Media Management and Economics 2011 Abstracts
The Newspaper Boom in India and China: Exploring Media Models in the World’s Largest Newspaper Markets • Nikhil Moro, University of North Texas; Debashis Aikat, University of North Texas • The newspaper markets in India and China have flourished in recent years. Together, the two countries daily sell more than 220 million copies of some 3,300 titles. This paper identifies 11 major media models as operationalized in India and China’s newspaper industry from 1990 through 2010, the two decades when a relatively free market economy emerged in both countries. This paper also delineates the success of India and China’s newspaper industry with a view to offering valuable lessons for the beleaguered newspaper industry in other nations, especially the United States. Grounded in freedom of expression theory, the ongoing research reported in this paper explores possible lessons for the beleaguered newspaper industry in other nations.
Blockbusted. A Resource Dependence Analysis • Gabe Otterson, University of North Texas; Alan Albarran, University of North Texas • This case study examines the rise and hard fall of one of America’s corporate giants, Blockbuster Inc. Resource dependency theory posits that a company is dependent on its external environment, and must adapt to changing market conditions in order to eliminate dependencies and ensure long-term survival. A historical analysis of Blockbuster reveals the company not only failed to recognize growing dependencies, but as those problems manifested, Blockbuster responded inadequately and not soon enough, eventually forcing the company into bankruptcy at the end of 2010. Regardless of how the bankruptcy proceedings eventually play out, the case of Blockbuster should serve as a warning to other media firms and companies in general facing a highly competitive environment.
Transforming the News: Examining the influence of transformational leadership behaviors of newspaper editors on newsroom innovation • Kris Boyle, Creighton University • This study examined the influence of transformational leadership behavior newsroom innovativeness, including the adoption and use of interactive elements on newspaper Web sites. An online survey of 99 U.S. online and managing editors revealed that certain transformational leadership behaviors influenced the editors’ perceptions of innovativeness, though the editors reported a low level of innovativeness within their newsrooms. Innovativeness is a moderator of transformational leadership and may explain the lack of transformational leadership in the newsroom.
Niche Theory and Online Music: The Changing Face of The Billboard Top 200 • Jason Cain, University of Florida • The sound recording industry has undergone serious upheaval since digital distribution became popular in the early 2000s. This paper examines the Billboard 200 album chart in an effort to demonstrate volatility and seeks to explain such volatility through ideas found in the theory of the niche. This study also discusses the larger subject of the future of mass appeal media in the Internet age and demonstrates niche theory’s utility in examining this issue.
Business Models of Most-Visited U.S. Social Networking Sites • Jiyoung Cha, University of North Texas • This study aims to examine and compare business models of major U.S. social major networking sites. The case studies of the four most-visited U.S. social networks revealed different values, target markets, sources of competencies, and revenue models. The findings also indicate that international expansion and small advertisers play critical roles in growth of the social networks. The revenues come from advertising, commerce, paid subscriptions, syndication, and other specialized services.
The Rise and Rise of Cable TV: Demand elasticity of cable television during the Great Recession • Matthew Danelo, University of Georgia • In 2008, the United States economy slid into what many termed the “Great Recession.” During the following 15-month, economic downturn the percentage of unemployed Americans rose consecutively, while the number of new subscriptions to cable and satellite television services also increased. This trend was especially present in media markets hardest hit by the recession – the worse off the local economy, the higher these new subscriptions numbers climbed.
Comic relief: Television choices in economic downturns • Terri Denard, University of Alabama • The purpose of this study is to compare prime time network television viewing preferences before and after three significant shocks to the American economy to determine whether viewers prefer a different type of programming in down economies than in stable times. The study revealed directional insights indicating that viewers tend to shift their preferences toward comedies following severe negative events. The results are of interest to media management, broadcasters, producers, and advertisers, who may wish to reconfigure the tonality of their programming to reference more humorous or lighthearted elements in stressful economic times.
Is High-Definition Video Streaming Delivery Economically Sustainable for Broadband Service Providers? • Michel Dupagne, University of Miami • While the advent of high-definition video streaming is no longer in doubt, its long-term viability is questionable in light of recently implemented bandwidth caps. To address these economic implications for providers and consumers, this paper analyzes trends in revenue, expenses, and prices for broadband Internet service. Available data and industry information indicated that revenue of broadband providers has risen significantly over time while expenses have declined or stabilized, revealing high profit margins for this business.
The Impact of Alternative Video Distribution Platforms on Traditional Television Viewing: How Motives, Affinity, Consumption Patterns, and Perceived Characteristics Affect Substitution • Miao Guo, University of Florida • This study examines the impact of alternative video distribution platforms such as online video streaming and portable video devices (i.e., mobile television) on traditional television viewing. By drawing upon the uses and gratifications theory, the technology acceptance model (TAM), and the innovation diffusion constructs, the study explored how motives, perceived media characteristics, affinity for alternative outlets, and viewing behavior shaped the substitution phenomena between the emerging alternative platforms and traditional television. Results show that the online and mobile platforms are associated with different motives, invoke different levels of affinity and viewing frequency, and represent different degrees of time displacement effects on regular television viewing. Online video streaming, driven by companionship and information motives, appears to exhibit the most time displacement effects on traditional television viewing.
Identity fallout: The draining effects of technological and economic change on newspaper journalists • Amber Hinsley, Saint Louis University • This study assessed newspaper journalists’ perceptions of their job roles and the impact of technological and economic changes on their work. Social identity theory explains how those beliefs affect journalists’ identification with their organizations. Journalists maintained high regard for their job roles but believe technological and economic changes have hindered their ability to perform those roles. Journalists with these negative feelings had lower identification with their organizations. Job type and circulation size influenced those relationships.
Media Sales Management and New Product Innovation: An Exploratory Study • Todd Holmes, University of Florida • The advent of a product innovation can provide a unique and potentially profitable opportunity for a media firm. The sales department primarily has responsibility for capitalizing on these opportunities and can increase the chance of success if the salespeople believe in the value of the innovation (Booz, Allen, & Hamilton 1982). Even though the sales team structure may not be altered by a new product rollout, the increased product-market scope resulting from the introduction can have major effects on the department’s ability to increase revenues. As such, this study explores how the sales team’s perceived value of the innovation, sales team structure, and product-market scope can impact firm outcomes. This is accomplished via nine semi-structured depth interviews with television executives overseeing sales teams amidst the introduction of the new product innovation of multicasting.
IPTV Redlining: Income-driven Competition • Sung Wook Ji, Indiana University, Bloomington • This study examines the current status of the entry behavior of IPTVs into the video programming service market, with a particular focus on income redlining and local competition. Analyzing previously unavailable data compiled by the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission, evidence is presented of the practice of income redlining associated with IPTVs’ entry into Indiana market, as well as of the presence of income-driven local competition”
An Empirical Analysis of Social Media Use: Examination of Determinants of Twitter and Facebook Use • Sangwon Lee, Central Michigan University; Moonhee Cho, University of Florida • This study examines the factors that influence the use of social media utilizing an integrated research framework that employs diverse theoretical frameworks like diffusion of innovations, the technology acceptance model, the theory of reasoned actions, and the uses and gratification theory. Through an online survey of social media users, we analyze the factors that influence the attitudes toward Twitter and Facebook use and the actual use of Twitter and Facebook. The results of multiple regression analysis suggest that perceived characteristics like relative advantage and observability, perceived user values like interactivity and mobility, and perceived ease of use are influential factors in explaining the formation of an attitude toward Twitter use. The significance of interactivity in explaining Twitter attitude and use may imply that interactive innovations (social media like Twitter) or those that offer two-way communication can speed-up the adoption process because they attain a critical mass of users more quickly. The results of data analysis also suggest that perceived characteristics like relative advantage, trialability, and observability, perceived user value like mobility, and perceived usefulness have formed an attitude toward Facebook use. In addition, multiple regression analysis suggests that, for Twitter use, attitude toward Twitter use, subjective norm, and mobile phone usage are the main factors. For Facebook use, subjective norm, account holding period, passing time, and perceived popularity are the main factors.
The Impact of Online Advertising on European Inter-Media Competition • Dan Shaver, Jönköping International Business School; Mary Alice Shaver, Jönköping International Business School • Within media ecologies, resource competition focuses on revenues from advertising and marketing for most traditional media industries. The introduction of the World Wide Web as a platform for delivery of digital content—including advertising—has shifted competition patterns. This study examines competitive patterns in 21 European national markets before and after the introduction of online advertising, identifies shifts in inter-media competition for revenues and changes in overall media market patterns between the two periods.
The Globalization of Magazines in India: A case study • Seema Shrikhande, Oglethorpe University • Media globalization has become an established business phenomenon that has seen new markets being developed. Many of these are in emerging markets like China and India that have the promise of high growth. The print media sector, in particular magazines are expanding into these countries. The magazine segment in India, has seen a huge transformation with a steady influx of foreign titles in a variety of sectors. Cosmopolitan and Elle, both early entrants to the market started operations in India in the mid 90s. But it was only in the first decade of the 21st century that international magazine publishers’ interest in India gained momentum leading to a number of new titles with the promise of more to come. This paper examines the internationalization of consumer magazines in India. Using a qualitative exploratory approach, I examine how Western publishing companies have entered the Indian market and provide an in depth analysis of their globalization strategies.
Factors Affecting Evaluation of Co-branding in Mobile Phone Manufactures and Luxury Fashion Brands • Hyunsang Son, University of Florida; Sylvia Chan-Olmsted, University of Florida • This study aims to create an effective branding strategy in mobile phone market based on the co-branding strategy of mobile phone manufacture and luxury fashion brand. Integrating the brand extension factors (e.g., original brand attitude, perceived fit, attitude toward ingredient brand) to co-branding extension evaluation, this study identifies factors affecting attitude toward co-branding extension and actual purchasing intention of mobile phone, and Customer-Based Brand Equity (CBBE) of each brand. The findings show that the favorable attitude toward luxury fashion brand led to greater purchasing intention through positive evaluation of co-branding extension. Also perceived fit between partner brand, attitude toward ingredient brand also significant predictor of favorable attitude toward co-branding extension and purchasing intention of mobile phone.
Understanding sources of competitiveness in broadcasting industry in the era of convergence : A case study of Korea Educational Broadcasting System • Lee Sungjoon, Korea Educational Broadcasting System; Chihyung Park, Korea Educational Broadcasting System • This study examines how terrestrial broadcasting networks in South Korea have adapted to media industry changes by leveraging their internal resources and capabilities. For this purpose, the current study provides a case study of Korea Educational Broadcasting System (KEBS), which is one of representative broadcasting network in South Korea, based on the framework of resource-based views (RBV). In-depth interviews with senior officials in charge and experts at KEBS were conducted. The results shows there are still several unique resources that can sustain competitiveness of broadcasting networks in South Korea as compared to service providers based on the other platforms. The implications of the results are also discussed.
Willingness to pay for paid channels of digital TV: an Empirical Analysis • Fan-Bin Zeng, Jinan Universtity • Willingness to pay for paid channels of digital TV includes four aspects: response to paid channels about status and reason for payment by paid channels users; future payment liability and reason for payment by unpaid channels users; the highest price the users are willing to pay; the users’ attitude toward paid channels to switch to advertisement in order to reduce the price. Based on a Computer Assisted Telephone Interviewing the households in Guangzhou (N=308), this study finds that willingness to pay for paid channels by users is low. The key reason is that the paid channels of digital TV is nothing special and the free channels of digital TV are too many and diverse. This study also reveals that the highest price which the users are willing to pay is low, and the users wouldn’t support advertising in paid channel even if it could reduce the cost. Results of the hierarchical regression analysis also reveals that willingness to pay for paid channels is related with the TV use variable, but not related with income variable, which means that the media goods of paid channels are abnormal goods, in other words, the number of people willing to pay would not increase even if their income levels are higher. Based on these results, this study states briefly that if the willingness to pay for paid channels is raised, the key point is to improve the quality and reduce the price of paid channels.
Media Structure and Conduct: A Comparative Study of Cancer-related Ads in Black and General Readership Newspapers • Ye Wang,; You Li, University of Missouri; Shelly Rodgers, University of Missouri • The purpose of the present study is to compare cancer-related ads in Black versus general readership newspapers and identify market-structure factors that are attributable to cancer-related ads in Black versus general readership newspapers. Using Ramstad’ (1997) revised Structure-Conduct-Performance (SCP) model, this study examines the influence of newspaper type (Black versus general readership newspapers), newspaper circulation, average household income, city population, and the number of newspapers in the local market on newspapers’ conduct of running cancer-related advertisements. A content analysis on cancer-related advertisements in 24 Black and 12 general readership newspapers from 2004 to 2007 was conducted as measures of newspapers’ conduct. Market structural data of the 36 newspapers were collected from various professional and government databases. By conducting a series of stepwise regressions, this study found that newspaper type (Black versus general readership newspapers) and newspaper circulation are the two major market-structure factors that influence cancer-related advertisements. The implications of this study are government policies of reducing cancer disparity make Black newspapers more competitive to obtain cancer-related advertisements from government organizations and programs. The lower economic status of African Americans makes Black newspapers less competitive to obtain advertisements about cancer-treatment. Non-profits’ limited advertising budget makes them purchase from newspapers with smaller circulation.
Leisure Time Budget, Time Price and Consumption of Traditional News Media and New News Media • Xiaoqun Zhang; Louisa Ha, Bowling Green State University • This study attempted to explain the relationship between leisure time availability and media choice in this age of media abundance. A new concept of time price which is related to communication efficiency was proposed. Two effects—the substitution effect and time effect were recognized and defined. The contrast between “traditional” news media and “new” news media use of different group of people showed the influence of time budget on the media consumption.
Print friendly
