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The Current State of Media Concentration
How to become a Media Mega-Conglomerate:
3. Globalize.
- Globally the major Hollywood studios produce 80% of
the world's films and 70% of its television.
- Global deregulation of satelittes and terrstrial cable
systems means that local and national markets (American TV, French Movies,
etc.) are becoming of secondary importance to a so-called "emerging"
global market. Direct broadcast Satellite systems cannot be made to obey
National boundaries (geographically, but not culturally).
- Firms like Disney and Time Warner have seen their
non-U.S. revenue grow from 15% to 30% of total. They expect it to account
for one half of revenue by 2000.
- Global expansion is largely made possible by advertising,
yet another industry experiencing global expansion and massive concentration
of ownership. Global advertising firms such as JW Thomson and Saatchi and
Saatchi are the corporations that mediate between local economies and global
advertising.
8 may 1997