Ownership

Course: BMS

Different types of ownership

Individual Ownership
Partnership
Corporation
Group or Chain
Employee Ownership
Vertical Ownership
Joint Operation

Individual Ownership
Advantages :
1. The editor-propreitor enjoys absolute
control.
2. The owner is the main decision maker.
3. The owner receives the main profit.
4. The owner is totally attached with the
newspaper also in the mind of the
consumers.

 Disadvantages:
1. Not adaptable for expanding business.
2. Unlimited liability.
3. Success of the newspaper depends heavily on
the ability and the credit status of the owner.
4. In case of owners death the paper suffers badly.
5. The propreitor is always liable for debts of the
paper, even to the extent of his personal
possessions.

Partnership
Advantages:
1. Persons of different capabilities & financial
standings are permitted to pool their talents
& money.
2. Responsibilities are divided.
3. Judgment of more than one mind is taken
into consideration.

 Disadvantage:
1. each partner is liable for newspapers entire
debt.
2. Long term credit is hard to attend.
3. Partnership discontinued
4. Irresponsible partner may jeopardize the
interest of other partners.
5. Risk factor.

Corporation
Advantage:
1. The personal liability of investors in case of
lawsuit is limited to their share of interest in
the corporation.
2. Transfer of control in flexible.
3. Operations can be increased easily by
increasing capital.
4. The business of the paper is not readily
affected by changes in the stock ownership.

 Disadvantages:
1. Rigorous federal and State regulations
require detailed reports at frequent intervals.
2. Taxes are imposed.
3. Profits are distributed to stockholders first
are taxed as income to the corporation &
again dividends to the stock holders.

Group or Chain ownership

Advantage:
1. Supplies may be purchased through a central
office with discounts for quantity.
2. Advertising space may be sold Nationally.
3. Accounting methods can be standardized.
4. Detailing.

 Disadvantages:
1. Managers or publishers might not feel
compelled to promote the paper in certain
areas.
2. Permanence of management is more in
question.
3. Subscribers may fail to relate with the
newspaper.

Employee Ownership
Advantages:
1. Employees are given an incentive to protect
the best interest of the paper.
2. Sense of ownership on the part of the
employees help to develop.
3. Interdepartmental barriers are more easily
broken.
4. Questions related to wages, hours, etc are
easily solved.

 Disadvantage:
1. Length of employee service gets more
importance.
2. Sentiment may prevail over good judgment
in matters of management & policy.
3. Entry for fresh people becomes difficult.
4. Sale of property becomes difficult.

Vertical Ownership
Advantages:
1. Provide the newspaper with certain services
& materials needed for its successful
operation.
2. Helps to reduce the general expenses of
newspaper production.
3. Provides practical investment of newspaper
profits.
4. Ties with other communications.

 Disadvantages:
1. Less attention for newspaper.
2. Capital that can be used for the newspaper
business might be drawn to somewhere
else.

Joint Operation
Advantages:
1. Maintenance and operation costs are reduced.
2. Productive hours increased.
3. Relationship.
4. Attention of publishers and owners is more on
the community than on the competition.
5. Good service to the community.
6. Joint handling of advertising.

 Disadvantage:
1. With competition partly eliminated efforts
toward specific improvement might be less.
2. With less competition, publishers might
strive for greater profit.
3. Use of common production facility might
lead to standardization.