CHAP TER 1

The Media Industries: Segments, Structures, and Similarities

Dont hate the media. Be the media.
Jello Biafra

Chapter OBJectiVeS
The objective of this chapter is to provide you with information about: The structure and characteristics of the content industries The segments that make up the content industries The wide range of businesses within the segments of the content industries The changing cultural, social, political, and economic conditions that establish the business context of the content industries

CONteNtS
Chapter Objectives......1 Introduction. .................1 Structure and Characteristics of the Media Industries..........3 A Day in the Life of Craig Robinson..........18 Common Characteristics of the Segments of the Media Industries........20 Summary....................25 Whats Ahead. ............25 Case Study 1.1 Media Expansion.......25 Case Study 1.2 Planning Ahead for Success. .................26 References..................26 Internet Resources....28

INtrODUctiON
Movies, music, games, magazines, books, newspapers, Internet, comedy, drama, news this media content constitutes the exciting visible face of the media world that thrills and enthralls audiences around the world. Many people have fantasies of being in the public eye as actors, singers, writers, and journalists, and a few of us go on to perform. But behind the scenes, there are many rewarding careers in the media industries to discover, promote, support, and manage all the activities that must be completed to bring these wonderful works to life and to audiences. The history of electronic mass media is short. The precursors, books and newspapers, have been around for several hundred years, but the phenomenon of mass media is less than 150 years old. Electricity-based technologies have their roots in the nineteenth century, but all emerge as media platforms in the twentieth century, as shown in Figure 1-1.
2010 Joan Van Tassel and Lisa Poe-Howeld. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. DOI: 10.1016/B978-0-240-81020-1.00001-4