• Title/Summary/Keyword: Geographical Structure Effect

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Characterization of microbiota diversity of engorged ticks collected from dogs in China

  • Wang, Seongjin;Hua, Xiuguo;Cui, Li
    • Journal of Veterinary Science
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    • v.22 no.3
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    • pp.37.1-37.14
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    • 2021
  • Background: Ticks are one of the most common external parasites in dogs, and are associated with the transmission of a number of major zoonoses, which result in serious harm to human health and even death. Also, the increasing number of pet dogs and pet owners in China has caused concern regarding human tick-borne illnesses. Accordingly, studies are needed to gain a complete understanding of the bacterial composition and diversity of the ticks that parasitize dogs. Objectives: To date, there have been relatively few reports on the analysis of the bacterial community structure and diversity in ticks that parasitize dogs. The objective of this study was to investigate the microbial composition and diversity of parasitic ticks of dogs, and assessed the effect of tick sex and geographical region on the bacterial composition in two tick genera collected from dogs in China. Methods: A total of 178 whole ticks were subjected to a 16S ribosomal RNA (rRNA) next generation sequencing analysis. The Illumina MiSeq platform targeting the V3-V4 region of the 16S rRNA gene was used to characterize the bacterial communities of the collected ticks. Sequence analysis and taxonomic assignment were performed using QIIME 2 and the GreenGene database, respectively. After clustering the sequences into taxonomic units, the sequences were quality-filtered and rarefied. Results: After pooling 24 tick samples, we identified a total of 2,081 operational taxonomic units, which were assigned to 23 phyla and 328 genera, revealing a diverse bacterial community profile. The high, moderate and low prevalent taxa include 46, 101, and 182 genera, respectively. Among them, dominant taxa include environmental bacterial genera, such as Psychrobacter and Burkholderia. Additionally, some known tick-associated endosymbionts were also detected, including Coxiella, Rickettsia, and Ricketssiella. Also, the potentially pathogenic genera Staphylococcus and Pseudomonas were detected in the tick pools. Moreover, our preliminary study found that the differences in microbial communities are more dependent on the sampling location than tick sex in the tick specimens collected from dogs. Conclusions: The findings of this study support the need for future research on the microbial population present in ticks collected from dogs in China.

Temporal-Spatial Analysis of Landscape Diversity using FRAGSTATS (FRAGSTATS를 활용한 경관다양성의 시공간적 분석)

  • Kwon, Oh-Sung;Ra, Jung-Hwa;Ku, Ji-Na;Kim, Jin-Hyo
    • Journal of the Korean Society of Environmental Restoration Technology
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    • v.18 no.3
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    • pp.39-50
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    • 2015
  • This research selected Daegu Metropolitan City representing a combination of natural space and urban space for this case study. To achieve this, a prerequisite was to set up an optimal block size to evaluate landscape diversity of the research site by using a RPR-Area Curve. Further, landscape diversity evaluation was conducted based on land cover map by using FRAGSTATS to analyze spatio-temporal changes. Notably, this research regarded it as the most significant to set forth criteria in order to apply landscape diversity to the development plans of the newtown and outskirt of a city under high pressure development. Results derived from this research are summarized as follows. According to the results derived from establishing the optimal block size, a size about $2km^2$ was analyzed to measure landscape diversity of the research site. Also, according to the results derived from land diversity evaluation based on land cover map, land diversity was highly measured around urban stream such as Nakdong River and Geumho River, and in particular, the value of landscape diversity was measured considerably high around the urban parks. Results derived from analysis on spatio-temporal changes of land diversity demonstrated that a certain level of urban development exerted a positive effect on an increase in land diversity, but consistent urban development lowered a value of landscape diversity. Results derived from regression analysis to set forth the optimal urban space showed that an urban area of a space about $2km^2$ exerted a positive effect at a rate of about 0~43.3% and a negative effect at a rate about 43.3~100%. In conclusion, the results of this research are considered to provide important basic data for future urban and landscape planning. Nonetheless, as only the layout on the 2D plane was analyzed in this research, further research in future is required to complexly consider diverse factors such as height of structure and change in visible real area arising from geographical features.

Heojun's Outlook on Nature (허준(許浚)의 자연관(自然觀) - 『동의보감(東醫寶鑑)』을 중심으로 -)

  • Park, Seong-Kue;Kim, Sue Joong;Kim, Nam Il
    • The Journal of Korean Medical History
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    • v.18 no.2
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    • pp.197-227
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    • 2005
  • Heojun was the top scientist on Medicine in the 16th and 17th centuries and wrote the Dongeubogam describing the top-level medical theory and technology. So far, his outlook on nature has been disregarded even though his medicine is still effective. Through this study, I would like to know if his outlook on nature as well as his medicine is still effective. The conclusions are as follows: 1. According to his output, the origin of the universe started from the spinning of One Gi(一氣) which is quite different from Hawking's theory. Hawking assumed that the origin of the universe started from the Big-bang and will end to the Big-crunch. However, the current report on the origin of a star is quite similar to Heojun's theory and we acknowledge that his view on the origin of the universe is still effective. 2. According to his output, the universe repeats expanding and contracting forever while Hawking assumed it will come to the end, the Big-crunch, based on the expanding universe theory. Some scientists assists that Hawking's assumption should have some contradictions. Now, we acknowledge that Heojun's universal cycling theory which corresponds with modern physical theories is still effective, which would lead to a new environmental movement. 3. His view on the structure of the universe is quite different from the output of the current science, which results from his thought that the nature should be reviewed from the point of human's view. His view on the structure will be able to be updated based on the output of the current science. 4. The universe analogy started from the East Asian area as well as the Greek and Roman area in the ancient. The idea has disappeared since the scientific revolution era in the West while the idea has been deepened and abundant in the East and has become one of the major philosophical bases. Heojun emphasized its importance from the beginning of his book. 5. The nation analogy has been popular all times and places. According to his output, governing a country is like controlling one's body. 6. According to Needham's output, the universe analogy and the nation analogy were based on the ancient developed alchemy. And Harper assumed that Taiosm was based on the macrobiotic hygiene which was developed by the ancient developed alchemists. We acknowledge that xian(仙) cult, macrobiotic hygiene, medicine, alchemy and the ancient philosophy started from our ancients. Heojun's output restored our ancient tradition by combining the macrobiotic hygiene and philosophy with medicine. 7. Roughly predicting yearly weather would be unacceptable by the current scientist but Heojun's yearly weather forecast is still used in the clinic and seems effective to prepare from any epidemic disease. 8. 'Day and Night' and Four seasons are the most important factors to the macrobiotic hygiene according to the Dongeubogam. The new environmental movements should be based on the most important factors, otherwise the human beings as well as the environment would fail to survive. 9. Wind, Coldness, Heat, Humidity, Dryness and Fire represents weather. The six weather factors represent one of six phases of a year which is decided by the areal factors. Heojun preferred the six factors generated in the body itself to them from the outside. He thought a human being was a universe and the six factors generated in the body responded to the factors of the outside. 10. According to his output, Heat and Humidity are the most important factors which make a human being ill. 11. Life span, disease, food, and dwelling are dependent upon the geographical feature, according to Heojun's output. In addition, one's appearance and his five viscera and the six entrails depend on the food as well as the geographical feature. 12. Heath is related with the environment and they effects upon each other. If one is weak, he will be deeply effected by the nature. On the other hand, if one is strong, he will effect on the nature. That's why people live together. 13. According to Heojun's work, the society is an important factor comprising the environment. During a peaceful era, the society becomes stable and human beings are stable as well while they will be on fire during a chaotic era. 14. Medicine deals with human beings who live in the nature, so any medical book cannot be excellent unless it has any description on the nature. Heojun's outlook on the nature turned out to be logical and suitable even from the point of the current view and it is still effective as if his clinical knowledge and technology are still effective. Something unsuitable may be substituted with the output of the current science.

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A Study of Impacts of Human Interference on the Gapcheon River Basin in Daejeon City (도시하천에 대한 인위적 간섭 특성 및 하천 관리 방안 - 대전시 갑천유역을 중심으로 -)

  • Kim, Doo-Il
    • Journal of the Korean association of regional geographers
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    • v.14 no.1
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    • pp.1-18
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    • 2008
  • If there is no choice but to be urbanized, we should examine how human interference has had influences on the area to keep the river environment safe and stable. This study is aimed at finding improvement by examining the effect of human interference in Gapcheon river in Daejeon, which is developing fast. Distinctive features of human interference in Gapcheon river are followings. First, middle and upper reaches of Gapcheon river are being maintained and restored focusing on flood control but are scheduled to develop city and channel. Second, the rear area of middle and lower reaches of Gapcheon river is already developed into an urban district and solidified into artificial stream for leisure activities installing the artificial structure for fun. Third, lower reaches of Gapcheon river are in an unstable condition because of straightening waterway and developing rear area of river. Up to now, geographical features and bio-diversity of Gapcheon river has been ruined by the artificial management of river centered for technical engineering. From now on, followings should be considered for management of urban river. First, it is focused on maintaining eco system by itself than usage for human. Second, natural features of rear area of river should be taken into consideration and should be preserved before developing urban city and hills, back marsh, channel deposit and swamp to directly have an influence on river.

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Genetic Diversity and Genetic Structure of Acer pseudosieboldianum Populations in South Korea Based on AFLP Markers (AFLP 마커를 이용한 당단풍나무 집단의 유전다양성과 유전구조)

  • Ahn, Jiyoung;Hong, Kyung-Nak;Baek, Seung-Hoon;Lee, Min-Woo;Lim, Hyo-In;Lee, Jei-Wan
    • Journal of Korean Society of Forest Science
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    • v.105 no.4
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    • pp.414-421
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    • 2016
  • Fourteen Acer pseudosieboldianum populations in South Korea were used to estimate genetic diversity, genetic differentiation and genetic relationships using seven AFLP primer combinations. The average of effective alleles ($A_e$), the proportion of polymorphic loci (%P) and Shannon's diversity index (I) was 1.4, 82.2% and 0.358, respectively. The expected heterozygosity ($H_e$) under Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium was 0.231 and the expected heterozygosity (Hj) from Bayesian inference was 0.253. The level of genetic diversity was moderate compared to those of Genus Acer and lower than those of other species having similar ecological niche and life history. The inbreeding coefficient within populations ($F_{IS}$) from Bayesian method was 0.712 and it could be influenced by selfing or biparental inbreeding to induce homozygote excess. The level of genetic differentiation was 0.107 from AMOVA (${\Phi}_{ST}$) and 0.110 from Bayesian method (${\Phi}^{II}$). The genetic differentiation was lower than those of other species having similar ecological niche and life history. Ulleungdo population had the lowest level of genetic diversity and was genetically the most distinct population from others in the study. We consider that founder effect and genetic drift might be occurred to reduce genetic diversity and then the geographical isolation might interrupt gene flow to aggravate it.

Review on the succession process of Pinus densiflora forests in South Korea: progressive and disturbance-driven succession

  • Choung, Yeonsook;Lee, Jongsung;Cho, Soyeon;Noh, Jaesang
    • Journal of Ecology and Environment
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    • v.44 no.3
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    • pp.126-142
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    • 2020
  • Background: Most of the Pinus densiflora forests, occupying the largest area, have been restored in South Korea since the 1970s. As young pioneer forests, the succession process is under way. Since the forests are distributed nationwide and are vulnerable to disturbances, the process may differ depending on the geography and/or site conditions. Therefore, we reviewed the direction, the seral communities, and the late-successional species of progressive and disturbance-driven succession nationwide in the cool-temperate zone through meta-analysis and empirical observations. Main text: As a result of a meta-analysis of the direct succession and vertical structure, we found that the P. densiflora forest is in a directionally progressive succession, changing to the broadleaved forest after forming a mixed forest with its overwhelming successor, Quercus species (particularly Q. mongolica and Q. serrata). In dry stands in a relative sense, the Quercus species was favored occupying over 80% of the abundance of the succeeding species. Therefore, in dry stands, it is presumed that Quercus-dominated stage would last for a long time due to the current dominance and long life span, and eventually, it settles as Quercus-broadleaved forest with a site change. Contrary to this, it is presumed that in mesic stands where Quercus species do not occur or have low abundance, the late-successional broadleaved species settle early to form a co-dominant forest with multiple species. Due to geographical limits, the species composition of the two late-successional forests is different. Disturbances such as insect pests and fire retrogressed vulnerable P. densiflora forest for a while. However, it was mostly restored to the Quercus forest and is expected to be incorporated in the pathway of the dry stand. Conclusions: We revealed the succession process of P. densiflora forests according to geography and moisture and found that stand moisture had a decisive effect on the species and abundance of the successor. Although the P. densiflora forest is undergoing structural changes, the forest is still young; so within a few decades, physiognomy is not likely to change. Therefore, the decrease in the forest area may be due to other causes such as disturbances and forest conversion rather than due to succession.

NPD (New Product Development) Structural Features for Successful Product Proliferation (제품 다양성의 활성화를 위한 신제품 개발 조직의 구조적 특성)

  • Kim, Jung-Yoon;Hahn, Ju-Hee
    • Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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    • v.10 no.11
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    • pp.3373-3383
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    • 2009
  • The aim of the current study is to look at the mediating effects of structural features (i.e. decentralization, formalization, and specialization) on the relationship between product variety and the performance of product family. This study investigates the impact of decentralization and formalization for platform and derivative projects separately and in the context of the performance of the product family as a whole, as opposed to individual projects. In addition to relationships between people and groups, the current study considers physical element of an organization such as geographical location in which business tasks are conducted. The current study focuses on spatial differentiation which refers to the number of different sites or locations operated by an organization. Based on a cross-industry sample of 103 Korean manufacturers, this study examines the role of organizational structure features in which firms successfully increase product variety. The study examines that formalization in platform projects and decentralization in derivative projects enhance high variety firms' product family performance. The study finds significant mediating effect of spatial proximity on the relationship between product variety and product family performance.

A Study of the Effect of Store Selection factors on the Customer's Satisfaction and Revisit Intention (한·중 대형마트 구매자 점포선택요인에 관한 비교연구)

  • Noh, Jung-Koo;Lee, Ji-Eun;WANG, Chun-Chun
    • Management & Information Systems Review
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    • v.33 no.5
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    • pp.97-115
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    • 2014
  • The purpose of this study is to illustrating how the store selection factors affect the customer's satisfaction about the store and the intention of revisit base on the analyzing the store selection factors. At the same time, the difference between the influence on the customer's satisfaction and revisit intention of that in Korea and in China is also compared. Accordingly, through the notional understanding of configuration variables and the investigation of previous research, the Research hypothesis was set and the relevance between the two was inspected. The survey was aimed at the Korean customers who visit the large supermarkets in Korea and Chinese customers who visit the large supermarkets in China. After that, the reliability and validity of the collected data was verified and the research hypothesis was validated by structure equation modeling. The result of this study can by concluded as follows: First, in Korea the customer's satisfaction is showed to be affected by store selection factors, product property, service property and physical environment. Second, in China the customer's satisfaction is showed to be affected by store selection factors, product property, service property and physical environment. Third, in Korea the revisit intention is showed to be affected by customer's satisfaction. Forth, in China the revisit intention is showed to be affected by customer's satisfaction. Fifth, it shows little difference between the store selection factors of the customers visiting large supermarkets in Korea and in China. According to the research results above, the implications can be drawn as the customer's satisfaction of those who visit the large supermarkets may be affected by store selection factors (store property, product property, service property and physical environment). In recent years, more and more overseas large supermarkets are opening in both Korea and China and the competition among each is become more intense day by day. Every larger supermarket is trying their best to refine their store property, product property, service property and physical environment, in order to enhance the customer's satisfaction. The biggest factor that affects the customer's satisfaction and revisit intention in Korea is service property, So that the services requires proper measures and improvement. In China, the factor that affects most on the customer's satisfaction and revisit intention is physical environment. In order to enhance the customer's positive consciousness of stores, the physical environment needs to be well constructed. Lastly, in the compared research between Korea and China, the distribution of survey responders was limited from certain areas. Therefore, the further study can be implemented by more research in various geographical areas and more development in store selection factors.

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A study on the improvement of distribution system by overseas agricultural investment (해외농업투자에 따른 유통체계 개선방안에 관한 연구)

  • Sun, Il-Suck;Lee, Dong-Ok
    • Journal of Distribution Science
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    • v.8 no.3
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    • pp.17-26
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    • 2010
  • Recently concerns have been raised due to the unbalanced supply of crops: the price of crops has been unstable and at one point the price went up so high that the word Agflation(agriculture+ inflation) was coined. Korea, in particular, is a small-sized country and needs to secure the stable supply of crops by investing in the produce importation at a national level. Investment in foreign produce importation is becoming more important as a measure for sufficient supply of crops, limited supply of domestic crops, weakened farming conditions worldwide, as well as recent changes in the use of crops due to the development of bio-fuels, influence of carbon emission on crops, the price increase in crops, and influx of foreign hot money. However, there are many problems with investing in foreign produce importation: lack of support from the government; lack of farming information and technology; difficulty in securing the capital; no immediate pay-off from the investment and insufficient management. Although foreign produce is originally more price-competitive than domestic produce, it loses its competiveness in the process of importation (due to high tariffs) and poor distribution system, which makes it difficult to sell in Korea. Therefore, investment in foreign produce importation is being questioned for feasibility; to make it possible, foreign produce must maintain the price-competitiveness. Especially, harvest of agricultural products depends on natural and geographical conditions of each country and those products have indigenous properties, so distribution system according to import and export of agricultural products should be treated more carefully than that of other industries. Distribution costs are differentiated into each item and include cost of sorting and wrapping, cost of wrapping materials, cost of domestic transport, cost of international transport and cost of clearing customs for import and export. So transporting and storing agricultural products generates considerable costs compared with other products. Also, due to upgrade of dietary life, needs for stability, taste and visible quality toward food including agricultural products are being raised and wrong way of storage causes decomposition of food and loss of freshness, making the storage more difficult than that in room temperature, so storage and transport in distribution of agricultural products needs specialty. In addition, because lack of specialty in distribution and circulation such as storage and wrapping does not solve limit factors in distance, the distribution and circulation has been limited to a form of import and export within short-distant region. Therefore, need for distribution out-sourcing which can satisfy specialty in managing distribution and circulation and it is needed to establish more effective distribution system. However, existing distribution system of agricultural products is exposed to various problems including problems in distribution channel, making distribution and strategy for distribution and those problems are as follows. First, in case of investment in overseas agricultural industry, stable supply of the products is difficult because areas of production are dispersed widely and influenced by outer factors due to including overseas distribution channels. Also, at the aspect of quality, standardization of products is difficult, distribution system is quite complicated and unreasonable due to long distribution channels according to international trade and financial and institutional support is not enough. Especially, there are quite a lot of ineffective factors including multi level distribution process, dramatic gap between production cost and customer's cost, lack of physical distribution facilities and difficulties in storage and transport due to lack of wrapping containers. Besides, because import and export of agricultural products has been manages under the company's own distribution according to transaction contract between manufacturers and exporting company, efficiency is low due to excessive investment in fixed costs and lack of specialty in dealing with agricultural products causes fall of value of products, showing the limit to lose price-competitiveness. Especially, because lack of specialty in distribution and circulation such as storage and wrapping does not solve limit factors in distance, the distribution and circulation has been limited to a form of import and export within short-distant region. Therefore, need for distribution out-sourcing which can satisfy specialty in managing distribution and circulation and it is needed to establish more effective distribution system. Second, among tangible and intangible services which promote the efficiency of the whole distribution, a function building distribution environment which includes distribution information, system for standard and inspection, distribution finance, system for diversification of risks, education and training, distribution administration and tax system is wanted. In general, such a function building distribution environment is difficult to be changed and supplement innovatively because its effect compared with investment does not appear immediately despite of its necessity. Especially, in case of distribution of agricultural products, as a function of collecting and distributing is performed individually through various channels, the importance of distribution information and standardization is getting more focus due to the problem of repetition of work and lack of specialty. Also, efficient management of distribution is quite difficult due to lack of professionals in distribution, so support to professional education is needed. Third, though effort to keep self-sufficiency ratio of staple food, rice is regarded as important at the government level, level of dependency on overseas of others crops is high. Therefore, plan for stable securing food resources aside from staple food is also necessary. Especially, governmental organizations of agricultural products distribution in Korea are production-centered and have unreasonable structure whose function at the aspect of distribution and consumption is quite insufficient. And development of new distribution channels which can deal with changes in distribution environment and they do not achieve actual results of strategy for distribution due to non-positive strategy for price distribution. That is, it implies the possibility that base for supply will become vulnerable because it does not mediate appropriate interests on total distribution channels such as manufacturers, wholesale dealers and vendors by emphasizing consumer protection excessively in the distribution of agricultural products. Therefore, this study examined fundamental concept and actual situation for our investment to overseas agriculture, drew necessities, considerations, problems, etc. of overseas agricultural investment and suggested improvements at the level of distribution for price competitiveness of agricultural products cultivated in overseas under five aspects; government's indirect support, distribution's modernization and distribution information function's strengthening, government's political support for distribution facility, transportation route, load and unloading works' improvement, price competitiveness' securing, professional manpower's cultivation by education and training, etc. Here are some suggestions for foreign produce importation. First, the government should conduct a survey on the current distribution channels and analyze the situation to establish a measure for long-term development plans. By providing each agricultural area with a guideline for planning appropriate production of crops, the government can help farmers be ready for importation, and prevent them from producing same crops all at the same time. Government can sign an MOU with the foreign government and promote the importation so that the development of agricultural resources can be stable and steady. Second, the government can establish a strategy for an effective distribution system by providing farmers and agriculture-related workers with the distribution information such as price, production, demand, market structure and location, feature of each crop, and etc. In order for such distribution system to become feasible, the government needs to reconstruct the current distribution system, designate a public organization for providing distribution information and set the criteria for level of produce quality, trade units, and package units. Third, the government should provide financial support and a policy to seek an efficient distribution channel for foreign produce to be delivered fresh: the government should expand distribution facilities (for selecting, packaging, storing, and processing) and transportation vehicles while modernizing old facilities. There should be another policy to improve the efficiency of unloading, and to lower the cost of distribution. Fourth, it is necessary to enact a new law covering exceptional cases for importing produce in order to maintain the price competitiveness; currently the high tariffs is keeping the imported produce from being distributed domestically. However, the new adjustment should be made carefully within the WTO regulations since it can create a problem from giving preferential tariffs. The government can also simplify the distribution channels in order to reduce the cost in the distribution process. Fifth, the government should educate distributors to raise the efficiency and to modernize the distribution system. It is necessary to develop human resources by educating people regarding the foreign agricultural environment, the produce quality, management skills, and by introducing some successful cases in advanced countries.

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The Impact of Market Environments on Optimal Channel Strategy Involving an Internet Channel: A Game Theoretic Approach (시장 환경이 인터넷 경로를 포함한 다중 경로 관리에 미치는 영향에 관한 연구: 게임 이론적 접근방법)

  • Yoo, Weon-Sang
    • Journal of Distribution Research
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    • v.16 no.2
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    • pp.119-138
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    • 2011
  • Internet commerce has been growing at a rapid pace for the last decade. Many firms try to reach wider consumer markets by adding the Internet channel to the existing traditional channels. Despite the various benefits of the Internet channel, a significant number of firms failed in managing the new type of channel. Previous studies could not cleary explain these conflicting results associated with the Internet channel. One of the major reasons is most of the previous studies conducted analyses under a specific market condition and claimed that as the impact of Internet channel introduction. Therefore, their results are strongly influenced by the specific market settings. However, firms face various market conditions in the real worlddensity and disutility of using the Internet. The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of various market environments on a firm's optimal channel strategy by employing a flexible game theory model. We capture various market conditions with consumer density and disutility of using the Internet.

    shows the channel structures analyzed in this study. Before the Internet channel is introduced, a monopoly manufacturer sells its products through an independent physical store. From this structure, the manufacturer could introduce its own Internet channel (MI). The independent physical store could also introduce its own Internet channel and coordinate it with the existing physical store (RI). An independent Internet retailer such as Amazon could enter this market (II). In this case, two types of independent retailers compete with each other. In this model, consumers are uniformly distributed on the two dimensional space. Consumer heterogeneity is captured by a consumer's geographical location (ci) and his disutility of using the Internet channel (${\delta}_{N_i}$).
    shows various market conditions captured by the two consumer heterogeneities.
    (a) illustrates a market with symmetric consumer distributions. The model captures explicitly the asymmetric distributions of consumer disutility in a market as well. In a market like that is represented in
    (c), the average consumer disutility of using an Internet store is relatively smaller than that of using a physical store. For example, this case represents the market in which 1) the product is suitable for Internet transactions (e.g., books) or 2) the level of E-Commerce readiness is high such as in Denmark or Finland. On the other hand, the average consumer disutility when using an Internet store is relatively greater than that of using a physical store in a market like (b). Countries like Ukraine and Bulgaria, or the market for "experience goods" such as shoes, could be examples of this market condition. summarizes the various scenarios of consumer distributions analyzed in this study. The range for disutility of using the Internet (${\delta}_{N_i}$) is held constant, while the range of consumer distribution (${\chi}_i$) varies from -25 to 25, from -50 to 50, from -100 to 100, from -150 to 150, and from -200 to 200.
    summarizes the analysis results. As the average travel cost in a market decreases while the average disutility of Internet use remains the same, average retail price, total quantity sold, physical store profit, monopoly manufacturer profit, and thus, total channel profit increase. On the other hand, the quantity sold through the Internet and the profit of the Internet store decrease with a decreasing average travel cost relative to the average disutility of Internet use. We find that a channel that has an advantage over the other kind of channel serves a larger portion of the market. In a market with a high average travel cost, in which the Internet store has a relative advantage over the physical store, for example, the Internet store becomes a mass-retailer serving a larger portion of the market. This result implies that the Internet becomes a more significant distribution channel in those markets characterized by greater geographical dispersion of buyers, or as consumers become more proficient in Internet usage. The results indicate that the degree of price discrimination also varies depending on the distribution of consumer disutility in a market. The manufacturer in a market in which the average travel cost is higher than the average disutility of using the Internet has a stronger incentive for price discrimination than the manufacturer in a market where the average travel cost is relatively lower. We also find that the manufacturer has a stronger incentive to maintain a high price level when the average travel cost in a market is relatively low. Additionally, the retail competition effect due to Internet channel introduction strengthens as average travel cost in a market decreases. This result indicates that a manufacturer's channel power relative to that of the independent physical retailer becomes stronger with a decreasing average travel cost. This implication is counter-intuitive, because it is widely believed that the negative impact of Internet channel introduction on a competing physical retailer is more significant in a market like Russia, where consumers are more geographically dispersed, than in a market like Hong Kong, that has a condensed geographic distribution of consumers.
    illustrates how this happens. When mangers consider the overall impact of the Internet channel, however, they should consider not only channel power, but also sales volume. When both are considered, the introduction of the Internet channel is revealed as more harmful to a physical retailer in Russia than one in Hong Kong, because the sales volume decrease for a physical store due to Internet channel competition is much greater in Russia than in Hong Kong. The results show that manufacturer is always better off with any type of Internet store introduction. The independent physical store benefits from opening its own Internet store when the average travel cost is higher relative to the disutility of using the Internet. Under an opposite market condition, however, the independent physical retailer could be worse off when it opens its own Internet outlet and coordinates both outlets (RI). This is because the low average travel cost significantly reduces the channel power of the independent physical retailer, further aggravating the already weak channel power caused by myopic inter-channel price coordination. The results implies that channel members and policy makers should explicitly consider the factors determining the relative distributions of both kinds of consumer disutility, when they make a channel decision involving an Internet channel. These factors include the suitability of a product for Internet shopping, the level of E-Commerce readiness of a market, and the degree of geographic dispersion of consumers in a market. Despite the academic contributions and managerial implications, this study is limited in the following ways. First, a series of numerical analyses were conducted to derive equilibrium solutions due to the complex forms of demand functions. In the process, we set up V=100, ${\lambda}$=1, and ${\beta}$=0.01. Future research may change this parameter value set to check the generalizability of this study. Second, the five different scenarios for market conditions were analyzed. Future research could try different sets of parameter ranges. Finally, the model setting allows only one monopoly manufacturer in the market. Accommodating competing multiple manufacturers (brands) would generate more realistic results.

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