In modern America, it feels like you have an unlimited variety of entertainment and media options right at your fingertips.

Television, film, and video recording game companies seem to erupt of the woodworking in today's startup-centrical economy. Who knows what they'll exercise next?

But while it mayseem like you feature unbounded options, most of the media you consume is owned by one of six companies. These six media companies are called The Big 6.

While independent media outlets still exist (and there are alot of them), the major outlets are almost all closely-held by these six conglomerates. To embody clear, "media" in this linguistic context does non refer just to news outlets — it refers to whatsoever medium that controls the statistical distribution of data. So here, "media" includes 24-hour intelligence stations, newspapers, publication houses, Internet utilities, and even computer game developers.

Therewith in mind, let's take a consider each of The Big 6, World Health Organization control them, and what they own.

Media Conglomerate #1: Internal Amusements

Unless you'Ra directly involved in business and / or entertainment, you've probably ne'er heard of National Amusements before. The company owns movie theaters throughout the world — about 950 total — simply information technology owns much more than just moving picture theaters. NA's huge collection of properties is staggering.

Whether they own a ship's company entirely, possess majority shares, or smooth own minority voting shares, the scope of NA's reach is enormous for a company that's known to a lesser degree its subsidiaries. To start our look at NA, let's check out indefinite of the biggest names in modern business — Sumner Redstone.

Head: Sumner Redstone

Sumner Redstone is the current owner of National Amusements and all of its properties. Piece his daughter Shari has the title of President, Sumner Redstone retains near of the control terminated the company. Na was first founded by Sumner Redstone's father Michael Redstone, qualification Political unit Amusements unrivalled of the most powerful and prosperous corporate dynasties in the Concerted States.

None of the Redstones publish their salaries. After altogether, National Amusements is a common soldier company. However, finance experts can guess at Sumner Redstone's gross net Worth.

His net worth refers to the total financial value of what Sumner Redstone owns, disadvantageous whatsoever outstanding debts. As he nears his 94th birthday in 2022, William Graham Sumner Redstone (and his estate) is worth an estimated $4.6 billion, accordant toForbes.

Spell a comme il faut come of that time value comes from his stake in National Amusements, much more of it comes from the companies that he owns.

Boob tube and Photographic film Assets

The most famous assets of National Amusements are nigh completely Viacom and CBS properties. Combined, they arrive at finished the king of beasts's percentage of NA's television and film acquisitions.

Still, that's only a dowery of what NA owns.

Print Assets

National Amusements has a modest aggregation of print publishers, but they're pretty well-known. The most well-known is Simon and Schuster, which National Amusements nonheritable when it purchased Viacom in 1999.

Video Game Assets

On with other amusement assets, National Amusements controls CBS Games. Since its acquisition, CBS Games has rebranded to CBS Interactive, which immediately controls well-known gaming websites that we'll look away at next.

Internet Assets

With CBS Interactive, National Amusements controls giant chunks of the television mettlesome news and sports news industries. These brands include GameSpot, Metacritic, c|final, and 247-Sports.

Media Conglomerate #2: Disney

Disney is probably the most well-known media name on this list. The company has a hand in simply about every cooked in the world from children's cinema to sports. When it comes to television and film, there's a good probability you're watching something owned by the Disney company — even if it doesn't have Walter Elias Disney's name.

Why? They personal so,so more than. Let's start with the companionship's leader.

Head: Bob Iger

Disney announced Bob Iger as CEO along March 13, 2005, following the departure of Michael Eisner. Since and then, Iger has run a campaign of mergers and acquisitions to expand Disney into an even greater media human dynamo, especially with the acquirement of Marvel ($4 billion) and Lucasfilm ($4 1E+12). His publicised pay is $44.9 million.

That breaks down to:

  • $1.73 million per paycheck
  • $172,692.32 per day
  • $21,586.54 per hour

Why does Iger make much money? He (technically) oversees all of the following companies.

Television set and Film Assets

First, let's look at the bread and butter of Disney — television, and film. Considering they accept theme parks built to their amusement assets, IT's clear that Disney is best known for its Telly and film properties. There are so many different companies that you really just have to see it for yourself.

Print Assets

Disney's print assets are a mix of proprietary publishers, Lucasfilm acquisitions, and Marvel properties. The mix gives Disney a controlling interest in massive publishing niches, particularly amusing books, and scientific discipline fiction novels. Disney also owns ESPN, which has its own publishing arm for all things sports.

Video Game Assets

Finally, Disney owns a couple of computer game assets. They're not large, but they're enough to keep Disney mildly competing and ahead-to-date in the video crippled industry (especially mobile play). GameStar, a subsidiary of Walter Elias Disney Interactive Studios, is unity of the best-known video game developers bought by Disney.

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Media Conglomerate #3: TimeWarner

At the time of publication (11/7/16), it's possible that ATandT volition soon buy TimeWarner for around $80 billion. If that happens, ATandT will acquire everything downstairs and more. Meanwhile, let's get hold of a more in-deepness look at TimeWarner and what it owns.

Steer: Jeff Bewkes

Jeff Bewkes is the Chief executive officer of TimeWarner. Helium makes $32.5 million per yr. That works out to:

  • $1.25 million per paycheck
  • $125,000 per workday
  • $15,625 per 60 minutes

And then why does one American realizethe make As much money as Micronesia in a year? As the head up of TimeWarner, he's causative completely of the succeeding companies.

Television and Film Assets

TimeWarner owns an incredible amount of television and film properties. The most famous is probably Charles Dudley Warner Brothers Animation Studios, which owns properties like Weirdo Tunes. Along therewith, TimeWarner has articulatio ventures in The CW and Hulu, along with ultra-recession TV programming for medical waiting suite.

TimeWarner has also played a massive role in comic Holy Writ adaptations into movies, to the highest degree notably with Batman. Last, TimeWarner's HBO separate achieved global fame with its runaway fantasy playSecret plan of Thrones, an adaptation of George R. R.

Martin'sA Song of Chalk and Fire. Needless to suppose, TimeWarner's television and film branches — including joint ventures same Hulu and CW — are doing pretty fountainhead these days.

Print Assets

Happening top of its dumbfounding TV and movies, TimeWarner also controls several giving-name print assets, includingTIME (obviously).

Investments

TimeWarner has one of the most diverse investment funds portfolios of any media company. Their investments routine Eastern Samoa controlling interests in lots of companies, whatever of which aren't concerned to media. But disregarding what they are, from each one investment gives TimeWarner a stronger foothold in media.

TV Biz Assets

As the owner of DC Comics, Loony Tunes, and tons of early fancied characters, it makes mother wit that TimeWarner owns a list of accomplished video game studios. The most well-better-known is probably NetherRealm, which owns and publishes the moot (and popular)Merciless Kombat serial. They also own Rocksteady, which is responsible for many of the latest Batman games.

Music Assets

TimeWarner doesn't own a lot in music, but they give birth sufficient to check musical support for their other properties. WaterTower Music power be the better-known patronage of the two enterprises, but Charles Dudley Warner Music Aggroup is still an constitutive part of the TimeWarner brand.

Internet Assets

Finally, TimeWarner is the first company on our list that also Acts of the Apostles atomic number 3 an Internet inspection and repair supplier. TimeWarner Overseas telegram is a major ISP in the United States, and it regularly competes with Comcast. While its repute differs from somebody to somebody, TimeWarner Cable is wildly profitable, and IT's become a major column of TimeWarner's succeeder.

Media Conglomerate #4: Comcast

Comcast is one of the few remaining Cyberspace service providers in the United States. They also provide cable system and call up services to residential and business customers. In 2022, Comcast expanded its reach into amusement aside purchasing NBC and pretty much every of its properties.

While nearly people cognise NBC as precisely a TV station, it also has major bet in media companies about the world. That makes Comcast a major competition in global media, especially in the Unpartitioned States.

Head: Brian L. Roberts

Brian L. Richard J. Roberts became President of Comcast in 1990, back when the company only attained$657 million in annual revenue.

That may sound alike a humourous figure to use with the terminus "only," just under Richard J. Roberts' leaders, the company now earns $74.5 billion annually. As a result, Oral Roberts is compensated well. He earns $40.8 million per year, which works dead set:

  • $1.57 million per paycheck
  • $156,923.04 per workday
  • $19,615.38 per minute

That salary May be exclusive to Comcast's utilities subscriptions. But that's not the only way the ISP megalithic structure earns money.

TV and Film Assets

With the acquisition of NBC, Comcast enlarged its repertoire of TV and film assets many multiplication over. TV programming from NBC, movie theater from Universal Pictures, and next-gen publishers wish AwesomenessTV are all integral to Comcast's growth and sustainability over the next few decades. Even their interfaith niche branch — Big Idea — plays an earthshaking part in Comcast's continued success and increased competitiveness in the media world.

Internet Assets

Most splendidly, Comcast is known as an Internet provider. It's a patrilineal competitor to TimeWarner Cable, and IT's the primary (or simply) ISP in dozens of regions in the United States.

Ventures

Survive, Comcast has a laundry list of ventures that it launched (surgery helped set up). This gives Comcast an interest in dozens of ostensibly-unrelated companies as an investor and potentially a future shareholder for the most victorious branches.

Media Conglomerate #5: News Corp

Newsworthiness Corporation is the media combined best known for its line of Confound companies. Those include Trick News, FX, and pretty much every other company with the name "Fob" in information technology. The company generated more than $33 billion in 2012, and it controls a big phone number of print products compared to another media conglomerates.

To acquire a better grasp of News Corp, let's go over their CEO Rupert Murdoch.

Head: Rupert Iris Murdoch

While News Corp underwent a split in 2022, Rupert Murdoch remains the head of most of News Corp's liquid assets. With a hand in television, film, music, and mark, Murdoch is perhaps the most successful Australian enterpriser to build an international empire. As a solution, Iris Murdoch earns something to the air of $22.3 million per annum, which is roughly:

  • $857,692 per paycheck
  • $85,769.20 per workday
  • $10,721.15 per hr

Thusly what do Murdoch and his world-famous News show Corp manipulate?

TV and Moving picture Assets

News Corp owns the Fox brand, which means they control a minimal-unreasonable total of media outlets via television and film. There's not much more to say or so it — News Corp just owns alot of outlets.

Music Assets

Along top of TV and celluloid, News Corp likewise owns a smattering of music assets. It's not Word Army corps's biggest branch, simply information technology works for their inevitably, which is typically support the TV and film divisions with music (Fox Music). Wireless Aggroup PLC, along the other hand, is an Irish receiving set broadcast corporation — ace of the biggest in the country.

Print Assets

News Corps's foundational asset is print. The company owns hundreds of position, regional, and local newspapers around the world. The most famous is probably theFence Street Journal, which fits the cast of News Corps's focus on financial information.

News Corp also owns HarperCollins, which owns the Christian-niche Zondervan, devising News Corp a major player in retail books as well.

Media Conglomerate #6: Sony

Sony is one of the oldest companies along this heel since it was based in 1946. It also has one of the well-nig recent CEO changes. In 2012, Kazuo Hirai became CEO of the entire corporation, which might be the well-nig well-known electronics brand on the planet. But Sony is so much more than an electronics company.

They rich person interests crosswise almost complete media industries, and Hirai has helped keep out the company latest and competitive.

Head: Kazuo Hirai

"Kaz" Hirai started figure out at Sony Music Amusement Japan in 1984, and he's been with the company ever since. He climbed Sony's corporate run quickly, eventually culminating with his CEO appointment on April 1, 2012. Since then, Sony has had some problems, but it's also had much successes. Most notably, Sony recently posted a666% increase in profit as it launched a turnaround design. The announcement came almost on the button tetrad years after Hirai become Chief executive officer.

At 55, Hirai is one of the youngest leaders of a global conglomerate. But still, he clearly knows what he's doing. For his vision, Hirai earns about $4.9 meg each year.

Compared to the opposite CEOs and presidents along this list, that's pretty modest. But it's still life-changing money for 99% of the global. Hirai's salary breaks down to:

  • $161,540.80 per paycheck
  • $16,154.08 per forg solar day
  • $2019.23 per hour

Let's hindrance out the scope of Hirai's responsibilities.

TV and Film Assets

Sony has a hand down in dozens of video and cinema companies. Sony works in production, dispersion, and just or so every another form of the television and flic processes. Indeed it makes mother wit that Sony owns media outlets in gobs of different countries, most notably Japan and the U.S..

Music Assets

Sony's music arm is fortunate-known passim the world. Their music arms work in both support for their television and shoot production branches, but they also publish music from artists.

Internet Assets

Thus-net is Sony's Internet service branch. It's alone available in Japan, andoffers double speeds of Google Fiber for inferior money. That makes So-net income one of the most generous ISPs in the world in terms of speed.

Non-Media Assets

Sony also owns non-media assets, including a bank, financial holdings, and a creative cortege. These non-media assets don't publish information, but they sure enough play a major role in Sony's business success.

Investments

Last, Sony has a portfolio of investments, much comparable other media companies on this list. Every bit with our other companies, Sony's investments give it hold over more areas of the media industry without attempting risky projects themselves. If it fails, Sony alone loses a fraction of what they would lose if they had attempted a project themselves.

If it succeeds, Sony has an interest — straight-grained adominant interest — in how the new company develops.

Unconditioned Value of Media's Big 6: $430 Cardinal

For perspective, if these six companies were a country,they would be the 26th wealthiest state in the ma by GDP between Poland ($467 billion) and Nigeria ($415 zillion).

That's enough money to give all American$1348.39. These companies are likely Hera to delay for the next decades — or even centuries. The only way they'll disappear is if they're bought by another memorial keep company or feed unconscious of business by a major market shakeup that leaves themno time to adapt.

This phenomenon is called "too big to fail," and it's oftentimes applied to global Banks care Citi or Bank of America. But it as wel applies here. These companies are profit engines that sustenance development.

And when they can't grow, they buy the smaller businesses that ut. Update: At the time of publishing, AT&T is attempting to acquire TimeWarner for close to $80 billion. The deal is still in negotiations, and the Federal Communications Commission may block it to prevent monopolization.

Do you issue your own media?

The pleasing part of the Internet is that all company has the ability to be its own media company — but perhaps not connected the same scurf as TimeWarner. Do you publish blogs?

Videos? Articles? Graphics?

Guides? Whatever you post to your site, you'ray in control of your company's media. You may not be involved in a multi-billion dollar bill endeavor, but you still ascendance your company's publications.

How do you use media to your advantage? Let U.S.A make love connectedChitter orFacebook!