Industries: Ownership and control

1) Media Conglomerate: Comcast

Conglomerate ownership: NBC Universal-merger with Comcast and Telemundo

Vertical and horizontal integration: DreamWorks, "Television, news, movies, theme parks"

Synergy: DreamWorks- theme parks, such as Shrek, Fast and Furious etc.

Diversification: Comcast cable- ISP, internet, video and phone provider.

Cross-media regulation: Comcast-Time Warner merger is in trouble- they made a loss.

2) In my opinion, I believe that governments should prevent media conglomerates from being too dominant to a large extent. This is because they could have unhealthy and dangerous effects, the fact that the media has power to make or break political careers and have a significant amount of influence over the public. Additionally, stories can end up being biased which means that we won't have a free and function democracy. On the other hand, governments shouldn't prevent media conglomerates from being too dominant, this is because it can provide a check against the government and be competition between other conglomerates.

3) The production process: This gives the audiences' what they want, including their desires and the gratifications they expect.

The promotion process: This process researches and identifies the target audience for the product. They use techniques of advertising and marketing to inform and persuade the audience of the value of the media product.

The distribution process: Using the easiest and most convenient way to get the product to the audience, easier for them to access.

4) Funding models for media institutions are different business models and potential income streams will impact on the way each institution produces, markets and distributes its products. E.g. BBC is funded by a licence fee and has a public service remit. Others include Sky One, ITV, Sony and The MailOnline.

5) 3 major media brands/companies are: Disney, Marvel and Spotify.

  • Disney: Family-friendly brand that focuses on children entertainment. Has made merchandises and branded products. Examples include Disneyland and The Disney Princess franchise. Parents of children feel comfortable with what Disney produce. They have a number of logos. E.g. Mickey's ears and the Walt Disney signature.
  • Marvel: Associated with the Superhero genre. Developed from comic books and reinforce mainstream vales such as duty. The brand constructs a reassuring and familiar expectation for the audience.
  • Spotify: Mid 2000s  offered an online music service. Encourage people to buy something they already have.
6) The fragmentations of modern audiences and the rise of 'free culture' means that all institutions are now having to reconsider their business models. The Music Industry can no longer make profits through the sale of music itself, so they use other ways, such as merchandising, sponsorship and live shows. The Movie Industry has invented the 3D in order to encourage audiences to come to cinemas. BBC uses demand, online newspapers require you to subscribe to access their content and advertisers use social media.

7) Examples of technology companies becoming media institutions are Amazon, Facebook, Google and Yahoo. Google owns YouTube and has changes the way we access music and videos. Amazon, Netflix and Yahoo produce and 'broadcast' their own TV shows, e.g. Orange is the New Black. Facebook has bought the virtual reality technology, which allows audiences to attend and experience event without leaving the house.

8) In my opinion, I believe that traditional media institutions are struggling to survive, this is because technology has developed a vast amount and competition between these institutions are increasing. The audiences nowadays is used to having high technology and more advanced things, so they won't keep with the traditional institutions. E.g. In cinemas many expect to watch 3D movies instead.

9) Diversification may help companies to survive and thrive in rapidly changing media landscape because it allows them to branch out into other areas of the industry and they may be more successful in this. This will allow them to generate more income and become more successful in producing more products. Whereas Vertical integration may help companies to survive and thrive in rapidly changing media landscape because it means that they own a range of businesses in the same chain of production and distribution. This allows companies to reduce costs and increase profits.

10) In my opinion, I believe that conglomerates will still have control in the future, this is because they almost have the audiences tied around their fingers. They will become increasingly dominant as audiences will increasingly engage with what they produce. Additionally, further technology will be developed which conglomerates could take advantage of by intertwining it with what they are producing.

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