Initial Task

Research ownership of the TV and film industries exploring public service, commercial, private,
corporate, independent and global companies looking into cross media convergence, vertical and
horizontal integration and monopolies. Research funding methods including license fees,
subscriptions, pay per view, sponsorship, advertising, product placement, private capital, and
financial aid and development funds. Produce a presentation comprehensively explaining
ownership and funding in the television and film industries with reference to elucidated
examples and consistently using subject terminology correctly.
Public Service Broadcasting
In the United Kingdom, the term "public service broadcasting" refers to broadcasting intended
for public benefit rather than to serve purely commercial interests. The communications
regulator Ofcom requires that certain television and radio broadcasters fulfil certain requirements
as part of their license to broadcast. All of the BBC's television and radio stations have a public
service remit, including those that broadcast digitally.
Ofcom - 'The Office of Communications, commonly known as Ofcom, is the UK government-
approved regulatory and competition authority for the broadcasting, telecommunications and
postal industries of the United Kingdom. Ofcom has wide-ranging powers across the television,
radio, telecoms and postal sectors.' - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ofcom
All of the BBC's channel such as Channel 3, Channel 4, Channel 5, S4C and other certain
channels provided by the BBC are all public service broadcasters. 'Beginning officially in 1955,
public service broadcasting became known to ITV when the government required that the
broadcasters showed a certain amount of local news, arts and religious programming in return for
the legal right to broadcast. This was further continued by another event in 1981 when
government-produced broadcasters, Channel 4 and S4C began broadcasting to provide an
alternate version of public service broadcasting. The difference between the two channels was
clear; Channel 4 was to cater to minorities and the arts that the BBC wasn't covering and S4C
was mainly the same but for Wales. Soon after, the ITV network began to overtake Channel 4
around the same time S4C gained a grant from the government. It was only because of the
Broadcasting Act of 1990 that Channel 4 was reconstructed. By 1997, Channel 5 was launched
and was also given a list of regulations to follow that public service broadcasting required in the
final stages of the analogue era, this included changes from the original public service
requirement as Channel 5 were obliged to broadcast a minimum amount of programmes from
various different genres, a minimum amount of programming that was originally commissioned
by the channel as well as providing programming of a European origin, this was contrasted by
the regulation that stated the channel was able to broadcast as many re-runs of old television
programmes as they wish. In 2013, the BBC took over the funding for S4C which still continues
to this day. The BBC itself is self-funded from the license fee that is paid for by the British
public, this includes both its television stations and radio stations. However, the BBC is known
to be the UK's first public service broadcaster as the general director of the broadcasting
company, Lord John Reith informed the company that the mission of the company was to
"inform, educate and entertain" the general public, this became one of many concepts that would
come to define what public service broadcasting is in the modern digital era. By indulging into
the digital era of television, the BBC were heavily criticized by the public for providing the same
services that commercial television were providing, for example, the BBC's internet services.
Many argued that the BBC were distorting the market and finding loopholes in what they could
broadcast which made it hard for commercial broadcasters to operate. In order to remain up-to-
date in the digital era, the BBC would have to begin to provide new means of entertainment and
up the general services that they provide. After the digital switch-over, most of the channels were
able to broadcast the same channels and provide the same services that analogue commercial
broadcasters were broadcasting beforehand - this evidently led to the fall of analogue television
in the early 2010s.'
Owning in the Television and Film Industry
Owning and funding in relation to this specific industry means that viewers are required to pay a
fee to watch a specific programme. So you need to subscribe to cable television companies
which allows the subscribers to view specific programmes and only subscribers can do for an
additional charge.
(Independent Production) An example of an independent production company that distributes
their production work is Green bay which is an independent company that works for and
produces TV for channels like BBC, Channel 4 and other major TV company broadcaster. Green
bay only do their production work in the UK and international. So all the shows that you see on
the BBC or channel 4 most to the shows are produced and worked by Green bay as they work
with companies like the BBC in order to have their production on TV for the public to watch.
This means that a media company can develop and by doing this they buy up competitors in the
same market. So a media company would buy out another media company that do the same
production as them.

(Horizontal Integration) 'An example of Horizontal integration can be a media company called
time Warner as they have been developed over the years as they have brought out A lot of
production companies. They were founded in 1990 when Time Warner was formed through the
merger of Time Inc. Time Warner developed so well that they brought out the competition by
buying out A lot of their competitors and other smaller media companies and this caused time
Warner to become the multinational media corporation that we see today.'

Advantages
'Horizontal integration can have advantages to
the corporation because it can benefit the
employees that work for the corporation as
Horizontal integration gives the employees
greater freedom and autonomy. The
corporation can be adaptable to any changes
Disadvantages
There can also be disadvantages when a
media corporation decides to horizontally
integrate. There is a huge responsibility that
project leaders have but will have little
authority over their team members. Also there
can be a lack of control. By changing to
 with the streamlined communication and
reporting process.'
horizontal integration from vertical it can be
difficult to change their methods as
employees would have to change from being
an authority figure and become more like a
peer like relationship with the other
employees.

(Vertical Integration) This in media means that someone who owns a lot of media companies
owns the distribution and production of film and TV. They expand into different points but it is
still based on the same production.
A media production company that is vertically integrated can be in Warner bros which is a
production company that is owned by Time Warner who are corporate as they own many other
companies like HBO studios which produces TV shows. So Warner bros created by Warner bros
pictures who worked with Heyday films to produce the final Harry potter film. Then after the
production Warner bros would distribute the film so therefore Time Warner would get the profits
of the distribution and production as they own Warner bros.

Advantages
Vertical integration does have its perks
because they can reduce the costs and
improve their efficiency by decreasing
transportation expenses and they can also
reduce the turnaround time.
Disadvantages
Having a weak leadership of a production
company can cause effectiveness to the entire
company. Also, employs who work at the
bottom of a vertical structure of a production
company could feel less valid compared to
their work partners who are higher up than
them.

(Sponsorship) 'This is where TV corporations organize the development of a program and the
sponsorship is generally used in advertisement on TV and would have the logo of the corporation
that have sponsored the advertisement and the name of the corporation mentioned in the advert
that would be featured on the TV.'
A good example of sponsorship is a marketing technique called product placement. In a piece of
cinema there will be 'references to specific brands or products are incorporated into another
work, such as a film or television program, with specific promotional intent.' An example of this
is Audi in the Iron Man trilogy. 'In the Iron Man trilogy, Tony Stark (Robert Downey, Jr.) plays
the comic book scientist who spends his time constantly innovating and creating new technology
for the Iron Man suit. Throughout the films, Iron Man’s suits have evolved, and due to Audi’s
consistent involvement in the technology behind the film, so have Tony’s cars. Audi have a
history of supporting product placements in cinema, and in 2004 Audi played a similar role as
lead technologists to assist the look and feel of the production on the set of iRobot.'
 Advantages
By getting sponsored or sponsoring can be an
advantage because being associated with a
company that is popular can cause your
company's reputation to be enhanced by doing
this. Depending on what company you
sponsor you can be granted access into the
niche market.
Disadvantages
A disadvantage of sponsorship can be the
reputation of the company you have
sponsored as there bad reputation for any
reason can reflected badly on your company
as you are associated to them.

(Private Ownership) A private ownership on media is where companies show adult

entertainment which is distributed onto DVDs and online. It is not based for the general public.
Some are not owned by the government and their profits and losses would directly go to that
company and the government do not take the money and they do not get money provided from
the public. That is an advantage for the public as they do not have to pay any money to the
company as they fund their own. It can be a disadvantage as it would be hard for a private
company to fund their own money as they would not produce media as good as public companies
as they get their money through the government and the public. Examples of this include ITV
and Channel 4.
(Public Service Broadcasting) 'The public Service broadcasting is where Television is for the
benefit of the public as the shows that are shown like the news is to help keep people aware of
what is going on in the world so TV use that for a public service in media.'
'An example of an industry that does public service broadcasting is a British TV industry that is
called the BBC and their focus for the public service is to inform, educate and entertain the
audience that watch their channels. The BBC is an independent body which is held in trust of the
British people.' The BBC, as they are a public industry, do not have commercials in any of their
channels as they do not sell advertising time as they focus on the public service broadcaster.
There are trust members that are paid and appointed by the British prime minister to represent
interest in the British public. An important job within the BBC is Director General whose job is
to chair the BBC's executive team. The director general's main responsibility is to run the global
workforce across television, radio and online.

Advantages
An advantage of having a public ownership of
TV can be a benefit for the employs because
they all in the Profit of their public
ownership. Also another advantage can be
that BBC is a benefit to the public as they
keep the public in the informed by presenting
them with the news to keep them up with
events and affairs that are occurring across the
world.
Disadvantages
Public ownership does have its disadvantages
and one of them is that a company that is
public can get an inefficiency results
depending on the size of the corporation.
Another disadvantage can be any losses
would be met by the taxpayer.
(Corporate Ownership) 'Corporate in media is where a mass media production is distributed
and funded and that is all owned by the corporations when it occurs. There are media
corporations that own a lot of other companies and through that they get bigger with their other
companies producing media and making the corporate companies that owns them more money
and they control most of the media in the countries that they operate in.'
'Disney are one of the 6 corporate companies that control 90% of the media in America. Disney
is US Company that was first established into a huge mass media company when it was founded
by Walt Disney on October 16 1923. The target audience was aimed for children as there was
movies being made for them but it ended up becoming a popular company with the movies that
they produced and was viewed by a lot of audiences. Disney then started to own TV channels
that featured TV shows that were owned by Disney as there is a lot of Disney channels. They
ended up owning a separate company which was known as Disney PIXAR which became just as
popular. Disney are consuming the media market as they own so many companies and have one
of their latest company they brought which was Lucas arts. Other companies that are owned by
Disney are Mira max and ABC studios and they produce TV and Film.'

Advantages Disadvantages
An advantage of corporate ownership can be A disadvantage of corporate ownership can be
the Business debt and liability as the owner’s that there is more federal rules and regulation
personal assets is protected from it. Also there which can make things difficult for a
is tax free benefits such as insurance and company.
travel. A good advantage can be the change of
ownership as this will not affect anything in
the corporate company as the management
remains the same but with a new owner so the
management still operate the same with their
productions.

(Independent & Global Companies (in Regards to Ownership)

(Independent) 'This companies that work in the media that is allowed to use distribute their TV,
radio and other types of media related technology that is online without the influence of the
government or a corporate interest. An example of an independent production company that
distributes their production work is Green bay which is an independent company that works for
and produces TV for channels like BBC, Channel 4 and other major TV company broadcaster.
Green bay only do their production work in the UK and international. So all the shows that you
see on the BBC or channel 4 most to the shows are produced and worked by Green bay as they
work with companies like the BBC in order to have their production on TV for the public to
watch.'
 Advantages
There is easy financial control with
independent companies because the
production isn’t as big thus the management
is easier with less employees. They can get
production done quicker and more efficient as
the decision making process takes place
within smaller groups.
Disadvantages
There may be an easier financial control but
with independent companies there can be
financial risks as the production could go
wrong leading to financial loss or debt for the
company.

(Global) 'These companies have distributed there production around the world so the companies
and the films that they own are known globally. A company that is global is universal studio and
they own a lot of film companies. They own the ODEON cinemas which is can be found in more
than one country. A company that owns universal is vivendi which through universal actually
own the ODEON cinema. They are a mass production company and they ended up becoming
France's biggest TV Company and then they expanded into telecommunication and mass media
and that is what made them a Global company that we see today. They also have their companies
productions online and there is a music website that vivendi own is MP3 where music can be
purchased online.'

Advantages
'An advantage towards a global company is
that it is a huge company and they can
increase their sales and profits as Vivendi
own ODEON cinemas across the world and
will get a lot of sales and profits as people
around the world pay to see their films.
Another advantage is that global companies
can do their business online as a large
percentage of people use the internet and they
can get more sales and profits by doing this
on the internet.'
Disadvantages
'Global companies can gave their
disadvantages and one of them is that the
company is Global and they would have to
change and modify their products into a
different language so it suits that culture and
they would have to do this for a lot countries.
Another disadvantages would be the travel
expenses as workers would have to travel
around the world to observe the other
businesses that are in different countries in the
world.’

Funding in the Television and Film Industry

(License Fee) A license fee is where you have to pay a fee for your TV License so you can
continue watching TV on Box sets. This can be paid yearly or monthly and by paying the fee it
allows you to record Programmes. In order to fund some broadcast company use the license fees
that have been paid to help fund the broadcasting channels such as Sky requires a license fee for
the public to watch certain programmes as it provides the public with services and the quality of
the picture as sky gives the public high definition with their programmes and sports channel. The
public have been funding some channels across the world, however as of recent, many countries
such as: Australia, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Finland, Gibraltar, Hungary, Hong Kong, Iceland,
India, Israel, Malaysia, Malta, Netherlands, New Zealand, Portugal, Romania, Singapore, Soviet
Union & Sweden.

## Television license only

## Television license and advertising
## Television license, advertising and
government grants
## Government grants and advertising
## Commercial only
## Government grants only
## Unknown

'A TV license is therefore effectively a hypothecated tax for the purpose of funding public
broadcasting, thus allowing public broadcasters to transmit television programmes without, or
with only supplemental, funding from radio and television advertisements. However, in some
cases the balance between public funding and advertisements is the opposite – the Polish TVP
broadcaster receives more funds from advertisements than from its TV tax.'
(Subscription) A subscription is where you are able to view a TV content by subscribing to
them. It is mainly for additional contents on TV for people to subscribe to it in order for them to
get the additional content such as extra cable so the public subscribe to that to get more TV
channels to watch. An example of a Subscription is Sky as they have their subscription as they
have a subscription which allows people to get extra TV Programmes by subscribing and the
channels that they get by doing this people can get demand by having access to extra content by
having Sky GO.

Advantages Disadvantages
Subscription can have its advantages one of There is soon going to be a total higher coast
them can be the flexibility of it as a customer for subscription that is going to be a higher
is able to discontinue the service that the price than a licensing fee.
customer has subscribed to with no
investment loss. There is also no upfront
payments for the subscription which is
accessible to smaller companies.

(Pay-Per View) 'This means that viewers are required to pay a fee to watch a specific
programme. So you need to subscribe to cable television companies which allows the subscribers
to view specific programmes and only subscribers can do for an additional charge. An example
of pay per view can be a website called Intertainer.com as they provide Pay per view to their
customers by providing old TV shows such as The Beverly hillbillies and they provided that to
customers who want to watch older shows.'
 Advantages
The advantage of having pay per view is that
Pay per view traffic sources are generally
cheap this is an advantages because you have
access to a pop up and pop under traffic and is
considered to be better than pay per click.
Disadvantages
Pay per view has its disadvantages and one of
them can be that there is a limited choice of
what to watch as there isn't much of a
selection.

(Advertising) Advertising is where products are featured on TV as a way to introduce their

product on TV which is often used on commercial TV during breaks to get the public's attention.

Advantages
By advertising Products on television it
reaches larger group of audiences. Another
advantage can be that advertisers can find it
easy to reach their target audience due to the
running time of programmes.
Disadvantages
A disadvantage can be the limited of time for
products to be advertise on TV during breaks
as there are multiple products being
advertised and some products won’t get as
much to advertise their products.

Research links:

https://kyrawrightbtecfilm.weebly.com/research11.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_service_broadcasting_in_the_United_Kingdom

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ofcom

https://prezi.com/gyljl9rodzuu/ownership-and-funding-in-television-and-film-industries/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Television_licensing_in_the_United_Kingdom