Negotiation Strategy Article Analysis

Negotiation Strategy Article Analysis

MGT/445

Negotiation Strategy Article Analysis

In business, there will always be times where negotiation is necessary to allow business to continue, these situations are crucial in the continuation of a companies growth. Both parties or in some situations multiple parties come to the table with their needs and wants and its imperative that the needs are met for all involved. In my paper I will be addressing the issue of Yeti vs Rtic and Bang vs Monster energy. Both are in some ways similar, but end up with much different outcomes.

Yeti VS Rtic

The first article I would like to introduce is an article from 2017 that makes reference to a lawsuit brought on by Yeti against a fellow cooler company called Rtic. Yeti alleges that Rtic infringed not he patents that yeti owns and is selling a product that is similar in function and form to the Yeti cooler. Yeti was formed in 2006 as a high end cooler for people in need of a product that could keep items cold for many days in the Africa and southern US areas and do it on a continual basics. Yeti spent a considerable amount on the design and materials they used, hence why they filed patent and trademarks on their property, The owners of Rtic came into the fold in 2015 and saw the success that Yeti was having and decided to put a product into the market at a lower price point and by their own admission they didn’t believe that Yeti would bother or notice that they were using the design sans a few changes to the look and design. I attached an article that took place after the lawsuit finished. Yeti did reach a settlement out of court with the Rtic company to cease all sales of the product that is using the Yeti designs and yeti must receive a payment from 40% of the sales during the 2015-2017 fiscal years. Rtic will redesign and make the payment so the company can continue and also to avoid the additional costs of a lawsuit. This was a successful negotiation on both ends as it allowed Yeti to maintain its patents as the company could lose the trademarks and patents if it didn’t enforce them and it also allowed Rtic to stay in business and redesign their coolers with only a minimal payment to Yeti. This was successful fro both companies and shows what effective negotiation can be.

Bang VS Monster Energy

From the very start of this article it is apparent that both sides have no desire to make the situation good for both sides, Monster which is the larger company is trying to counter sue Bang about the ingredients in their beverage that they claim has super creatine and rejuvenating health benefits. The original suit by Bang is that Monster is introducing a product that is similar to the bang drink called “reign”, however the counter suit alleges also that Bang is trying to steal the Monster trade secrets and also is trying to deceive consumers by using Faux science and stealing store space from monster. Unlike the previous issue, these two companies aren’t wanting to come to a beneficial agreement, Monster is trying to attack Bang into a situation where they will be forced to settle and allow Monster to have a monopoly not he energy drink market. There is no attempt at a negotiation and they conversation is very much geared towards what the companies want and not how to make it work for both ends. I did not add another article for this as the situation is on going and hasn’t been resolved. The article makes mention of Monster being a “bully” and that they’re trying to push VPX the owner of the bang product out of the market, that would explain why the negotiation isn’t going so well as one side is just bent on the other not being present. I believe that this is the negotiation strategy where the company is just suing to get rid of them and not willing to come to an agreement.

Reference

Regenold, S. (2018, August 31). Cooler Wars: YETI Reaches Settlement With Rival RTIC. Retrieved from https://gearjunkie.com/yeti-rtic-coolers-lawsuit-settlement

Tomlinson, C. (2019, July 24). Yeti-Rtic suit proves importance of patents. Retrieved from https://www.chron.com/business/columnists/tomlinson/article/Yeti-RTIC-suit-proves-importance-of-patents-10912102.php

Monster vs. Bang: New VPX Complaint Contains ‘Conspiracy’ Claims. (2019, August 8). Retrieved from https://www.bevnet.com/news/2019/monster-vs-bang-new-vpx-complaint-contains-conspiracy-claims