Media Company Case StudyTask 1 Understanding the structure

and ownership of the media sector

Reece Cordingley

Types of ownership: private ownershipPrivate ownership has both negatives and positive aspects, they can make whatever kinds of programme they choose whether it is sport, reality shows or documentaries they are also not subject to the strict publicly owned rules such as no advertisements and the major factor they are also aloud to sell advertising to anyone they want where as companies like the BBC can’t sell advertising. It can result in better quality products due to competition and the threat of losing market share to another competitor makes firms put forward their most popular and best shows. Although, private ownership leads to media firms sometimes placing profit above public interest and can also lead to a lack interest in the public’s eyes when products they don’t like are aired such as TV soaps or reality TV shows known as car crash TV.

Types of ownership: public service

•The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcasting statutory corporation. Its main responsibility is to provide impartial public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom they provide advert free TV stations they gain their money through TV licences paid for by the British taxpayer.

• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_broadcasting

Types of ownership: independent

Music companies that are independent can profit from all three of production, distribution and consumption they run their own company and require no help bands such as the Arctic Monkeys are assigned to independent record labels but some artist’s even run their own independent music companies so that they alone can promote and discover new talent and sign them up.

The ways the companies sign and promote their artists are things such as live gigs, social media, free music tracks and launch parties.

Types of ownership: conglomerate

Conglomerate companies are companies that branch out and own a variety of different subsidiary companies who all provide different services such as Walt Disney who do kid’s TV, mainstream American sport, American news, music and films

There are others such as virgin and sky who now provide a range of services to customers such as internet and broadband provider this is so they can expand the markets that they currently sell themselves in.

Types of Companies:Horizontal Integration

Horizontal integration is an absorption into a single firm of several firms involved in the same level of production and sharing resources Horizontal integration is mostly full of advantages it means you have expanded your company and also expanded it’s production line and scouting for new talent. It also gives you increased market power and a larger percentage of the markets value

On the other hand, it does have its disadvantages. One of them being legal repercussions. Higher integration can lead to a ‘monopoly’, which is highly discouraged by many governments due to lack of competition. With a monopoly makes it also harder for new ideas and products and services to come into he market and compete with larger companies the government have done what it can by limiting companies to only having a maximum of 40% of the market value

All of these companies are examples of horizontal integration through Time warner

Types of Companies: Vertical Integration

Vertical integration is when a company profits from production, distribution and consumption. It used to be only large companies such as Time Warner that could actually afford to profit from production, distribution and consumption. But now, due to the internet via social media and websites such as soundcloud small companies can also vertically integrate, such as independent record labels.

Advantages such as improved coordination throughout the supply chain. There is also a greater market share and secured distribution channels. Disadvantages are the higher costs if the company is incapable to manage new activities efficiently, The ownership of supply and distribution channels can sometimes lead to lower quality products and reduced efficiency because of the lack of competition, and new competencies may clash with old ones and lead to competitive disadvantage.

Cross Media convergence

Cross media coverage is where companies from the media world but completely unrelated collaborate to produce a service or a product such as a new game will have a soundtrack so Sony music could sell a track from the arctic monkeys to be the trailer music for the new Call of Duty game or they could have a music show on TV such as the X-factor or voice these use music and television and turn it into a competition to compete for a music contract this is an example of two types of media converging and overlapping

Synergy

Synergy is selling products to promote an artist so at a concert you might be able to buy t-shirts, mugs and posters all related to the artist the money for merchandise is then split between the music company for the promotion of the tour/concert and the artist

Describe the Structure and of Ownership of Either The Film, TV, Gaming or Music Industry

It works in a pyramid system you start from the top with the product or service and it filters it’s way down and then it the reverse for the people who pay for the product or service it starts off as an idea and then the artist who creates the music will write the piece and if not already signed up to a music company will then do then begins the process of selling and promoting it this can be do through social media e.g. twitter, Facebook and YouTube then once it hits it’s release date it will have been prepared to be sold in shops all across the world

Walt Disney

The media company I'm going to do is one of the biggest media franchises there is.Disney, they are a conglomerate global company who now run a series of TV subsidiaries they run TV stations that do sport, kids, news and documentary channels they also provide a music section where they have made artists such as Miley Cyrus, Selena Gomez and Ariana Grande

OwnershipThe Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney, is an American diversified multinational mass media corporation headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios in Burbank, California. It is the largest media conglomerate in the world in terms of revenue. Disney was founded on October 16, 1923, by Walt Disney and Roy O. Disney as the Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio, and established itself as a leader in the American animation industry before diversifying into live-action film production, television, and theme parks. The company also operated under the names Walt Disney Studio and Walt Disney Productions. Taking on its current name in 1986, it expanded its existing operations and also started divisions focused upon theatre, radio, music, publishing, and online media. The company is best known for the products of its film studio, the Walt Disney Studios, which is today one of the largest and best-known studios in Hollywood. Disney also owns and operates the ABC broadcast television network; cable television networks such as Disney Channel, ESPN, A+E Networks, and ABC Family publishing, merchandising, and theatre divisions; and owns and licenses 14 theme parks around the world. It also has a successful music division.

Disney Media Networks is the headquarters it’s horizontally integrated with a variety of different TV companies. The Walt Disney Company that contains the company's various television networks, cable channels, associated production and distribution companies and owned and operated television stations

Disney–ABC Television GroupABC Television NetworkABC Family WorldwideABC FamilyABC Owned Television Stations GroupA+E Networks (50%)Disney Channels WorldwideRadio DisneyDisney Television Animation

Walt Disney

CompetitorsWalt Disney's main three competitors are 21st Century FOX, Time Warner and NBC Universal Media. All of these are global conglomerate companies these 4 companies control over 65% of the media and TV’s market value

These companies don’t really have an issue with distribution and production as they all have there own production and distribution lines so they never are competing against each other.

AudienceWith 95 entertainment channels and feeds distributed in 35 languages, Disney Channels Worldwide reaches more than 300 million homes, serving as a daily touchstone for the Disney brand for families in 168 countries.

In 2010, the Company launched Disney Channel in Russia, Greece and Ukraine, and announced a joint venture to launch a local language Disney Channel in South Korea

In the United States 2010 marked Disney Channel’s most watched year on record in total day and total viewers, as well among the key audiences of kids (6-11) and tweens (9-14). Disney Channel also celebrated its eighth consecutive year as television’s No. 1 network in primetime among kids (6-11) and its 10th year at No. 1 with tweens (9-14), thanks to a strong slate of original programming.

Walt Disney Scandals Disney was long rumoured to be anti-Semitic during his lifetime, and such rumours persisted after his death. Animator Art Babbitt claimed to have seen Disney and his lawyer, Gunther Lessing, attending meetings of the German American Bund, a pro-Nazi organization.

The most recent scandal is the whole debacle over Miley Cyrus and how she turned from Disney girl to some sort of outrageous troublesome teen many claim this is to Disney trying to steal her youth

Bibliographyhttp://thewaltdisneycompany.com/investors/annual_reports/2010/kb_cable_story.html

http://disney.com/

http://toxicmessiah.hubpages.com/hub/Walt-Disney-Secrets-Mistakes-And-Controversies

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000370/

http://www.justdisney.com/walt_disney/

Unit 7 Blog

paul.rossington@salfordcc.ac.uk