Word List

  1. Vocabulary

  2. Important Persons

  3. Companies & Board

 
Part I: Vocabulary
 
ABC

American Broadcasting Company, one of the three chief networks

 

accounting

keeping detailed records of all the money a company receives and spends; Enron and Andersen conducted what the media euphemistically called "creative accounting."


accuse

bring an accusation against; level a charge against; blame for, make a claim of wrongdoing or misbehavior against

 

advertisement slots

available places for commercials in a television programming schedule

 

advertising fees

the amount a broadcaster can take for sending commercials. The amount depends on the broadcasting time (whether it is prime-time or off-time) and on the programme (whether it is sports or a late-night movie for instance).

 

advertising revenue

the money that a broadcasting station receives from companies for sending their commercials

 

agenda

list of items to be discussed at a meeting; (here) list of items to be accomplished

agreement

pact
Deutsch: das Abkommen, die Vereinbarung, der Vertrag

 

anchor

person in a central studio who introduces and coordinates the items on a news broadcast


Andersenized

an apparently solid company is revealed to be unethical

 

application

In this context: the program needed to exchange music files with other users.

 

apprentice program

(here:) course of training for young people entering the IT sector


assembling

fitting the parts of a product together


assembly

act of putting together parts
Deutsch: Zusammenbau

 

associates

(here:) "politically correct" word for employees or workers

 
bear market

falling stock market

 
bill

proposed law
Deutsch: der Gesetzesentwurf

 

Bogus News

humorous website with faked news reports

 

Bollywood

Indian Hollywood


brand

A brand-name product is one which is made by a well-known manufacturer and has the manufacturer´s label on it.


B.S.

Bachelor of Science

 

bull market

rising stock market


calling card

(here:) visiting card used by businessmen


CEO

Chief Executive Officer. The CEO is responsible for managing the company. This is often an additional title held by the chairman or president.


chairman

a chairman is the head of a committee or a company

 
chairperson

politically correct term for "chairman"


channel participant

one of the stations along a chain of distribution from producer to consumer (e.g. the channel paticipants for marketing television sets are TV production & assembly plants, warehouses wholesalers, and retailers).

 

company concentration

(here) combination of different branches of the same business field into one company.


competitiveness

ability to be a market player
Deutsch: Konkurrenzfähigkeit

 

competitors

rival companies in the same business sector


commercial spots

television advertisements

 

community event

Often a company organizes an event to help a neighborhood or create good will in the local area.


Congress

national lawmaking body of the United States consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives
Deutsch: das amerikanische Repräsentantenhaus + der Senat


consultation

meeting to trade information
Deutsch: die Beratung


consumer

buyer
Deutsch: der Verbraucher

 
contestants

participants in a game show


product placement

indirect way of advertising a product; for example the product occurs in a movie (somebody is working with a laptop and the trademark is facing the camera so that viewers can read it)


Fremantle North America

One division of RTL is Fremantle North America. The ownership of Fremantle North America belongs to Bertelsmann Verlag.


Fox

American broadcasting company


corporate crime

breaking of laws by companies

 

corporate headquarters

main base for a company

 

debt

sum of money owed

 

deficit

amount by which something, especially a sum of money, is too small; excess of debts over income


deregulation

process of removing something from government control
Deutsch: die Entstaatlichung, Deregulierung


distortion

something presenting a false account or picture of something

 

domestic market

area of economic activity within a country

 

e-commerce

electronic trading via internet


economy

total of a nation's goods and services
Deutsch: Volkswirtschaft, Ökonomie

 

endorsement

to express approval publicly of a product


factory outlet

products are not distributed to wholesalers and retailers, but the consumers are able to go directly to the place where a product is produced to buy it


file-sharing platform

free services like Morpheus, eDonkey, or Grokster, which enable users to locate and download files made available online by other users

 

fiscal year

financial year, usually July to June


franchise

license granted an individual to market a company's goods in a particular area

 

free-wheeling

relatively heedless of formalities, rules, responsiblities, or consequences

 

game coverage

television footage of a sports event

 

gauging

To gauge an amount or quantity means to measure or calculate it

 

glass ceiling

set of subtle, inofficial factors which disadvantage women in receiving promotions to upper managerial positions, such as "female traits," exclusion from insider (male) knowledge, family responsibilities

 

gross merchandise

goods sold to retailers

head of state

leader of a nation (President, dictator, Prime Minister)
Deutsch: Staatsoberhaupt (Präsident, Premierminister, König)

 

high-profile company

well-known and firm important in its sector


hostile takeover

When a company buys enough shares of another company to gain control of it, you describe this process as a takeover

 

human capital

people and their abilities as resources for a company


implementation

execution, performing, putting into effect
Deutsch: die Durchführung, die Ausführung


imports

bringing in of goods from another country
Deutsch: der Import, die Einfuhr


Inc.

Incorporated


inquiries

investigations, official (legal) examination of an affair


intercultural clash

a sharp conflict caused by contrasting cultural backgrounds


Internet Explorer

Web Browser developed by Microsoft Corporation.


intricate

dizzyingly complex, mind-numbingly complicated


investment brokers

An investment broker is a person whose job is to buy and sell shares.

 

IT

Information Technology

 

know-how

expertise in scientific or technical methods for producing, distributing, or providing goods/services


labor market

the total of available labor force
Deutsch: Arbeitsmarkt


labor right

law or right concerning workers
Deutsch: Arbeitsgesetz; labor rights (pl.) = Arbeitsrecht


legislature

lawmaking body, the Congress
Deutsch: der Gesetzgeber

 

live stream

electronic video sequence, transmitted via internet

 
lobbying

A lobbyist is someone who tries actively to persuade a governmnt or the public that a particular thing should be done

 

logistical operations

procurement, movement, and maintenance of material


low-wage

relating to a small salary
Deutsch: Niedriglohn
-...

 

M.A.

Master of Arts

 

managerial network

connections among (male) managers, usually involving leisure-time activities during which business matters are discussed (fitness studio visits, golfing) and even college experiences (college fraternities), which exclude women

"pink collar ghetto"

The term entered the feminist vocabulary in 1977 and originally referred to typically female jobs. Jobs in the pink collar ghetto are usually low paying and non-union, and offer few or no benefits and no chance of advancement.

National Security Advisor

chief advisor to the President of the United States on national security issues Secretary of Statetop representative of the government on foreign affairs ("Außenminister/in")

Wellesley College:

a relatively small, private college in Wellesley/ Massachusetts (close to Boston), whose mission it is "to provide an excellent liberal arts education for women who will make a difference in the world"

Yale Law School:

part of Yale University (the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States, founded in 1701, member of the Ivy League); Yale Law School admits only about 6 % of its 4000 applicants




First Lady

wife of the current president of the United States




Senator

member of the US Senate, in which each state is equally represented by two senators. The US Senate is the one of the two chambers of Congress (the other is the House of Representatives).




Committee

small groups within the Senate assigned to review bills and make recommendations on certain topics (e.g. arms committee)




Democratic Party:

one of two major political parties in the United States (the other being the Republican Party), quite liberal, the oldest political party in the world. Currently, the Democratic Party is the minority party in the USA.




Republican Party

One of the two major political parties in the United States; currently the Republican Party is the majority party.





merger

legal combination of two companies into one firm

 

merger of equals

fusion of two identically strong companies rather than a takeover of a weak firm by a stronger one.


music-publishing rights

Artists, song-writers, composers sell licenses to (e.g.) music companies who want to distribute their copyrighted work.


negotiation

debate between two parties for the purpose of reaching an agreement
Deutsch: die Verhandlung


Netscape

The world's premier browser. Based on open standards such as HTTP and HTML, it is the cornerstone of Communicator's ability to access the wealth of information and network applications available on intranets, extranets, and the Internet.


obstructing justice

deliberately making official investigations difficult

 

on schedule

at the time planned

 

pageviews

number of times an internet site has been called up by users

 
personnel administration

is responsible for organizing and supervising the personnel, i.e. the people who work for a company

 

Ph.D.

Doctor of Philosophy

 

philanthropist

a person who freely gives money to those in need, often setting up a foundation to invest large sums of money to be given for charitable purposes

 
pollution

contamination of the environment through man-made waste

 

pound sterling

the official currency in Great Britain


production cost

the sum of money that needs to be spent for the processing of goods
Deutsch: Produktionskosten, Herstellungskosten


product line

spectrum of items sold by a company


prosecute / prosecuting team

bring a criminal action against someone (in a trial) / group of lawyers representing the case against Bill Gates, for example.


prosperous

well-developing


percentage profit

(here:) a certain amount of the company revenue is given to the managers


prize money

amount won by the contestant during a game show - note the spelling of prize, not to be confused with "price," which is the amount an item costs

 

provision

condition, stipulation
Deutsch: Bedingung, Vorkehrung, Vorschrift


public relations

the part of a company´s or an organization´s work that is concerned with obtaining the public´s approval for what it does or sells


public relations ploy

strategy to shape public opinion

 

ratings charts

published lists of which television programs are preferred by the viewers

 

recreational activities

leisure-time pursuits

 

resolve

decide firmly, determine, make a decision by a formal vote

 

retailer

person or business that sells good to the public

 

retirement account

the account containing securities (i.e. money) for an employee's retirement


sanctioning

approving of

 

sex-stereotyped occupations

professions which are typically practiced by either men or women, respectively; only 8% of women hold traditionally masculine jobs such as "welder," whereas 75% of health care jobs are held by women


stock (price)

the ownership value of one single share of a company


Post-production

Post-production is the part of filmmaking which comes after the actual shooting of a script; in this process, the film material is edited, special and audio effects are added and the colors are graded. Specialized post-production companies exist, such as George Lucas' Industrial Light and Magic. The post-production also includes recording a movie's soundtrack.


Distribution

in film business means taking care of all the marketing (advertisements in print, audio and visual media) as well as the sale of videos, laserdiscs, and other media versions of movies. It is the connection between a film maker / film production company and an exhibitioner, notably the movie theatres. Well-known distribution corporations are Columbia Pictures, Fox Film, Tobis Forenfilms and Metro-Goldwyn-Meyer.


Shareholders

can also be called stockholders and are individuals or companies who hold shares (dt.: Aktien) of a joint stock company (dt.: Aktiengesellschaft). In this way, they own the initial capital (dt.: Grundkapital) in the form of shares. They therefore have special privileges such as electing the board of directors of a company and taking part in the Annual General Meeting, where important decisions about a company's future are made.


share

(in this context): make available for download by others. Usually, a special folder is created, the contents of which can then be accessed by other registered users via internet.

 
share price

an amount which people pay as an investment for an equal part into which the ownership of a company is divided

 
shares

equal parts into which the ownership of a company is divided

 

shopping destination

place (here: electronic) consumers to to buy goods


shredding of documents

destroying files

 

state-of-the-art

using the newest and most recently developed methods


subscription fees

In order to use the service, people have to pay a certain amount of money per month.

 

supercenter

giant store which offers services as well as goods

 

supplemental

serving as an addition, extra
Deutsch: zusätzlich, ergänzend, supplementär


surges

sudden rise (especially in electrical voltage)
Deutsch: der Anstieg


surpass

do or be better than somebody/something, exceed somebody/something


sustainable

capable of being kept alive or in existence


surplus

amount left over after one has used all that one needs, amount by which money received is greater than money spent


tariff

(here:) protective tax on imports
Deutsch: der Zolltarif

 

telecast

television broadcast


television ratings

statistics which show how popular each television programme is


theft of intellectual property:

(in this context): unauthorized use and/or distribution of copyrighted works such as songs, lyrics


to declare bankruptcy

public announcement of one's inability to pay bills; usually connected to the financial ruin of a company.

 

to go in-house

(here) to select someone within the company for a new position


to merge

to fuse; two companies combining to become one

 

to penetrate a market

to manage to sell one's goods in a place or sector in which that brand is new

to ship

send, dispatch, transport by ship (or airplane, truck, etc.)
Deutsch: senden; verschicken; verschiffen

 

to submit a grievance

to complain officially; (here) to bring a lawsuit against a company


trade deficit

importing more than exporting


trade surplus

Exporting more than importing


trade union

confederation of people of a particular profession
Deutsch: die Gewerkschaft

 

trading platform

place/system (here: electronic) for buying and selling


treaty

formal agreement between two states
Deutsch: der Vertrag, der Staatsvertrag


trilateral

having three sides (here:) involving three countries
Deutsch: dreiseitig


trillion

one followed by 12 zeros (e.g. in the U.S. and France); one followed by 18 zeros (e.g. in Great Britain and Germany)
Deutsch: die Billion, 1.000.000.000.000


wages

salary, payment, earnings
Deutsch: Lohn, Verdienst, Entgelt

 

workflow surveillance

monitoring of the tasks to be accomplished

 

workforce

here: all the people who are employed in a wage-earning occupation in the U.S.


yardstick

standard for making a critical judgment; (here:) a company introducing a new, successful concept, which others will follow and measure themselves against


Top

Part II: Important Persons


Arthur Andersen

see the article about Andersen


Alan Greenspan

Born in 1926, Greenspan has carried out many important positions in the economy. Since 1987 he has been the President of the Federal Reserve Board.


Gates, William Henry, III

born in Seattle, Washington (1955 ), American business executive, who serves as chairman and chief software architect of Microsoft Corporation, the leading computer software company in the United States


Top

Part III: Companies & Boards


Bertelsmann

Non-public stock corporation which produces media, serves the media and markets media. Areas of production include television programs (RTL), books (Random House), magazines (Gruner + Jahr), and music (BMG).


The Federal Reserve Board

The Federal Reserve is the central bank of the United States and was founded in 1913 to provide the nation with a safer, more flexible, and more stable monetary and financial system. Today the Federal Reserve's duties can be divided into four general areas:
(1) conducting the nation's monetary policy; (2) supervising and regulating banking institutions and protecting the credit rights of consumers; (3) maintaining the stability of the financial system; (4) providing certain financial services to the U.S. government, the public, financial institutions, and foreign official institutions.


Enron

Enron was created in 1985 by the combination of Houston Natural Gas and a gas-pipeline company. A big accounting scandal, involving Enron's accounting firm Arthur Andersen and Enron executives, meant the fall of the energy firm.


Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA)

The Recording Industry Association of America is the trade group that represents the U.S. recording industry. The association's several hundred-member companies are responsible for creating, manufacturing, and/or distributing 90 percent of all sound recordings sold in the United States. The RIAA works to protect intellectual property rights worldwide and the First Amendment rights of artists; conduct consumer industry and technical research; and monitor and review state and federal laws, regulations and policies.


stockholder value

what company shares are worth monetarily



DSM-IV

the standard diagnostic tool of psychiatrists and psychologists



CEO

chief executive officer (the person with the highest rank in a business company)



sustainable

involving the use of natural products and energy in a way that does not harm the environment



connective media

link between the seller and the buyer



subsidiary

a company's branch office institutions.


brand

It is the symbolic embodiment of all the information connected with a company, product or service and includes a name, logo, and other visual elements such as images, fonts, colour schemes, or symbols.


brand

A distributor is the middleman between the manufacturer, who manufactures a product before storing it in a distribution company's warehouse, and the retailer, who sells the good. Consequently, distribution deals with logistics or the question, how to get the product or service to the customer.


ultimate buyer

End-user or consumer


consumer-caressing

Focussing on the buyer’s needs and desires; “caressing” means “showing affection physically.”


channel participants

Market participants like retailers, department or warehouses that sell a company’s product to the ultimate buyer


brand-caring

Action or steps of fulfilling people’s expectations associated with a product or service, so that the brand’s image is always present in people’s minds.


sales force

Famous people who support a sales increase.


endorsement contract

A contract dealing with a statement made in an advertisement by famous or important people, saying that they use and like a particular product.