Media Ownership refers to companies that can own resources that are able to produce media texts.
Conglomerates are the companies that own lots of these.
The media world is dominated by media conglomerates and the following are the top six and most popular media conglomerates:
- CBS
- Tine Warner
- News Corporation
- Viacom
- Disney
- General Electric
These are the 5 biggest film conglomerates:
- United International Pictures (Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol)
- Warner Brothers (Harry Potter/The Dark Knight)
- Buena Vista International (Pooh's Heffalump Movie)
- 20th Century Fox (Avatar/Rise of the Planet of the Apes)
- Sony Pictures (Men in Black/The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo).
What are the implications of one company owning lots of different mediums (in terms of film)?
- Because they have lots of power (money) so some companies are more successful than others.
- Some of the conglomerates are biased, for example www.rottentomatoes.com because it is owned by Rupert Murdoch and they would make all the films look very good in their reviews when it may be a very bad quality film.
- Some film conglomerates draw customers away from smaller companies so the larger conglomerates get more from it, for example more profit and more public attention.
- Possibly offer similar genres. This can sometimes make people bored of the conglomerates and focus on a different film conglomerate.
- There is less competition because people tend to stick to the same film conglomerate.
What are the implications for audiences in the UK?
- Recognisable brands-People don't like change.
- Less competition-Complacency because people are unaware of some media conglomerates, for example See-saw because they are non-mainstream
