The United States media industry is dominated by large vertically integrated corporations. It has a population of 320 million people and is projected to be worth $337.1 billion by 2018, a 8.2% increase over five years. However, press freedom has declined as the government has charged more journalists under the Espionage Act than ever before. The largest players are Comcast, which may merge with Time Warner to become the biggest media company globally, and other corporations like CBS and Disney that own broadcasting networks, cable channels, and movie studios.

1. A Media Industry Analysis:
The United States Of America

2. What you need to know
 Population – 320 Million
 Split into 51 states spanning the continent of North
America
 Largest state – 37 million
 Smallest state - 500 thousand
 Democrat elected president, Republican ran house
 2013 Market Value - $3.11bn

3. Press Freedom
 America is rated 42nd by reporters without borders in
their 2014 world press freedom index.
 In the last 13 years, 11 journalists have been charged
with the espionage act. More than ever before.
 The United States hate a whistleblower – Chelsea
Manning, Edward Snowden & Julien Assange
 Basic journalism still thrives, but well researched and
executed investigative journalism is threatened by
recent actions by the government.

4. Demographics
 The competitors in the US Media market are more often
than not large vertically integrated corporations.
 Vertical Integration in media – Larger corporations
buying companys from different sectors of the media
market.
 Sets up large corporations with a portfolio of media
companies.

5. Growth
 By 2018 the United States media industry is projected to
increase to a value of $337.1bn an increase of 8.2% in 5
years.
 Online Piracy is the biggest ongoing threat toward the
Industry.
 A slower growth than in other times has result in the
rivalry between companies becoming more bitter.

6. Alternative Media
 Due to the size of the corporations in control of the majority
of the US media industry it can be hard as a newcomer to the
market.
 Netflix & Amazon Prime offer a service that has changed the
way in which the media industry in the US now delivers it’s
content.
 Alternate news sources such as Vice & international news
accessed by the internet offers a different view to that of the
corporations
 Though these companies cater to niches well they have failed
to make an impact on a larger scale

7. The Big Players
 The American media is made up of the publishing,
advertising, broadcasting & cable TV, and movies and
entertainment industries.
 Broadcasting & cable TV accounted for 55.4% of the
American media industries total value in 2013
 The USA’s media industry contributes 34.2% of the
global media market. Europe as a whole contributes
only 29.8%

8. Broadcast & Cable TV
 Multiple corporations offering cable services and a
variety of broadcast options & cable networks.
 Two biggest companies agreed a merge rin February of
this year pending regulatory approval. (Comcast & Time-
Warner)
 Most of these companies run some form of local version
of their cable TV with local news being broadcast
 Others include News Corp, CBS, Viacom, Walt Disney Co

9. Comcast
 Comcast is the largest broadcasting and cable company in the
world.
 Revenue of $65bn in 2013
 CEO – Brian L. Roberts. Only owns 1% of shares, but has
control over all of the class B super voting shares, effectively
giving him creative control over the company.
 The official sponsor of over 50 major US sports teams.
 Comcast also owns NBCUniversal
 Operates in 40 states

11. Time-Warner
 Second largest company in the US media industry
 Accepted a merger proposal from Comcast in February
this year
 Would become the largest media corporation in the
world by an unimaginable distance if merger is cleared
 Revenue of $22.12bn in 2013
 Operates in 29 states