Industries: Ownership and control

 1) Research notes:

Name of media conglomerate:

Meta

Meta, formerly named Facebook, is an American multinational conglomerate. It was once one of the world's most valuable companies.Meta is known for owning major brands/Companies such as Facebook, Instagram, Messenger. Meta owns over 91 companies. Meta acquired whatsapp for over 19 billion USD, instagram 1 billion usd and Oculus for 2 billion usd.

Vertical and horizontal integration:

An example of vertical integration would be metaverse, this is a product which allows users to enter and live in a virtual reality.

Diversification

In april 8 meta introduced virtual coins which are known as “Zuck bucks” which will be available for the users of facebook and instagram as part of a suite for their products. This has been introduced to reduce his platform's dependency on advertising.

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.

 

One reason why the government should prevent media conglomerates from becoming to dominant is because it would allow for smaller companies and businesses to make an attempt at being at the spotlight and reigning in revenue, if media conglomerates were not restricted then smaller businesses would not stand a chance and would not be able to make enough money to keep afloat therefore many companies would have to enter a state of bankruptcy or become defunct. Another crucial reason why the government should play a role in preventing these media conglomerates from becoming too powerful/dominant is because many multinational companies have an effect of silencing other smaller companies, they also restrict free speech which is a negative in the market.

 

One reason why the government should not prevent media conglomerates from becoming too dominant is because this would be seen as restriction of free speech, moreover media conglomerates have freedom and should be granted that freedom to do whatever they want. This is especially important because conflict may arise between the government and the companies, leading to riots across the country as people would take notice that their media suppliers are being controlled.

Media magazine questions:

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

The production process is the main source of media for consumers as it supplies the media that they consume, it needs to consider what the audience desires.

The promotion process specifically targets and researches an audience for the product, it also uses advertising and various marketing strategies to inform the audience and persuade them into possibly considering purchasing/using the media product.

The distribution process uses the most apt methods for delivering the product to the audience, this ensures the media products are delivered in the easiest way possible making them readily accessible to media consumers.

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

 For BBC the funding is received through a license fee. For ITV the funding is generated through advertisers. For Sky the funding is received through having a consistent subscriber base who are willing to commit long term to provide for the content they want. Finally for the mail online, funding is generated through having a reader stay on their site for long periods of times, this is why stories will have a lot of videos and images which engage the reader

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. 

One major media brand which is discussed in the media magazine is Disney, disney is described to be known as a family-friendly brand which focuses on childrens entertainment. It originally started off by animating in the early 20th century but now it has branched off and sells merch and branded products. It also has many memorabilia such as the mickey ears which is an icon of disney.

Another major media brand which is discussed is Marvel, marvel is described as mainly focussing on the superhero genre. Marvel originally started producing films based on popular comic book publications. In the media magazine it is also discussed that although there is a lot of violence within the marvel films the main idea of strong values such as sacrifice and responsibility form the movies plot and the main characters.

Finally, another major media brand which is briefly discussed is Spotify, Spotify offered an online music service in an attempt to counter the harsh and illegal free download culture which was popular in the mid 2000s, people had to pay monthly in order to enjoy their music without ads. This meant that older media products could be resold to consumers.

 

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

One example would be how hollywood feared it would lose its audience in the 1950s due to television, they then implemented 3d and moving seats to help engage the audience better. 

Another example would be the implementation of multiplex cinemas which provided more glamour and choice to cinemagoers, this was done by hollywood in response to VHS tapes making films easier to access.

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

 

One example would be how google owns youtube, this revolutionized the way audiences access music and videos.

Another example would be how companies like Netflix or amazon now produce their own TV shows in order to differentiate and help keep themselves afloat in the market.

The final provided example is of Facebook and how it purchased the virtual reality company Oculus rift. This company allows users to experience events without having to leave the comfort of their own homes.

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

I firmly agree with the statement that traditional media institutions are struggling to survive and this is because due to technological advancements and the way media has evolved over time not many people in todays world have the time to collect relics of the past or to engage with media products which are decades old as many people would prefer current up to date media products.

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

Diversification in particular is a risky move because it may not always work but when it does it works wonders because it allows companies to be unique and to stand out from the competition, this also interests audiences into engaging with the company as one would see that the company has more to offer.

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 firmly believe that audiences may choose to believe that they are free in this world and that they have choices over what media they consume but at the end of the day media consumption is a great deal in today's world and what we as an audience absorb is completely out of our hands, large multinational conglomerate companies spend millions if not more on advertising alone and they implement strategic marketing techniques to persuade/influence someone into consuming media ultimately generating profit for these large companies.