Problem:
Recently a number of companies have offered special discounts to customers who subscribe to electronic coupon services. For instance, an electronic coupon provider will establish a relationship with restaurant to discount prices to customers who show the restaurant an electronic coupon displayed from their smartphone. Clearly, those who have smartphones, members of social networks, and subscribe to a coupon service may benefit from this offering. The coupon service can also collect subscription fees from subscribers as well as electronic ad fees from restaurants. The restaurants can benefit by capturing sales they may not have otherwise obtained had they not advertised a discount in this medium.
There are pros and cons to this marketing approach. State your agreement or disagreement with this practice using your understanding of the information presented in the lectures, text readings and other relevant sources.