Media Industries (Film and Radio) - Structure and Ownership Research

Radio

• Telecommunications act of 1996 - significant changes in market and performance
• Fundamental changes in market structure, especially regarding localism
• When President Obama signed the Local Community Radio Act in January 2011, it represented a culmination of public hearings, town hall meetings, public comments, and research into the issues of localism and how to address the loss of local radio voices. Part of the law is designed to stimulate the diversity of viewpoints in local radio markets by allowing more Low Power FM (LPFM) stations  (http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/19376529.2011.616468#.VEjREMtAS1s)
• Been on-going for 80 years
• Started originally from amateur telegraphs who were using new innovation
• The organisation of the first post-WWI broadcasting of America (RCA), provided the template for what is still one of the most influential media in global society. (http://www.ehow.co.uk/about_6196635_organizational-structure-radio-station.html)
• Earliest radio stations were knows as radiotelegraphy - (wireless radio telegraph communications techniques and practices) system and this did not carry audio.
• First claimed audio transmission on Christmas Eve 1906
• Radio broadcasting is a one-way wireless transmission over radio waves intended to reach a wide audience. Stations can be linked in radio networks to broadcast a common radio format, either in broadcast syndication or simulcast or both. Audio broadcasting also can be done via cable radio, local wire television networks, satellite radio, and internet radio via streaming media on the Internet. The signal types can be either analogue audio or digital audioIn 2009, there were 3,494 radio broadcasting stations in the United States.
• John Ambrose Fleming created the "oscillation valve" (passes current in one direction) (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radio_broadcasting)
• The industry has been growing steadily in recent years and now employs over 22,000 people (more than terrestrial TV) in a wide range of occupations. Employers range in size from the BBC and lager commercial radio groups to not-for-profit community radio stations run mainly by volunteers. These operators fall into three broad categories: publicly-funded radio, commercial radio and the community radio sector – from the well-established student and hospital radio to the most recently licensed community radio stations.
Television and Radio shows often ask people to participate in the show through the use of Twitter hash tags or Facebook. Shows like the million pound drop live also run interactive games alongside the actual show.

Film

• The film industry is a large industry on a larger scale towards Television. In the UK alone they employed around 27,800 people in 2008. The major business centers in the world are in the US, India, Hong Kong and Nigeria. The industry is usually funded through privately owned companies such as Sony and Warner Brothers, these companies have earned their money from the turnover of films they have invested in the past.
• However other people find different ways of funding their films rather then pitch their idea to gain a budget from a Big company which is usually the common way to gain funding. The Market Leaders are the Distributors of film, Warner Brothers are the top grossing distributor to date.
• With a Total Gross revenue from 1995 to 2011 of $27,147,331,454 and with an average gross of $54,078,350. Its main contender is Walt Disney Pictures who is only $1 billion behind Warners.
• This sector can be broken down into so many different departments and other sectors but really the three main parts are; Production, Distribution and Exhibition. These three are the most common parts of the industry but there others including Development, Facilities and Export. (http://twood95.wordpress.com/2011/11/25/structure-and-ownership-in-the-media-industries/)
• Production - Process of actually making the film, Distribution - who the movie is being sold to, license agreements, how many copies to make, Exhibition- additional funds from theatre previews and facilities 
•  'The great train robbery' - made in 1903, first full length movie to be made, black and white with no sound
• Film making involves a lot of steps, in completing a film a lot of things need to be done. It starts with an idea which then develops into a script. Then the financing takes place alongside the casting, crew, prep, shoot and even after the film is produced advertisements and other things post-film production need to be carried out. Editing of the film is then also necessary. The film industry is a big business, giving so many people different jobs that wouldn't be there if it wasn't for the film industry.
• Film making has hugely improved from when it first started, from 1931 to 1956; film was only image storage and playback system for TV programming. Then the videotape recorders were introduced. (http://eedonh.blogspot.co.uk/p/lo1-understand-structure-and-ownership.html)
• There are different types of ownership such as: Private ownerships, they are Companies which are owned by a group of people who own shares, Shares cannot be owned by the general public because private companies such as Google, YouTube, Facebook, etc., are able to operate with only limited information being available in their business in a commercial market.  Public ownership has also shares widely traded on the stock of the market place.
• Public limited companies also have to report on their business operations to their shareholders and companies’ house, organization that oversees the business of limited companies; it examines and stores company information’s. This ownership is located in one country but there are also companies that are multinational companies that work across a number of countries. Examples of this would be Corporation and Viacom, they work all around the countries, and you can find them everywhere.(http://asrafaris93.blogspot.co.uk/p/1-understand-structure-and-ownership-of.htm)
• Film – When we talk about the film industry we’re referring to its six different component parts: Development, Production, Facilities, Distribution, Exhibition and Export. Current research shows there are around 400 ‘permanent’ (i.e. registered) companies in the film industry, this figure varies depending on the number of productions being worked on at any one time.
• The television sector and the film sector are connected by the fact that TV channels often play films. There are also many TV channels that are purely dedicated to showing films, such as Sky Movies. Films are also mainly advertised on TV, both in cinema and DVD releases.

The BBC - Public company, funded by the TV license. ITV - Private Company, 60% owned by ITV PLC, Also owned by STV Group PLC (Scotland) and UTV (Northern Ireland). Channel 4 - Private Company, funded by advertising. Channel 5 - Private Company - Owned by Northern & Shell ( Which is Owned by Richard Desmond) Radio is one of the oldest forms of mass media. Radio transmits sound-based media to the likes of car radios and TV. Radios themselves are dying out as radio can now be listened to on TV and online thanks to it becoming digital. Also most people listen to radio in their cars. There are three sections of radio: Publicly funded Radio - Taxpayer Funded (EG BBC Radio 1) Commercial Radio - Advert Funded (EG Metro Radio) (http://prezi.com/zhetcguu5ujl/undersanding-the-structure-and-ownership-of-the-media-sector/)