A definition of the media sector
The media sector can be defined as comprising the creation, modification, transfer and distribution of media content for the purpose of mass consumption, where:
- Media content comprises art, reports of facts, and expressions of ideas or opinions in a form that allows these to be consumed independently (in time or in place) from their creation.
- Mass consumption requires that the creation, modification, transfer or distribution is undertaken without knowledge of the specific identity of the people to whom the content is to be made available.
The meaning of each of these definitions is best understood by identifying what they exclude.
The media sector involves separation between creation and consumption
Theatrical or musical performances, or political speeches, are not media content by themselves: there is no de-coupling of creation and consumption. The performance is necessarily "consumed" as it is being created. In contrast to such performances, the media sector involves a process through which, first, the fruits of human creativity are converted to media content and, second, this media content is distributed to, and consumed by, an audience unconnected to its original creation. The essence of the media sector is the separation between creation and distribution, reflecting the use of the term "medium" to describe a means of communication.
Thus, a broadcast (whether live or not) or a recording of the performance or speech, which can be consumed independently of the speech or performance itself, would be media content. The speech script or musical score used by the performer is potentially media content, as it is capable of mass consumption; but its creation or distribution only forms part of the media sector where this is undertaken for the purpose of mass consumption. Speech writing exclusively for the speaker's use, with no prospect of any other distribution, is not a media activity.
The media sector concerns mass consumption
The requirement that media be for mass consumption excludes various social and commercial exchanges where, to the extent that content is created, the audience, reader or recipient is a specific individual or a "closed group". The supply of voice telephony services allows the transmission of audio content from one person to another, but falls outside the media sector due to the private nature of the communication. Similarly, in consultancy industries, where firms take on commissions to provide bespoke advice to clients, the consumer of any content created (such as written reports) is a specific party; these services therefore lie outside the media sector (but this does not preclude consultancy firms supplying media content as part of their business, e.g. marketing publications).
For the purpose of defining the media sector, mass consumption is not simply a matter of numbers. The actual audience or readership for some media content might be very small, whilst forms of private communication might involve a large number of people (e.g. an e-mail to a very large group of recipients) yet fall outside the media sector.
The supply of media content may be restricted and controlled in various ways, but this remains within the media sector so long as the restriction is not based on the specific identity of the people (or parties) to whom the content is to be made available. For instance, access to media content may be restricted through pricing arrangements, by geographic location, or because specific equipment is needed to consume the content.
The media sector should be distinguished from its distribution channels
Historically, the main industries within the media sector have been television and radio broadcasting, the film and recorded music industries, and the printed press (e.g. newspaper and book publishing). Connected to these areas is the advertising industry, which cuts across all media channels. More recently, the Internet has provided a further channel through which a range of media content — from text to graphical and audiovisual content — can be distributed.
The trend of convergence highlights the need to recognise the distinction between the media sector and the distribution channels associated with it.
In parts of the media sector, the traditional distribution channels have involved the transfer of content to a physical copy (e.g. through the printing of a newspaper or the copying of a VHS video cassette) followed by a logistical process (e.g. delivery of newspapers to households, supply through high street retail). In other parts of the sector, content has been distributed through network infrastructure that was essentially devoted to that purpose, such as terrestrial transmission networks for television and radio broadcasting.
With convergence, and more specifically digitalisation, the same (digital) content is often distributed to consumers through a variety of distribution channels. These distribution channels are not used exclusively by the media sector. For instance, a movie might be transmitted through a digital cable network, or downloaded from the Internet; these same networks are also used to provide services outside the media sector, such as voice telephony services.
As a general rule, therefore, it is misleading to try to conceive of the media sector simply in terms of the distribution channels it is associated with. Indeed, it may be more illuminating to think of the media sector as encompassing broad groups of supply chains that map the original creation (or sourcing) of content to its final (mass) consumption, involving various distribution networks and logistical arrangements.
Market definition in media markets
The Reckon Open page Market definition in the media sector discusses the application in the media sector of the competition law concept of "market definition", and provides links to other pages about competition policy analysis in media markets.
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Last changed by 80.231.198.77 at 10:17 AM on Wednesday 11 June 2008.