified and distributed by device manufacturers, wireless
carriers and enthusiast developers. Additionally, Android has a large community of developers writing applications
("apps") that extend the functionality of devices, written primarily in a customized version of the Java programming
language. In October 2012, there were approximately 700,000 apps available for Android, and the estimated number
of applications downloaded from Google Play, Android's primary app store, was 25 billion.
These factors have allowed Android to become the world's most widely used Smartphone platform, overtaking
Symbian in the fourth quarter of 2010, and the software of choice for technology companies who require a low-cost,
customizable, lightweight operating system for high tech devices without developing one from scratch. As a result,
despite being primarily designed for phones and tablets, it has seen additional applications on televisions, games
consoles and other electronics. Android's open nature has further encouraged a large community of developers and
enthusiasts to use the open source code as a foundation for community-driven projects, which add new features for
advanced users or bring Android to devices which were officially released running other operating systems.
Android had a worldwide smartphone market share of 75% during the third quarter of 2012, with 500 million
devices activated in total and 1.3 million activations per day. The operating system's success has made it a target for
patent litigation as part of the so-called "smartphone wars" between technology companies.
Android had a worldwide Smartphone market share of 75% during the third quarter of 2012, with 500 million
devices activated in total and 1.3 million activations per day. The operating system's success has made it a target for
patent litigation as part of the so-called "Smartphone wars" between technology companies
3.2 B) HISTORY OF ANDROID
Android, Inc. was founded in Palo Alto, California in October 2003 by Andy Rubin (co-founder of Danger),
Rich Miner (co-founder of Wildfire Communications, Inc.), Nick Sears (once VP at T-Mobile), and Chris White
(headed design and interface development at WebTV) to develop, in Rubin's words "smarter mobile devices that are
more aware of its owner's location and preferences". Despite the past accomplishments of the founders and early
employees, Android Inc. operated secretly, revealing only that it was working on software for mobile phones. That
same year, Rubin ran out of money. Steve Perlman, a close friend of Rubin, brought him $10,000 in cash in an
envelope and refused a stake in the company.
Google acquired Android Inc. on August 17, 2005, making it a wholly owned subsidiary of Google. Key employees
of Android Inc., including Rubin, Miner and White, stayed at the company after the acquisition. Not much was
known about Android Inc. at the time, but many assumed that Google was planning to enter the mobile phone market
with this move. At Google, the team led by Rubin developed a mobile device platform powered by the Linux kernel.
Google marketed the platform to handset makers and carriers on the promise of providing a flexible, upgradable
system. Google had lined up a series of hardware component and software partners and signaled to carriers that it
was open to various degrees of cooperation on their part.
Speculation about Google's intention to enter the mobile communications market continued to build through
December 2006. Reports from the BBC and the Wall Street Journal noted that Google wanted its search and
applications on mobile phones and it was working hard to deliver that. Print and online media outlets soon reported
rumors that Google was developing a Google-branded handset. Some speculated that as Google was defining
technical specifications, it was showing prototypes to cell phone manufacturers and network operators. In September
2007, InformationWeek covered an Evalueserve study reporting that Google had filed several patent applications in
the area of mobile telephony.
On November 5, 2007, the Open Handset Alliance, a consortium of technology companies including Google, device
manufacturers such as HTC and Samsung, wireless carriers such as Sprint Nextel and T-Mobile, and chipset makers
such as Qualcomm and Texas Instruments, unveiled itself, with a goal to develop open standards for mobile devices.
That day, Android was unveiled as its first product, a mobile device platform built on the Linux kernel version 2.6.
The first commercially available phone to run Android was the HTC Dream, released on October 22, 2008. The logo
for the new Android operating system was an apple green robot designed by California-based graphic designer Irina
Blok.
Since 2008, Android has seen numerous updates which have incrementally improved the operating system, adding
new features and fixing bugs in previous releases. Each major release is named in alphabetical order after a dessert or
sugary treat; for example, version 1.5 Cupcake was followed by 1.6 Donut. The latest release is 4.2 Jelly Bean. In
2010, Google launched its Nexus series of devices—a line of smartphones and tablets running the Android operating
system, and built by a manufacturer partner. HTC collaborated with Google to release the first Nexus smartphone,
the Nexus One. The series has since been updated with newer devices, such as the Nexus 4 phone and Nexus 10
tablet, made by LG and Samsung, respectively. Google releases the Nexus phones and tablets to act as their flagship
Android devices, demonstrating Android's latest software and hardware features.
4. ANDROID SWOT ANALYSIS
Google is one of the leading internet technology and advertising companies in the world. The company
specializes in internet search engines and related advertising services. It maintains a large index of web sites
and other online content, which are freely available through its search engine. The company generates
revenue primarily by delivering relevant, online advertising. Google is one of the premier internet brands in
the world and also holds strong market position in global search market. Its significant brand image coupled
with strong market position provides a competitive advantage to the company over its peers. However,
intense competition from online services may affect its revenue
growth and market position in the coming years.
4.1 STRENGTHS
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Android is backed up by Google in collaboration with Open Handset Alliance. The brand equity of Google
adds more credibility and attention to Android OS than any other mobile OS.
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Google being a leader in technology space is able to develop lot of Mobile Applications which can be
integrated with most of the Google Application with gmail access
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Unlike Apple’s iOS Android is compatible with most of the devices like HTC, Samsung, Motorola, Sony
Ericson, Micromax etc
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Android is an open source Mobile OS which has better flexibility and compatibility to many devices. This
makes developers to create many free Apps for Android market
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Ease in Notification: Any SMS message, email, message from chat applications, update notified in the home
screen
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Android is more cost effective and the licensing agreements are transparent and has lot of relaxations. This
favors Android mobile companies to price their products far cheaper compared other OS like Symbian, iphone,
Windows, RIM etc
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The Google Brand -- The fact that they are behind the Android platform gives it credibility and viability in
the eyes of potential partners, vendors, and developers.
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Device Selection – Unlike the Apple where you don’t have any options of hardware suppliers other than
Apple itself, the Android OS is open-source and any hardware
manufacturer who chooses to do so can use it on their handset.
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This gives consumers a great deal of selection from which to choose from while also decreasing the lead time
to the use of the latest hardware and technological advances in mobile electronics.
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Competitive Pricing – The Android OS is very cost effective to develop for since it is open source and the
licensing arrangements are vendor friendly.
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Google application and services integration – The fact that the Android platform integrates so many of the
Google services and applications into its base only strengthens its core capabilities and usefulness. Google
items such as GMAIL, Calendar, Reader, Listen, and of course GPS and Maps to name a few integrate
seamlessly with the Android OS and make it very simple for users to synchronize their data across platforms
from the desktop to the cloud and mobile platforms.
4.2 WEAKNESS
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Multimedia support for Android mobiles is less unlike Apple which has a centralized repository called itunes.
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As most of the apps are free, it has ads displayed either at the bottom or at the top of apps. This annoys the
user and reduces the user delight.
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Most of the Android apps requires a constant internet connection to run
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Since Android OS is used by many mobile manufacturers it has to wait for compatibility test with those
manufacturers before releasing upgraded version of its OS
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Android is always prone to external threats like malwares as it is developer friendly and source code can be
manipulated
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Multimedia Support – As oppose to Apple iPhone which has the extremely popular iTunes application and
marketplace, Android doesn’t have a fundamental or organized source of neither multimedia data nor an
integrated multimedia player.
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Although there have been constant improvements in the field of apps on the Android platform, but still at this time
there is no place to go that comes remotely close to what Apple is offering on this front.
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Reliance on device manufacturers to upgrade –Unlike, Apple controls when and how iPhone costumers will get
new hardware and software upgrades and upgrades core functionality.
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On the other hand even when google releases a newer android version the costumers still have to wait till the
device manufacturers of their respective devices comprehensively test and adapt to the new code to make sure
that it works fine on their hardware configuration.
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Google is working on this issue according to their announcements, as they plan to integrate more of their core
features of their services into the Android Operating System itself.
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Less Mature – Android is not as established or as refined as the iPhones’ OS at this point, But constant
improvement is seen with every new release of the android, still a lot more is required to reach the same level of
sophistication as the Apple IPhone.
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Lack of Enterprise Support – Blackberry and Microsoft still have most of their support from Enterprise usage.
Although Android has made some inroads in this market, but Android still has very small market share here. It
needs to continue developing Google Applications and better its integration abilities with Microsoft Exchange to
gain market share.
4.3 OPPORTUNITIES
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Many mobile networks in US support Android, this was one of the reason for the heavy boost up in their sales
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Android market share has tremendously increased to 35 percent and it is expected to grow double the times in
another 3 years
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Android OS is developer friendly which can result in development of advanced apps compared to other OS
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Better handset layouts, storage, connectivity, messaging, Multiple language support, web browser, Java
support, Multi touch, tethering, screen capture are some of the highlights of Android
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Growth of developing countries in Asia and Africa is on the high, and hence it has triggered up sales of smart
phones
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The Android Operating System has an amazing opportunity to get into the Tablet market right now. Google
cannot afford to play a waiting game watch Apple take over the tablet market and eat up major chunk of the
market share as it had done before with the release of iphone. An Android based tablet is a fantastic
opportunity if executed properly.
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There have been quite a few inconsequential releases of Android tablets over the last year, but none of them
are what someone would consider a noteworthy product.
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Either Google itself or a big name such as HP, Sony, Dell, ASUS, ACER need to release an amazing Android
tablet in order to get a huge market share. Not to forget Samsung galaxy tab with android is good but still
more sophistication is required to beat apple’s I pad
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Developer Friendly – Unlike the recent actions of Apple which has alienated the developer community by
distancing with them.
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Moreover the development tools of Iphone are difficult to use and the application approval process seems to
be terribly subjective at times.
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This makes iPhone application development very tedious and non rewarding for developers On the other
hand developing for Android is very open and hassle free for the developer as Android development tools use
Java and even C/C++.
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This allows developers to write applications for Android using languages they already know and widely used.
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Furthermore Android Software development kit also provides an emulator so that application developers can
test their applications without relying on the physical hardware.
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Google needs to take this opportunity and help developers for their efforts through better advertising revenue
and app sales into financial gains for the developer.
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Developing Countries – Google has an opportunity to develop cheaper devices using Android platform in
developing countries of Asia and Africa.
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The licensing for android is exceptionally manufacturer friendly and the start up cost is considerably less
when compared to other mobile operating systems.
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The integration with so many of Google’s other free services it would be a sure success in these markets.
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Smart phone market on the rise – The smart phone market is still very young and there is huge scope of
growth to take place over the next several years to a decade. “The market for smart phone apps will benefit
from growth of nearly 50% in 2011, according to new research.
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The International Data Corporation (IDC) Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker estimates that the
worldwide smart phone market is expected to increase 49.2% in 2011, growing more than four times faster
than the overall mobile phone market”( Kay Ewbank, 2011,http://www.i-programmer.info/news/83mobliephone/2203-smartphone-survey.html) . The integration of cloud computing applications and services
to support the Android OS is the key to a maintained growth rate and increased market share potential for the
Android operating system.
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Embedded electronic devices – The Android OS is perfectly poised to be ‘the’ major player in the embedded
electronic devices market as a leader in embedded devices operating system. With upsurge of new devices
becoming embedded with smart technologies and connectivity to the mobile networks and the internet, the
Android OS is in position to be the leader in this segment.
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4.4 THREATS
Android faces a tough threat from Apple’s iOS and any act of making iOS compatible to other devices will
result in decline of Android’s market share
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There are substitutes in Mobile OS like Symbian, RIM, iOS, Windows etc
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Android is prone to security threats like malwares and viruses which can impasse the mobile
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The biggest threat for Android is downloading of apps from un trusted sites may lead the entire system to
crash or affect few applications in the mobile phone
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Android’s cheaper enables installation in low cost mobile which affects the user status quotient compared to
iphones, Symbian, RIM etc
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Recent threat to Android was from Trojan virus through SMS and another threat is from its Tap Snake game.
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Apple dominance – The biggest threat to google android is the Iphone and its ever growing popularity with
the consumers as it has more smoother and sophisticated interface. Moreover Apples bigger market share
gives them an influence over developers who like a revenue model that works for them.
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The ever growing Apple market share allows them to charge users for access to premium content. Apple’s
recent policy changes shows its influence over developers and makes their huge market share very difficult to
walk away from, even when they adopt very unfriendly developer policies.
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Increased Competition – Obviously, companies like RIM Blackberry and Microsoft are not going to let go of
their market share. In particular, the Blackberry platform which has very huge support in the enterprise
market. Moreover Nokia is also not giving up their hopes on the symbian platform and might cause an upset
to androids hopes of capturing the market if they develop a new and sophisticated smart phone interface
which provides their customers the ease of access for which Nokia is known for.
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Platform Fragmentation – This is a huge threat to the Android platform. Although I have listed the more
options of hardware devices as strength above, the risk of fragmentation is real as well.
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This is why Google is committed to developing ways to reduce this problem. Google does not want different
custom version of Android to emerge from their basic platform, which is something we saw with Linux.
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This was one of the primary reasons for linux not making to the big leagues when comparing the market
shares. As Google itself controls the Android Market so they have considerable influence over device
manufacturers to meet their compatibility requirements.
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Financial Implications
Google android is an open source Operating system for mobile phone and embedded electronic devices so at
this time there are no direct financial implications for Google at the moment as still most of the apps on its
marketplace are free.
But as android becomes more popular Google can charge android users for different apps available on its
market place. Although what Google wants to do is to make sure that there is an open source mobile OS large
enough in the market for its advertising business. Google is not about selling Android devices.
Google is all about search and advertising. Google is doing a pretty good job of it if we see the numbers.
Last year alone Android accounted for over $130 million from marketing revenues on android out of its total
$850million from mobile advertising, which is good for $5.90 average revenue per user.
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Furthermore Google is expecting to reap up $1.3 Billion from it’s advertisement revenues from android in
2012 at $ 9.85 average revenue per user with about 133 million android users by then. Moreover Google is
expecting to reach over 300,000 Android activations per day very soon, which will also help them to reach
the goals set by Google CEO Eric Schmidt for android to become a $10 billion business with 1 billion users
of the platform, at $10 Average Returns Per Unit.
ANDROID SWOT ANALYSIS
STRENGTH
? IT IS SUPPORTED BY GOOGLE WHICH GIVES IT
MORE CREDIBILITY
? ANDROID IS COMPATIBLE WITH MANY PHONES
UNLIKE APPLE’S IOS
? IT IS AN OPEN SOURCE MOBILE OS WHICH IS
VERY FLEXIBLE IN COMPATIBILTY WITH
WEAKNESS
MOBILE PHONES
? FREE APPS FROM ANDROID MARKET
? COST-EFFECTIVE
? LESS MULTI-MEDIA SUPPORT COMPARED TO
APPLE iTUNES
? SINCE APPS ARE FREE MORE ADVERTISEMENTS
OPPORTUNITY
THREATS
ARE SHOWN
? CAN DEVELOP ADVANCED APPS
? PROVIDES A HUGE RANGE OF MOBILE
HANDSETS TO CHOOSE FROM
? GROWTH IN DEVELOPING ASIA
? TRIGGERED UP SALES
? IT IS PRONE TO MALICIOUS CONTENT AND
MALWARES AS IT IS DEVELOPER FRIENDLY
? DOWNLOADING APPS FROM UNTRUSTED
PROVIDERS MAY CRASH THE SYSTEM
? OTHER SUBSTITUTES
5. WEBLIOGRAPHY
http://www.businessnewsdaily.com/4245-swot-analysis.html
http://hustedia.com/blog/2010/06/21/hylanders-android-swot-analysis/
http://www.ukessays.com/essays/comp...s-of-google-android-computer-scienceessay.php
http://www.marketing91.com/android-swot-analysis/
http://www.antiessays.com/free-essays/Swot-Analysis-Android-444608.html
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