The Case Study on Hon Hai-Sharp Alliance: A Strategy Perspective

消費者在選購Apple、Samsung、HP、Sony的電腦或是其他數位產品時，決定的關鍵是企業的品牌力。而一般說來，分配供應鏈中成員利潤的正是品牌廠商。即便背後為這些客戶代工或生產各類數碼產品的亞洲企業，例如台灣公司如星羅棋布般，努力為同行中的佼佼者生產零件；然而大多數的消費者卻從未在意這些企業的名字。可是鴻海或許可能是其中一個例外。本文將以鴻海、夏普及三星為例，個案討論幾種企業垂直整合的型態。 鴻海集團近年來以驚人的速度壯大成長。與之形成對比的，夏普和日本消費電子產品業的同行一樣，經營狀況江河日下。今年3月27日，鴻海集團同意以669億日元（約8億美元）的價格，收購困境中的日本消費電子廠-夏普10%的股份。集團總裁郭台銘先生，也和其他投資者一起，以相近的價格買下了夏普位於日本堺市的一家工廠93%股權中的一半。這家目前世界唯一的面板十代廠生產大型液晶顯示器面板；經營問題主要來源於下滑的銷售業績：LCD顯示器及LCD電視價格的不斷下跌，這部分的收入約佔夏普總收入的40%。夏普的堺市工廠於2009年開始生產，一直以來都只能以不到總產能的50%來運作。如果LCD製造業讓人損失慘重，為何鴻海卻熱衷於此？郭台銘董事長正在運籌帷幄，盼望鴻海集團能繼續在垂直整合的成長方面取得成功。或許他有把握，蘋果公司將如市場情報所說，很快地開始進軍智慧電視市場，或是韓系廠商在供應鏈中的控制力消退，然後他和鴻海就可以再一次在轉變的情勢當中成長並獲利了。 而歸納並研究鴻海、夏普、三星電子等公司的個案情況後，本文作者認為影響產業或公司走向垂直整合的因素有：當外部交易成本過高、速度是決勝關鍵、供應鏈中某一環節的技術領先，控制力增加時，結構走向垂直整合時。反之與上述情況相反時，加上擁有利基技術的挑戰者加入、原先的大公司出現組織僵化時，結構將會走向水平分工。When consumers around the world pick up a computer or other gadget sold by Apple, Samsung, HP or Sony, they often buy it based on the strength of brand. Generally speaking, brand companies enjoy most of the profit in the value chain. Yet many of those items are actually built by Asian suppliers. For example, TAIWAN is home to a constellation of companies most people have never have heard of, making electronic gadgets and components for others with household names. However, Hon Hai might be an exception. In this thesis we will discuss three types of vertical integration: Full Integration, Quasi-integration and Tapered Integration. And discuss cases that who take vertical integration as their most important business growth strategy, such as Hon Hai, Sharp and Samsung. Hon Hai has grown at an astonishing rate these years. In sad contrast Sharp, like the rest of Japan''s electronics companies, has gone blunt. On March 27th Hon Hai, which is also known as Foxconn, agreed to buy about 10% of Sharp for ￥66.9 billion ($0.8 billion). For a similar sum its chairman, Terry Gou, and other investors are buying half of Sharp''s 93% stake in a 10G factory in Sakai, Japan, that makes large liquid-crystal display (LCD) panels. Most of Sharp troubles can be explained by declining sales and prices of LCDs and LCD televisions, which account for something like 40% of its revenue. The Sakai factory, which opened in 2009, has been running at half its capacity. If LCDs have become such a miserable business, why is Hon Hai so keen to get into it? Just as plausibly, however, Mr Gou is making a bet on its continued success in his vertical integration business model. He may reckon that Apple will, as has long been rumored, soon start making televisions—and that his wealth and Hon Hai will continue to growth and profit again. According to the case studies and the literature review, we find electronics companies will choose vertical integration when transaction cost is too high, or when time to market and time to volume are the key success factors. Other reasons including that when technical advances in one subsystem can give market power to its owner or market power in one subsystem encourages engineering integration with other subsystems to develop proprietary integral solutions. On the other hand, when the relentless entry of niche competitors hoping to pick off discrete industry segments, or when the bureaucratic and organizational rigidities that often settle upon large, established companies; these forces of disintegration will push toward a horizontal and modular configuration