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Politics : Formerly About Advanced Micro Devices -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Alighieri who wrote (438582)	12/5/2008 4:13:50 PM
From: i-node	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1585976

Getting the unions to drop some of their costs will help make the next few payrolls...it's good, they have to do it...but sooner than later these companies will have to face up to how to stop the market share losses and win back customers whose mind-share has been deeply lost to European or Japanese manufacturers, whose products are superior not just in quality, but in appeal, features, performance, technology, and so on. Get over it. The market share losses aren't what caused this problem. They're not a good thing but you seem to be the only person on planet Earth who doesn't see this now. Hell, even the UAW is back to the table because THEY know they're the problem.

To: Alighieri who wrote (438582)	12/5/2008 4:37:08 PM
From: Tenchusatsu	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1585976

Al, I agree with everything you said. However, if I can be 95% sure that the Big Three (or even one out of the three) will emerge from this mess with much better focus on quality, features, and reputation, I would not be so opposed to the bailout. I remain skeptical, though. Tenchusatsu

To: Alighieri who wrote (438582)	12/5/2008 5:17:54 PM
From: Joe NYC	1 Recommendation Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1585976

Al, Getting the unions to drop some of their costs will help make the next few payrolls...it's good, they have to do it...but sooner than later these companies will have to face up to how to stop the market share losses and win back customers whose mind-share has been deeply lost to European or Japanese manufacturers, European? I think it is mostly Japanese on mid to high end and Korean on lower end. European share is miniscule. I think the Big 3 have improved greatly, and the quality. I don't think it is an obstacle that cannot be overcome. Michael mentioned that they have a cost disadvantage of $2,000 vs. transplants per car. That is hard to overcome, especially in super competitive mid to low end of the market. In higher end segments, where $2,000 difference per car can easily be hidden, the US manufacturers do fine. but still, that's a loss of $2,000 profit per car. There is another big disadvantage all US manufacturers face, and it is that our taxation is mainly income / profit based, elsewhere, it is consumption based. This has to do with all imports / exports. If half of the government revenue in Europe, for example comes from consumption, Eurean manufacturers face 1/2 taxation on their production. In the US, ~100% of taxation is income / profit based, so US company (and its employees) pays 100% on the production end. Now if European exports, they pay 50% of home country taxation and 0% of US taxation. 50% total. If a US company exports, they pay 100% of US taxation and 50% of European taxation, 150% total. That's a substantial difference... whose products are superior not just in quality, but in appeal, features, performance, technology, and so on. I think this is more PR (or bad PR for US companies) than reality.