The rapid growth of technological infrastructure has changed the way companies do business. Subscription based services are one of the outcomes of the ongoing digitalization, and with more and more products and services to choose from, customer churning has become a major problem and a threat to all firms. We propose a machine learning based churn prediction model for a subscription based service provider, within the domain of financial administration in the business-to-business (B2B) context. The aim of our study is to contribute knowledge within the field of churn prediction. For the proposed model, we compare two ensemble learners, XGBoost and Random Forest, with a single base learner, Naïve Bayes. The study follows the guidelines of the design science methodology, where we used the machine learning process to iteratively build and evaluate the generated model, using the metrics, accuracy, precision, recall, and F1- score. The data has been collected from a subscription-based service provider, within the financial administration sector. Since the used dataset is imbalanced with a majority of non- churners, we evaluated three different sampling methods, that is, SMOTE, SMOTEENN and RandomUnderSampler, in order to balance the dataset. From the results of our study, we conclude that machine learning is a useful approach for prediction of customer churning. In addition, our results show that ensemble learners perform better than single base learners and that a balanced training dataset is expected to improve the performance of the classifiers.

This report is about an innovative project on the sustainable design of disposable products triggered by critical thinking related to the environmental protection and use of paper-based disposable products.   The project is set against the backdrop of the UN End-plastic-pollution initiative, in the 21st century when plastic waste is proliferating and microplastics spread across the planet's ecosystems are already causing a serious environmental crisis. With a focus on disposable products, the project investigates and analyses the sustainability and experience of using paper-based disposable products as an alternative to plastic.   The authors argue that neither disposable products nor plastics are responsible for the current environmental crisis, but rather that the main problem lies in the leakage of disposable products through their life cycle, which is mainly related to consumer behaviour and life cycle management.   The study proposes a systemic innovation that combines enhanced lifecycle management through emerging technologies and a subscription service model for disposable products with user-centred principles. The innovation includes lifecycle maps, user journey maps and user interfaces as visual outcomes.   Finally, an assessment of the potential risks of the systemic innovative solution and a summary and reflection of the overall project are presented.

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The competitive market of the newspaper industry has undergone considerable changes driven by new technology, the internet and changing audience behavior. The industry is facing two current crises, the decline in print and advertising revenues, and at the same time, the growth of free online content. One of the major challenges for traditional newspapers is to find new ways to increase digital revenues to make-up for these losses. This study uses qualitative interviews and readership data collected from a large traditional publisher to explore how the newspaper can reshape the customer value proposition and increase digital subscriptions. Additionally, the study uses case examples from the industry to combine theoretical reflections with practical development. The newspapers need to continue to explore new opportunities in media, and balance focus between traditional and newer, more radical activities. In the future, success will be dependent on the integration of value-added elements. The findings suggest that traditional newspapers should enhance the value proposition by investing even more in high-quality and multimedia journalism. The audience is willing to pay if the product has a high relative value and is differentiated from the free online news. This can be done by an extensive integration of technology into the journalistic processes and a more defined product. Further, the publisher needs to abandon mass media models and offerings that provide something for everyone, instead offering niches and limited-edition news products to add new revenue streams. / Tidningsindustrin genomgår dramatiska förändringar driven av ny teknik, förändrade konsumentvanor och nya aktörer. Industrin står inför två stora utmaningar, nedåtgående försäljnings- och annonsintäkter och tilltagande gratis innehåll online. En av de stora utmaningarna för tidningar är att hitta nya sätt att öka intäkterna på för att kompensera för dessa förluster. Denna studie använder kvalitativa intervjuer i kombination med kunddata från en Sveriges största morgontidning för att undersöka hur tidningarna kan transformera kunderbjudandet och öka antalet digitala prenumerationer. Studien använder dessutom case från medieindustrin för att kombinera vetenskaplig teori med praktisk utveckling. Tidningarna behöver fortsätta att utforska nya affärsmodeller och balansera fokus mellan inkrementella och mer radikala aktiviteter. Resultatet från denna studie indikerar att tidningarna kan öka kundvärdet genom att investera ännu mer i högkvalitativ- och digital journalistik. För att öka intäkterna borde tidningarna även fokusera mindre på att erbjuda ”lite av allt till alla” och istället erbjuda mer nischade nyhetsprodukter.

The sharing economy enables sustainable consumption through efficient access to products, but transitioning from ownership to a subscription-based model faces barriers. The thesis author explored how the decoupling of product ownership impact on the variables; consumer's perceptions of - psychological value, monetary value, social value, brand image, brand attachment, brand loyalty, service quality, and product quality and performance in the context of white goods. Furthermore, the thesis authors added sustainability awareness as an important variable, while discussing the decoupling of product ownership. Although, there is a lot of literature on the above-mentioned variables the relationship between the decoupling of product ownership and the mentioned variables was theoretically and empirically unexplored. Using a quantitative and deductive research approach, an online survey consisting of 29 questions was conducted. The empirical data revealed that the decoupling of product ownership impact all the variables under study and have a significant relationship with them. The impact of decoupling of product ownership was found to be strongest on consumers' perception of - service quality, followed by brand loyalty, brand attachment, product quality and performance, and monetary value. By gaining a deeper understanding of the relationships between the variables companies can effectively develop marketing strategies, subscription plans, and pricing strategies.

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The concept of customer perceived value occupies a prominent position within the strategic agenda of organisations, as firms seek to maximise the value perceived by their customers as arising from their consumption, and to equal or exceed that perceived in relation to competitor propositions. Customer value management is similarly central to the marketing discipline. However, the nature of customer value remains ambiguous and its measurement is typically flawed, due to the poor conceptual foundation upon which previous research endeavours are built. This investigation seeks to address the current poverty of insight regarding the nature and measurement of customer value. The development of a revised conceptual framework synthesises the strengths of previous value conceptualisations while addressing many of their limitations. A multi-dimensional depiction of value arising from customer experience is presented, in which value is conceptualised as arising at both first-order dimension and overall, second-order levels of abstraction. The subsequent operationalisation of this conceptual framework within a two-phase investigation combines qualitative and quantitative methodologies in a study of customer value arising from subscription TV (STV) consumption. Sixty semi-structured interviews with 103 existing STV customers give rise to a multi-dimensional model of value, in which dimensions are categorised as restorative, actualising and hedonic in type, and as arising via individual, reflected or shared modes of perception. The quantitative investigation entails two periods of data collection via questionnaires developed from the qualitative findings, and the gathering of 861 responses, also from existing STV customers. A series of scales with which to measure value dimensions is developed and an index enabling overall perceived value measurement is produced. Contributions to theory of customer value arise in the form of enhanced insights regarding its nature. At the first-order dimension level, the derived dimensions are of specific relevance to the STV industry. However, the empirically derived framework of dimension types and modes of perception has potential applicability in multiple contexts. At the more abstract, second-order level, the findings highlight that value perceptions comprise only a subset of potential dimensions. Evidence is thus presented of the need to consider value at both dimension and overall levels of perception. Contributions to knowledge regarding customer value measurement also arise, as the study produces reliable and valid scales and an index. This latter tool is novel in its formative measurement of value as a second order construct, comprising numerous first-order dimensions of value, rather than quality as incorporated in previously derived measures. This investigation also results in a contribution to theory regarding customer experience through the identification of a series of holistic, discrete, direct and indirect value-generating interactions. Contributions to practice within the STV industry arise as the findings present a solution to the immediate need for enhanced value insight. Contributions to alternative industries are methodological, as this study presents a detailed process through which robust value insight can be derived. Specific methodological recommendations arise in respect of the need for empirically grounded research, an experiential focus and a twostage quantitative methodology.

Background Companies realization of the possibility to target specific audiences in an intimate setting through podcasts, has created a significant expansion of the podcast industry during the last decade. This development has created possibilities for independent podcast hosts to earn revenue. Today, investments towards marketing in the medium is projected to continue to grow substantially.   Problem Since podcasts are consumer controlled and categorized as a pull-medium, listeners’ attitudes and preferences are critical for podcast hosts to consider when monetizing their content. The largest audience of podcasts is found within Generation Y, which increases the importance of accounting for these attitudes and preferences, since they are assumed to be a particularly challenging consumer segment to target.   Purpose The purpose of this thesis is to explore the relationships that Generation Y have to hosts in different type of podcast categories. Following, the research aims to investigate how these relationships influence the podcasts’ possible opportunities to maximize their revenue.   Method This qualitative research was conducted through semi-structured interviews with individuals from Generation Y. The empirical data was analyzed according to the conceptual framework developed through existing literature within the field of study.      Result The findings of this research enabled the authors to provide recommendations regarding preferable forms of monetization for the four identified podcast categories. The sponsorship approach was identified as the preferable primary form of monetization for Category 1, 3 and 4. Whereas the Subscription Model was recommended for Category 2. The authors further suggested the most beneficial supplementary forms of monetization for each podcast category as well as general recommendations for all.

Este trabalho orientou-se por uma pergunta: qual era o público literário (leitor e consumidor) de Alexandre Dumas, Manuel Antonio de Almeida, José de Alencar e Fagundes Varella e de suas respectivas produções literárias que foram difundidas no Brasil entre 1850 e 1860? Para responder a esta pergunta, o trabalho buscou identificar e caracterizar como grupo social uma fração do público literário brasileiro destes escritores e de seus folhetins, publicados na forma de romances e crônicas. Eles circularam no Gabinete Português de Leitura do Rio de Janeiro (Dumas) e em dois jornais do Império - Correio Mercantil-RJ (Almeida e Alencar) e Correio Paulistano-SP (Varella). E nestes espaços sua presença foi considerada bastante expressiva a ponto de existir, em um país marcado pela escravidão e analfabetismo, uma fração de público para eles. Essa fração não representava apenas a elite, advinha também de outros estratos sociais, que carecem de investigação sociológica. Diante da variedade do sistema literário brasileiro, extraímos dele somente alguns momentos que, uma vez compreendidos, apresentam elementos constitutivos de uma fração do público literário no Segundo Reinado no Rio de Janeiro e em São Paulo. / The research question guiding this study was: who was the literary public (both reader and consumer) of the works of Alexandre Dumas, Manuel Antonio de Almeida, José de Alencar, and Fagundes Varella that were published in Brazil between the years of 1850 and 1860? To answer this question, this study attempted to identify and characterize as a social group a fraction of the Brazilian literary public who consumed the writings of the aforementioned authors, which circulated as feuilleton (novels and chronicles). Such writings circulated at the Gabinete Português de Leitura in Rio de Janeiro (Dumas) and in two newspapers printed during the Empire - Correio Mercantil from Rio de Janeiro (Almeida and Alencar) and Correio Paulistano from São Paulo (Varella). Their presence was of such importance that a fraction of the literary public existed in a country marked by slavery and illiteracy. This fraction did not represent the elite only, it included other social groups requiring investigation. In relation to the diversity of the Brazilian literary system some elements were extracted in this investigation. Once understood, they present constitutive elements of a fraction of the literary public in Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo during the Second Empire of Brazil.