In this updated edition of the industry staple, veteran media executive Jeff Ulin relates business theory and practice across key global market segments—film, television, and online/digital—providing you with an insider’s perspective that can't be found anywhere else. Learn how an idea moves from concept to profit and how distribution dominates the bottom line: Hollywood stars may make the headlines, but marketing and distribution are the behind-the-scenes drivers converting content into cash. The third edition: Includes perspectives from key industry executives at studios, networks, agencies and online leaders, including Fox, Paramount, Lucasfilm, Endeavor, Tencent, MPAA, YouTube, Amazon, and many more; Explores the explosive growth of the Chinese market, including box office trends, participation in financing Hollywood feature films, and the surge in online usage; Illustrates how online streaming leaders like Netflix, Amazon, Apple, YouTube, Hulu and Facebook are changing the way TV content is distributed and consumed, and in cases how these services are moving into theatrical markets; Analyzes online influences and disruption throughout the distribution chain, and explains the risks and impact stemming from changing access points (e.g., stand-alone apps), delivery methods (over-the-top) and consumption patterns (e.g., binge watching); Breaks down historical film windows, the economic drivers behind them, and how online and digital delivery applications are changing the landscape. Ulin provides the virtual apprenticeship you need to demystify and manage the complicated media markets, understand how digital distribution has impacted the ecosystem, and glimpse into the future of how film and television content will be financed, distributed and watched. An online eResource contains further discussion on topics presented in the book.

The Business of Media presents the critical, yet careful, analysis of the rapidly changing media industry that students need in order to get behind the headlines and understand our increasingly media-saturated society. The writing is clear and jargon-free, accessible to undergraduates without requiring a background in economics.

Understanding the Business of Entertainment: The Legal and Business Essentials All Filmmakers Should Know is an indispensable guide to the business aspects of the entertainment industry, providing the legal expertise you need to break in and to succeed. Written in a clear and engaging tone, this book covers the essential topics in a thorough but reader-friendly manner and includes plenty of real-world examples that bring business and legal concepts to life. Whether you want to direct, produce, write, edit, photograph or act in movies, this book covers how to find work in your chosen field and examines the key provisions in employment agreements for creative personnel. If you want to make films independently, you’ll find advice on where to look for financing, what kinds of deals might be made in the course of production, and important information on insurance, releases, and licenses. Other topics covered include: Hollywood’s growth and the current conglomerates that own most of the media How specific entertainment companies operate, including facts about particular studios and employee tasks. How studios develop projects, manage production, seek out independent films, and engage in marketing and distribution The kinds of revenues studios earn and how they account for these revenues How television networks and new media-delivery companies like Netflix operate and where the digital revolution might take those who will one day work in the film and TV business As an award- winning screenwriter and entertainment attorney, Gregory Bernstein give us an inside look at the business of entertainment. He proves that knowing what is behind filmmaking is just as important as the film itself.

This book focuses on market opportunity and segmentation, intellectual property assets enabling, financing production, theatrical distribution, the home video business, television distribution, internet distribution, ancillary revenues, marketing and making money & net profits, Hollywood accounting, and the relative simplicity of online revenue sharing.

"Content is now king - and if you're a brand marketer, you need to be a media company, too. Your Brand, The Next Media Company brings together the strategic insights, operational techniques, and insights and practical approaches for transforming your brand into a highly successful media company - and a winning social business! Social business pioneer Michael Brito covers every step of the process, including: Understanding your social customer and their new world Planning your social business and content strategies Building infrastructure and teams, and setting the stage for transformation Identifying and overcoming the specific content challenges you face Recognizing the central role content now plays Developing your content message Transitioning from brand messaging to high content relevancy Moving from content creation to curation to aggregation Successfully integrating paid, earned, and owned media content Distributing the right content at the right time through the right channels to the right customers Mastering the critical new roles of the community manager in your media company Evaluating the content technology vendors and software platforms vying for your businessAlong the way, Brito presents multiple case studies from brand leaders worldwide, including Coca Cola, RedBull, Oreo, Skittles, Old Spice, Dos Equis, Gatorade, Tide, and the NFL - delivering specific, powerfully relevant insights you can act on and profit from immediately." --Publisher description.

This revised edition of Understanding the Business of Media Entertainment is an indispensable guide to the business aspects of the entertainment industry, providing the information you need to break in and to succeed. Written in a clear and engaging tone, the second edition of this book covers the essential topics in a thorough but reader-friendly manner and includes plenty of real-world examples that bring business and legal concepts to life, such as the growing clout of digital companies and the rise of streaming providers like Netflix and Amazon, the transformation of independent film development and distribution, and changes to the media ownership landscape. Award-winning screenwriter and entertainment attorney Gregory Bernstein gives an insider's look at the filmmaking business, from copyright law and government media regulation to development, distribution, revenue, the role of agents, managers, and unions, entertainment contracts, and more. Other topics covered include: Hollywood's growth and the current conglomerates that own most of the traditional media. How specific entertainment companies operate, including facts about particular studios and employee tasks. How studios develop projects and engage in marketing and distribution. The kinds of revenues studios earn and how they account for these revenues.

This new introductory textbook provides students with the tools they need to understand the way digital technologies have transformed the global media business of the 21st century. Focusing on three main approaches – media economics, critical political economy, and production studies – the authors provide an empirically rich analysis of ownership, organizational structures and culture, business strategies, markets, networks of strategic alliances, and state policies as they relate to global media. Examples throughout involve both traditional and digital media and are taken from different regions and countries to illustrate how the media business is influenced by interconnected historical, political, economic, and social factors. In addition to introducing today’s convergent world of global media, the book gives readers a greater understanding of their own potential roles within the global media industries.

Advancement of the state of scholarship on media management is a three-pronged process. The body of knowledge on which media executives and managers can draw grows as: (1) core concepts and analytical frameworks are refined, augmented and occasionally supplemented or replaced by new ideas that better explain the roles of media in their larger economic and societal contexts; (2) Rigorous empirical analysis probes the limitations of current understanding and raises new questions; and (3) Grounded case studies extract knowledge through theoretically informed observation of situations and processes that are too complex and multi-faceted for more tightly controlled statistical analyses but still are too rich in their potential to contribute to knowledge to ignore. All three prongs are represented in this edited volume, which draws on the best of the new research and thinking showcased at the Annual Conference of the International Media Management Academic Association held during October 24-25, 2014 in Pamplona, Spain. The book’s 10 chapters are organized into three main sections that move, respectively, from a high level focus on core principals and fundamental challenges to effective management, to more narrowly focused research (but with generalizable findings) on solutions to concrete and specific problems faced by media firms trying to improve their results from the services and products they offer, to case studies of market-level change in three very different political and economic environments. The remainder of this brief introduction was written as a guide to the research and findings presented in these sections.

This book answers the question, "What is the value of using streaming and digital media for my business and what can I expect in return?" The Business of Steaming and Digital Media gives you a concise and direct analysis of how to implement a scalable, profitable venture, as well as the common and hidden pitfalls to avoid in your business. By focusing on both the business implications and technical differences between rich media and traditional broadcast distribution, you will learn how to gain significant time-to-market and cost-saving advantages by effectively using streaming and digital media technologies.

Social Media has transformed the ways in which individuals keep in touch with family and friends. Likewise, businesses have identified the profound opportunities present for customer engagement and understanding through the massive data available on social media channels, in addition to the customer reach of such sites. Social Media Listening and Monitoring for Business Applications explores research-based solutions for businesses of all types interested in an understanding of emerging concepts and technologies for engaging customers online. Providing insight into the currently available social media tools and practices for various business applications, this publication is an essential resource for business professionals, graduate-level students, technology developers, and researchers.