MIGRAIN: Industries - Ownership and control

Founded in March 19, 2019 by Rupert Murdoch, the successor of 21st Century Fox 

(but is owned by Disney).

Fox's assets include the Fox News Media, Fox Entertainment, Fox Sports and Fox Television Stations. Fox corporation is essentially a form of diversification as it includes more than one type of content as listed above. This also makes Fox a a form of vertical integration.

The conglomerate owner would be Disney as they already own a lot of other subsidiary companies and would seem as if they already have owned Fox or at least a large percentage of it.

The company name traces back through a series of mergers and demergers to the Fox Film Corporation founded by William Fox on February 1, 1915

Revenue : US$12.91 billion (2021)

2) Do you agree that governments should prevent media conglomerates from becoming too dominant? Write an argument that looks at both sides of this debate.

I think that governments should not exactly control a company from being too "powerful", as it is a business matter as they cannot really control a company however, companies that become too powerful could possibly change the public's views on how people view society, if a company has bad intentions of changing public views then some sort of control may be put in place to avoid damage.

Media Magazine reading and questions

Media Magazine 52 has a good feature on the changing relationship between audiences and institutions in the digital age. Go to our Media Magazine archive, click on MM52 and scroll to page 9 to read the article 'Two Key Concepts: The Relationship Between Audience and Institution'.

1) Briefly describe the production, promotion and distribution process for media companies.

-Production process provides the audience with what they want and their desires.

-Researches their target audience for the product via marketing and advertising

-Uses the most efficient ways to get their product out towards the audiences.

2) What are the different funding models for media institutions?

-The BBC gets their money via the TV licence, DVD's and such

-Sky has subscription based income.

-Sony has the film industry, gaming and hardwares, music, etc. in which is very successful.

3) The article gives a lot of examples of major media brands and companies. Choose three examples from the article and summarise what the writer is saying about each of them. 

-They talk bout Disney being a "family-friendly" brand that focuses on children entertainment.

-Asda/Aldi is based on family valued products and economy and being "unpretentious".

-Waitrose is being presented as a "sophisticated" shop.

4) What examples are provided of the new business models media companies have had to adopt due to changes in technology and distribution?

Music industry used to sell via CDs and physical copies, however this is no longer possible as the popularity of physical copies have decreased, therefore they must sell them digitally, they may market their music in order to get audiences aware of their product, perhaps collaborate with other artists to gain popularity.

5) Re-read the section on 'The Future'. What examples are discussed of technology companies becoming major media institutions?

They talk about how uncertain the media is as we are in the "early days" but the success is based on the behaviour of the audience and consumers. The reputations of the companies allows them to adapt and create new ways to attract an audience.

6) Do you agree with the view that traditional media institutions are struggling to survive?

I think it is mixed as there is media companies that are adapting to our current needs and time such as The Guardian as they have both paper and a website for their news, however some companies may struggle as they cannot get a hold of the concept.

7) How might diversification or vertical integration help companies to survive and thrive in a rapidly changing media landscape? 

The more diverse a company is, the more opportunities they may have such as a company investing in the gaming genre, gaming has a huge fan base and community which will allow for income to be made easily. Having a more diverse company will allow them to branch out more and gain more income, better yet allow them to have a reputation that will attract loyal customers.

8) How do YOU see the relationship between audience and institution in the future? Will audiences gain increasing power or will the major global media conglomerates maintain their control?

I feel that it is very dependent on either side as the conglomerates have a lot of power, yet in a way they can control how audiences think in a society, however the audience is the reason why the conglomerates have become conglomerates in the first place, meaning that it really depends on each side and how they react and the effect that it has after.