There are certain legal laws and legislation which control the creative media sector. These laws constrain the things that people working in this sector can and cannot say, do, publish, etc.
Libel Law
Libel and slander are similar, however libel is written accusations and slander is spoken accusations. They are also known collectively as defamation. Defamation is a false accusation or a misinterpration of a person's words or actions. It is often a person or a group of people spreading lies about another person which can damage the other person. If this happens, the person affected can take the accuser to court and sue them for damages.
In August 2011, cases of online libel cases had apparently doubled mainly due to social networking sites and the rise in their popularity. In March 2012 the first Twitter libel case was taken to court. Former New Zealand cricketer Chris Cairns sued Lalit Modi for £90, 000 in damages. It was reported that Lalit Modi had posted a tweet about Cairns, who found the tweet offensive and damaging to his reputation.
Obscene Publications Act
The Obscene Publications Act was first used in 1857. This gave the courts permission to ban and destroy material which was deemed too obscene to be seen by the public. The first person to be imprisoned under this act was a man named William Dugdale who was sentenced to a long term in prison after his books were deemed to be too pornographic. This act was revised in 1959 and 1964 as the previous act did not make exceptions for artistic merit. Under this act, the works should be seen as a whole, not just certain parts, and must be depraving and corruptive in nature. If, however, the work is seen as in the interest of art, science, literature of other aspects of the public interest, then it cannot not be found to be in breach of this act.
A recent example of a banned film under this act, is the Human Centipede 2. The British Board of Film Classification has denied the film an 18 certificate as they say it is a "real risk" to the public.
Copyright and Intellectual Property Law
The current UK copyright law is the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. This act gives the creators of artistic works the right to control their material and works and the ways in which they are used. This means, for example, that downloading a song on the internet for free, without the artist's permission would be a breach of copyright law.
In 2012, Apple took Samsung to court after Samsung alledgedly stole Apple's iPad idea. The case was dropped after the judge found that few people would confuse Apple's iPad with Samsung's tablet.
The Broadcasting Act
The Broadcasting Act of 1990 was a reformation of telvision liscensing which led to the reinstatement of two regulatory bodies: The Independent Television Commission and Radio Authority. The Independent Television Commission was set up to regulate all television services in the UK, with the exception of the BBC and later, Channel 4. The Act put ITV up for sale, and it was to be awarded on financial grounds. The Act also introduced Channel 5 and introduced cross-media holdings to prevent ownership being concentrated in too few hands.
Privacy Law
In the UK, there is no law directly concerned with privacy. However, the Human Rights Act of 1998 states that "everyone has the right to respect for his private and family life, his home and his correspondence." This provides leeway, however, as it only states that one should have "respect for" a person's privacy, and does not say that they cannot interfere if they wish to.
In mid-2011, it was revealed that News of the World, a newspaper owned by Rupert Murdoch, had hacked the phones of several members of the public who were in the news for various reasons at the time, as well as celebrities. This is a popular example of invaded privacy, which could suggest that privacy laws in the UK need to be reformed.
Thursday, 15 November 2012
Thursday, 25 October 2012
Sources of Income
The sources of income in the creative media sector come from many places depending on the company, show, etc.
A popular source of income in the television industry is product placement, which used to be only a part of US television, but has now been introduced to the UK. The first appearance of product placement in the UK was a coffee machine on ITV's This Morning. The company that made the coffee machine paid ITV to have their product on the show. This Morning did not have to mention it or the brand, but it just had to be in the background. The product placement logo appears in the corner of the titles of any show that uses it.
A popular source of income in the television industry is product placement, which used to be only a part of US television, but has now been introduced to the UK. The first appearance of product placement in the UK was a coffee machine on ITV's This Morning. The company that made the coffee machine paid ITV to have their product on the show. This Morning did not have to mention it or the brand, but it just had to be in the background. The product placement logo appears in the corner of the titles of any show that uses it.
For most television channels, funding comes from advertisements. The only channels that do not have advertisements are BBC channels as the BBC gets their funding through the licence fee. Adverts advertise certain products and try to influence the viewer into buying them. The company that wants to advertise on television pays the channel for it to be aired in between a certain show or at a certain time.
These sources of income are the most popular, but there are also things such as sponsorships, downloads, sales, and merchandise to consider in other parts of the creative media industry. For example in the publishing sector, income comes largely from newspaper, magazine, book, etc. sales and advertisements. Advertisements are popularly used in most newspapers and magazines. Businesses, members of the public, and others pay the publication to advertise their business, product, etc. for different prices depending on the size and placement of the advert.
Thursday, 18 October 2012
Media Industry Terms
Globalisation is the process by which the world is becoming increasingly interconnected as a result of massively increased trade and cultural exchange. Examples of this are the Big Six comapnies who have businesses and divisions all over the world.
Merger
This occurs when two comapnies combine into a single entity. An example of this is the BSkyB and News Corporation merger.
Takeover
A takeover occurs when one company acquires control of another comapny. An example of this is when Facebook tookover Instagram for $1 billion in cash.
Vertical Integration
This happens when a company expands its business into areas that are different points of the same production path. An example of this is Richard Branson's Virgin. Virgin have television companies, trains, planes, formula one cars, and more. All these sectors are very different but are all owned by the same company.
Horizontal Integration
This happens when a comapny expands its business into different products that are similar to current lines. an example of this is Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation. News Corp owns TV stations and newspapers, all similar things within just the media sector.
Thursday, 11 October 2012
The Big Six
90% of the world's media is owned by "the big six." These are:
News Corp
News Corp is owned by Rupert Murdoch and its companies reach many countries across the globe such as the USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the UK and places like Africa and the Middle East. They own companies such as Fox and Sky and news papers such as the Sun, and many more.
Viacom
Viacom is home to entertainment brands spanning across 160 countries and territories. They reach audiences through television, motion pictures, online, and mobile platforms. The own popular divisions such as MTV Networks, Paramount Pictures and BET Networks.
Disney
The Walt Disney Company is a leading diversified international entertainment and media enterprise with five business segments: media networks, parks and resorts, studio entertainment, consumer products and interactive media. D
CBS
Columbia Broadcasting System is based in the USA and is the second largest TV broadcasting company, second only to the BBC. CBS owns companies such as Columbia Records, Metro Goldwyn Mayer, publishing companies, radio and more.
Time Warner
Time Warner is the world's second largest conglomerate, second only to Disney. They have a net worth of $41-$46 billion with divisions in television, film and publishing.
General Electric (GE)
General Electric is a media giant owning many of the world's most viewed television programmes and advertisements. They control much of the world's media, namely NBC, one of the worlds leading entertainment companies.
These companies all have a huge impact on our world. As they own so much of the media industry, they can control the things that we see, hear and read and as a result, we may be swayed in our opinions on certain matters subconciously. In the UK, Rupert Murdoch owns most of the newspapers and television channels, and this gives him power to influence our thoughts. For example, the political party that he supports is more likely to get in power as he will favour them in his newspapers etc.
- News Corp;
- Viacom ;
- Disney;
- CBS;
- Time Warner;
- GE.
News CorpNews Corp is owned by Rupert Murdoch and its companies reach many countries across the globe such as the USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the UK and places like Africa and the Middle East. They own companies such as Fox and Sky and news papers such as the Sun, and many more.
Viacom
Viacom is home to entertainment brands spanning across 160 countries and territories. They reach audiences through television, motion pictures, online, and mobile platforms. The own popular divisions such as MTV Networks, Paramount Pictures and BET Networks.
DisneyThe Walt Disney Company is a leading diversified international entertainment and media enterprise with five business segments: media networks, parks and resorts, studio entertainment, consumer products and interactive media. D
CBS
Columbia Broadcasting System is based in the USA and is the second largest TV broadcasting company, second only to the BBC. CBS owns companies such as Columbia Records, Metro Goldwyn Mayer, publishing companies, radio and more.
Time Warner
Time Warner is the world's second largest conglomerate, second only to Disney. They have a net worth of $41-$46 billion with divisions in television, film and publishing.
General Electric (GE)
General Electric is a media giant owning many of the world's most viewed television programmes and advertisements. They control much of the world's media, namely NBC, one of the worlds leading entertainment companies.
These companies all have a huge impact on our world. As they own so much of the media industry, they can control the things that we see, hear and read and as a result, we may be swayed in our opinions on certain matters subconciously. In the UK, Rupert Murdoch owns most of the newspapers and television channels, and this gives him power to influence our thoughts. For example, the political party that he supports is more likely to get in power as he will favour them in his newspapers etc.
Thursday, 27 September 2012
Television Ownership
There are two types of television ownership. These are public and private.
Public ownership includes the BBC, and is what we pay our TV licence for. It is paid for, and therefore owned, by the public, and everything it does must be in the public's best interest. Advantages of this type of ownership include the ability for people to complain via e-mail, text, letter, etc., and then the BBC will look into your issue and do its best to improve the service. Also, as the BBC works to serve the public, it has to be unbiased and not give personal opinions and it cannot attempt to influence the audience's views. Disadvantages of this type of ownership is that there is not always a variety of programmes, or the programmes they show may not always appeal to everyone. The BBC only produces its own shows and does not show, for example, shows from America. Other TV channels will bring those shows to this country making them more popular among many people. Another disadvantage of publicly owned television is that you have to pay a licence fee for it, which some people do not agree with.
Private ownership is funded by adverts and has an agenda, which are major disadvantages. It will put popular shows on in order to gain more viewers, and does not often do things in the public's best interest. Privately owned television does not have the same standards as privately owned TV, and can be biased. Often, privately owned TV channels, such as Dave, will re-run popular shows almost constantly to attract viewers. An advantage of privately owned television is that you do not have to pay a licence fee for it, however unless you have a TV with built in Freeview, you will still have to pay for services such as Virgin or Sky. Another advantage of privately owned television is that there is often a wider variety of shows of different genres and from different countries, which is seen as more interesting to a lot of people.
Public ownership includes the BBC, and is what we pay our TV licence for. It is paid for, and therefore owned, by the public, and everything it does must be in the public's best interest. Advantages of this type of ownership include the ability for people to complain via e-mail, text, letter, etc., and then the BBC will look into your issue and do its best to improve the service. Also, as the BBC works to serve the public, it has to be unbiased and not give personal opinions and it cannot attempt to influence the audience's views. Disadvantages of this type of ownership is that there is not always a variety of programmes, or the programmes they show may not always appeal to everyone. The BBC only produces its own shows and does not show, for example, shows from America. Other TV channels will bring those shows to this country making them more popular among many people. Another disadvantage of publicly owned television is that you have to pay a licence fee for it, which some people do not agree with.
Private ownership is funded by adverts and has an agenda, which are major disadvantages. It will put popular shows on in order to gain more viewers, and does not often do things in the public's best interest. Privately owned television does not have the same standards as privately owned TV, and can be biased. Often, privately owned TV channels, such as Dave, will re-run popular shows almost constantly to attract viewers. An advantage of privately owned television is that you do not have to pay a licence fee for it, however unless you have a TV with built in Freeview, you will still have to pay for services such as Virgin or Sky. Another advantage of privately owned television is that there is often a wider variety of shows of different genres and from different countries, which is seen as more interesting to a lot of people.
Thursday, 20 September 2012
Media Industry Sectors
The media industry comprises 9 main sectors. These are:
Publishing is the oldest of these industries. Currently, there are over 190, 000 people employed in this sector. Over 51, 000 people are emplpoyed in the newspaper industry, 50, 500 work in journals and magazines, 33, 000 work in the book industry, and there are nearly 12, 000 in other information services.
There are three main types of radio operating today. Publicly-funded radio, commercial radio and the community and voluntary radio sector - from well-established student and hospital radio to the most recently licensed community radio stations - are the three types of radio stations operating in the UK today. This industry currently employs over 2, 200 people, however, these numbers will likely begin to see a gradual downfall in the next few years due to new technology making radio seem archaic.
The UK teleision industry has nine terrestrial television stations, whose output is broadcast through land-based transmitters. These include the BBC, ITV, Channel 4, Five, S4C, SMG and UTV. There are also around 300 cable and satellite stations.
The games industry began its rise in the 1980s with games such as Tetris and Pac-Man. Today, the games industry is huge, with games like Call of Duty, Grand Theft Auto and World of Warcraft. World of Warcraft alone currently has around 9 million worldwide users, paying subscriptions of £9 a month, which equals a monthly outcome of £81 million.
The photo imaging industry is made up of many companies, around a third of which are sole trading or freelance photographers. The remaining compainies in this sector can be divided into five catagories. These are:
The interactive media sector is an industry which is rapidly growing, but has blurred boundries. It is defined as a form of media which the public can interact with, and as such, it overlaps into many areas. The most popular interactive media companies are social networking sites such as Twitter and Facebook.
In the UK, there are currently around 34,300 people employed in the interactive media sector, representing around 7% of the creative media industries.
- Publishing;
- Radio;
- Television;
- Film;
- Advertising;
- Photo imaging;
- Interactive media;
- Animation;
- Games.
Publishing is the oldest of these industries. Currently, there are over 190, 000 people employed in this sector. Over 51, 000 people are emplpoyed in the newspaper industry, 50, 500 work in journals and magazines, 33, 000 work in the book industry, and there are nearly 12, 000 in other information services.
There are three main types of radio operating today. Publicly-funded radio, commercial radio and the community and voluntary radio sector - from well-established student and hospital radio to the most recently licensed community radio stations - are the three types of radio stations operating in the UK today. This industry currently employs over 2, 200 people, however, these numbers will likely begin to see a gradual downfall in the next few years due to new technology making radio seem archaic.
The UK teleision industry has nine terrestrial television stations, whose output is broadcast through land-based transmitters. These include the BBC, ITV, Channel 4, Five, S4C, SMG and UTV. There are also around 300 cable and satellite stations.
The games industry began its rise in the 1980s with games such as Tetris and Pac-Man. Today, the games industry is huge, with games like Call of Duty, Grand Theft Auto and World of Warcraft. World of Warcraft alone currently has around 9 million worldwide users, paying subscriptions of £9 a month, which equals a monthly outcome of £81 million.
The photo imaging industry is made up of many companies, around a third of which are sole trading or freelance photographers. The remaining compainies in this sector can be divided into five catagories. These are:
- Image producers;
- Photo retail;
- Picture libraries and agencies;
- Manufacturers;
- Support services (such as equiptment hire and repair).
The interactive media sector is an industry which is rapidly growing, but has blurred boundries. It is defined as a form of media which the public can interact with, and as such, it overlaps into many areas. The most popular interactive media companies are social networking sites such as Twitter and Facebook.
In the UK, there are currently around 34,300 people employed in the interactive media sector, representing around 7% of the creative media industries.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)