Product identification: The subject of our model is the hybrid automobiles. The motives behind the selection of this innovative product as the subject of our discussion are the fact that hybrid automobiles are becoming an integrate part of our everyday life, enjoying a fast increase in sales and a bigger percentage out of the total production of car manufacturers. This type of vehicle implies that the automobiles use an electric and a conventional engine, reducing in this way the consumption and the pollution level by more than 25%. In order to better understand the insights of this fast developing market, we selected the Japanese company – Toyota and his model Prius. Toyota launched the Prius model on the Japanese market in 1997 and up to present moment it managed to sell more than 1 million hybrid cars around the world. These figures indicate the fact that Toyota is by all means a multinational companies that uses as a marketing and business strategy the imposition of their environmental-friendly models (increasing part of all Toyota vehicles), the Prius being the most sold vehicle in this no-pollution line of products.
            
             Background situation: Two main and important reasons have led to the development of the hybrid type of vehicles. First of all, Toyota is a premium car manufacturer from Japan, being one of the most important global players on the market, which registered for the first semester of 2007 the largest revenues in the world within the automobile industry and have the second largest automobile production capacity in the world. Among the most famous brands of Toyota corporation we could mention: Toyota, Lexus and Scion. The production capacity of the company registered an increase for the Prius model in 2006 as compared to 2005 by more than 30% (reaching 312.500 units produced in 2006).It is the company belief that the need for mobility of individuals could be better met by the hybrid vehicles, which could bring an ...