Tra ns na t ion a I Communication and Cultural...

\Tra ns na t ion a I Communication and Cultural Industries ~

ISBN 92-3-101882-5 Published in 1982 by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization 7 place de Fontenoy - 75700 Paris, France Composed by ITC, Paris. Printed in the workshops of Unesco @Unesco i982 Printed in France

Contents

1 . Introduction ................................................................. 5 Towards a definition of communication TNCs ...................................... 5

2 . A n overall quantitative survey of the transnational flow of mass media materials .......... 9 Transnational television flow .................................................... 9 The flow of motion pictures and sound records ..................................... 11 The flow of books ............................................................ 13 Conclusions on the flow of mass media materials ................................... 14

2 . Transnational film and television businesses ....................................... 16 American transnational film and television businesses ................................. 16 Broadcasting companies ........................................................ 16 Motion picture companies ...................................................... 21 Trade associations ............................................................ 29 Concluding notes ............................................................. 30 Other transnational television and film businesses .................................... 32 Television and film industries in the United Kingdom and Hong Kong ................... 32 Transnational newsfilm agencies ................................................. 34

35 Aspects of relations between transnational software and hardware industries ............... 36 Concluding notes ............................................................. 36

Major non-American transnational corporations indirectly related to film and television ......

4 . Case-studies: Thailand and Argentina ............................................ 38 Influence of the tansnational media in Thailand ..................................... 38 Film ....................................................................... 39 Television ................................................................... 41 Conclusions ................................................................. 44 Television and film in Argentina ................................................. 44 Television ................................................................... 45 Film ....................................................................... 47

5 . Conclusions ................................................................ 49

Abbreviations ................................................................. 51

Bibliography .................................................................. 52

Preface

The following studies attempt to describe and analyse some aspects of the transnational mass media enterprises and to provide a picture of transnational communication structure and media industries, in particular of those active in the field of film and television. The various transnational corporations (TNCs) have

largely contributed to the vast increase in the volume of international communication, to the flow of programmes and to the circulation of materials. They are located mainly in a few industrialized countries but are reaching through their global communications networks large audiences in many countries. They must therefore be taken into account as important factors in the promotion of a new world information and communication order. The present studies were commissioned by Unesco in

1975 when the discussions on the concept of 'free and balanced flow of information' started. They are a part of a research programme on international communication structures, which also includes studies of television programme trafic, world news agencies, external radio broadcasting and the international book industry.

It is expected that the present studies will contribute to an increase in knowledge regarding the nature and the activities of transnational mass media corporations and to a better appreciation of their role in the context of the establishment of a new world information and communication order. Different research teams undertaking parallel case-

studies in various countries have been associated with this project. T o some extent this has contributed to the diversity of perspectives and conceptual interpretations of the research findings and conclusions on the economic and cultural impact of the TNCs active in the communication field. The method of inquiry, which all the collaborating

researchers have employed entailed a descriptive analysis of media materials combined with a statistical and structural analysis of the activities of the major TNCs in communication operating out of and within North America and Europe and in Argentina and Thai- land. The results of the two latter studies are presented only in summarized form. Argentina and Thailand were selected as countries for case-studies because there was already some research work going on related to the importation of foreign film and TV programmes and its implications on the national mass media systems, especially the film and television industries. Obviously, many other countries could have been selected for the purpose of similar case studies. It was mainly due to the limitations of funds that no more studies were undertaken or included in the present publication. However, in its present research programme (1979-80)

Unesco is promoting similar studies in Egypt (concluded in 1979), in the Caribbean region (finalized in 1980), in the Maghreb countries and in Africa. These studies will be published separately during the period

It is expected that these studies and others that might be under taken elswhere will provide a more complete picture of how the transnational communication corporations are affecting the international film and television market and national communication policies. They will also show not only that American and British transnational corporations are preponderant in the flow of television and films, but that some other countries such as France or India - or the film industries based in Hong Kong and Egypt -need to be considered in an- alysing transnational mass media industries. Also, the top foreign markets for American compan-

ies are not only developing countries but also Canada, Japan, France, Italy, the United Kingdom, Spain, Australia and the Federal Republic of Germany. The results of these research activities seem to show

that, as all the authors suggest, many more studies on the TNCs active in communication are needed to increase the understanding of their role in international communication and cultural flow, in particular between developing and developed countries. Professor Thomas Guback of the University of Illin-

ois contributed the sections on transnational film and television based in the United States. Dr Tapio Varis of the University of Tampere provided the information on TNCs outside the United States. The case-study in Argentina was undertaken by Jose G. Cantor, Heriberto Muraro and Gloria Rojas, at the Latin American Faculty of Social Sciences (FLACSO), and Boonrak Boonyaketmala of Thammasat University, Bangkok, contributed the section on Thailand. The authors would like to express their thanks to

Professor Kaarle Nordenstreng of the University of Tampere for his assistance in the planning of the studies ; to Professor Herbert I. Schiller, University of California, San Diego, for his contribution concerning transnational advertising and, among others, to Breda Pavlic, University of Ljubljana, for her comments and suggestions. The authors and their collaborators are responsible

for the choice and presentation of the facts contained in this report, for the opinions expressed therein, and for the designations employed. These are not necessarily those of Unesco and do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Organization concerning the legal status of any country or territory or of its authorities or of any transnational corporation discussed in this publication.

1981 - 83.

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1. Introduction

Recent discussions of communication policies, the free and balanced flow of information, and a new international information order have included the transnational production and distribution of information and flow of mass media material. It is repeatedly claimed that present information flows are marked by serious inade- quacy and imbalance, and that most countries are reduced to being rather passive recipients of information disseminated by a few other countries.

The problem has now become a matter of national as well as international concern and discussion. World market economies are characterized by transnational systems of enterprises, and information production and dissemination are mostly in the hands of a few transnational corporations with their headquarters mainly in North America and Western Europe. More and more countries are paying increasing attention to cultural and information dependency as a reflection of self-awareness and their own identity. The movement of non-aligned countries in particular has supported action designed to achieve a more balanced flow of information. Some voices have even asserted that 'free flow' has

little meaning for those lacking the necessary in- frastructure and the means for communication. Taking this view into account, Unesco has supported the development of national communication policies throughout the world and has stimulated research to deepen the understanding of international communications in order to identify common ground for greater international co-operation in achieving a more balanced flow of information.

Although it is usually assumed that transnational corporations are among the chief agents responsable for the transnational flow of communication, there is little research on the nature and extent of their influence. The sources of power for TNCs in the developing countries in particular are said to lie in the control of technology, finance capital and marketing, as well as in the dissemination of ideas, opinions and values. The giant TNCs are not directly active in the com-

munication industry; however, they can influence the mass media, for example, through advertising, through control of banking facilities and therefore local and national financing arrangements, and through transfer pricing, etc. The TNCs active in communications are usually classified as middle-sized or even small companies. Nevertheless, the direct and indirect impact, especially on the consciousness and minds of people and

on culture, is important and may be even greater than some other industries of higher economic significance. Transnational corporations in communications are an essential part of the present national and international information order. In the market economies, the TNCs in communica-

tion are part of the system. The fundamental characteristic of this transnational world system, is the trend towards the internationalization and concentration of capital and production, which has been observable since the end of the last century and has been most obvious in such branches of industry as oil production, machinery, rubber, food, tobacco, etc. Before the 1950~~ most transnational investments were in such industries, but during the 1950s there was a shift towards manufacturing and related areas such as banking, advertising, and the mass media industries. This was facilitated by technological innovations in industrial production and international communication. Air travel, telephones, telex and satellites have made it possible to have production units in many countries and still control the whole network with a global strategy directed from a central headquarters. It may be noted that economic expansion is associated with political and socio-psychological influence and that foreign investment of capital can imply social and cultural consequences. During recent decades, this process of transnationalization has been radically increasing, coinciding with the global spread of new communication technology, particularly television, computers and communication satellites. As far as the mass media are concerned, aft I er news

agencies, the film companies were the first transnational corporations. Cinema production began in the years before the First World War, and some European countries became exporter nations. But financial and other difficulties stemming from the war changed the principal direction of flow, and the United States emerged as a world power in the field of cinema. Throughout the 1920s, various European nations sought to protect themselves from the exportation of American films and erected a multitude of trade barriers to prevent their importation, distribution or exhibition. None the less, film production in some countries was on the way to extinction, and in many others hardly developed or advanced at all. Thus for more than half a century the American film industry has been international, dominating the world film market in degree of distribution and in box-office

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receipts, even though in fact it has produced only a relatively small share of the world’s motion pictures. Beginning in the 1920s, radio became an ideal vehicle

for reaching foreign audiences, especially in countries with a high illiteracy rate. Transnational conglomerates were already financing radio programmes exported to foreign countries. The large scale production and export of broadcast programmes started, however, in the era of television - in the 1950s. The history of broadcasting has been very closely

connected with the development of the record industry, which started to flourish before the First World W a r in ‘ many countries. Most of the world‘s records were produced by a few American, British and German companies, or their affiliates and representatives abroad. The massive production of records is still in the hands of a few major conglomerates, although there is a great number of smaller companies. The transnational character of hardware industries,

making equipment for carrying mass media messages (i.e. radio and television production equipment, film equipment, recording equipment, satellite earth stations), as well as for the home (radio and TV receiving sets, phonographs, etc.), has a long tradition. As early as 1883, the Edison Corporation was founded in Germany for the manufacture of electrical equipment using American patents. The development of telecommunications and com-

munication infrastructures has been essential for the creation of modern transnational corporations. Certain transnational corporations are principally concerned with the international flow of information and personnel rather than goods. Such service industries include advertising, management consultancy, data processing, film production, and hotel management. A study of the transnational corporations active in

communications should also take into account the wider implications of the present situation. For example, some researchers have pointed out that the process of economic and political self-reliance requires socio- cultural independence. According to these views, acceptance of the values, behavioural patterns, and especially consumption patterns, of a fex developed countries constitutes a major problem.1 It is only recently that the communications-advertising-culture dimension has begun to make itself evident as an integral part of the transnational instrumentality. Furthermore, it is important to recognize that the transnational communication system has developed both with the support and at the service of the transnational economic structurez.

Towards a definition of communication TNCs

In its report on multinational corporations the United Nations attempted a general definition of TNCs, according to which a TNC is a corporation that owns or controls production or service facilities outside the country in which it is based3. Such corporations are not always incorporated or private ; they can also be co- operatives or state-owned entities. The United Nations

definition is, of course, primarily designed for the giant TNCs in basic industries and services and the several documents hardly mention the field of communications as relevant in the context. As demonstrated by some recent United Nations

documents4, the problem of defining TNCs has not yet been solved. T o identify a corporation as a TNC one still has to accept certain indicators of the degree of transnationality (such as ownership structure, organizational form, decision-making) and control of mass media. Because this has not yet been done in international bodies for the transnational mass media, much of the discussion deals with general subjects of international communication, such as the international flow of news, the role of international news agencies and the telecommunications industries. Central to the United Nations concepts is the idea

that TNCs can be identified according to several indicators: their size, their oligopolistic nature, the large number of affiliates or branches in foreign countries, and the fact that they are, by and large, products of developed, industrialized countries. In the case of the mass media TNCs, the first criterion is not very dis- criminative if their size is measured in financial terms because, as already stated, these corporations only appear in the category of middle-sized or even smaller companies. Nevertheless, the mass media TNCs have developed as an integral part of the transnational system of international economics. As has been pointed out by some researched, the United Nations documents as yet fail to analyse the role of these TNCs in transnational power structures and systems and consequently fail to identify all the structural dimensions. For example, under the definition the major news

agencies are transnational in their ownership structure as well as in the fact that they operate in what could be termed an ‘oligopoiistic’ market. Film companies as well as some magazines and newspapers have offices or branches abroad, but their home countries are in the industrialized world. The services and operations of the media TNCs,

1. Karl P. Sauvant, ‘His Master’s Voice’, Ceres, Vol. 9, No.5, September-October 1976, p. 32.

2. Juan Somavia, ‘TheTransnationalPower Stnictureand In- ternational Information’Development Dialogue, 1976: 2, p. 17.

3. The Impact of Multinational Corporations on Develop- ment and International Relations, New York, United Nations, 1974, p. 25. Instead of TNCs, one could also speak of multinational, intemational, or global corporations, firms, entreprises, or companies. However, here the term ‘transnational corporation’ is used in the sense given by the United Nations Group of Eminent Per- sons: the word ’ transnational‘ carries the notion that these firms operate from their home bases acrossnational borders.

4. Transnational Corporations in World Development Re- examinaed, Centre on transnational Corporations, 1978, E/C. 10/38, United Nations sales number E. 78.II.A., Annex I.

5. Osvaldo Sunkel, A Critical Commentary on the United Nations Report on MuIfinalional Corporations in World Development, IDS Discussion Paper No. 52, University of Sussex, June 1974; also’somavia, op. cit.

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however, cannot be analysed in the same way as those of other TNCs because production and dissemination of information and mass communication do not affect a country’s balance of payments, wages, taxes, payments of royalties, economic development. The generai United Nations definition of TNCs implies, however, that a mass media TNC can be a corporation that sells its media products, manufactures or draws raw material (for hardware production) outside its home country.

Thus there are different levels of transnationalism in media industries, traditionally largely composed of international marketing and distribution operations, which can be divided into the following categories:

TNC owns or controls a foreign media industry, e. g. publishing house, television station, film production company.

TNC owns or controls a foreign marketing network, e. g. distribution system, offices, etc.

TNC controls foreign sales of media products, e. g. it is in a dominating position in foreign markets.

Direct ownership or control of the hardware communication industry abroad has been a dominant form of transnational industrial expansion. In quantitative terms, dominance in world sales and rentals of media products has been an important form of power of TNCs in communication. In fact, the dominant role of the TNCs in world marketing and distribution is much greater than .their proportion in the field of production of media material would give them (see section 2, ‘An Overall Quantitative Survey of the Transnational Flow of Mass Media Materials’). The global network of advertising may be seen as a spécific type of TNC activities in communication (see section 3 on transnational advertising). Furthermore, TNCs in general use more advertising than a purely domestic corporation.

There has been a general trend towards conglomeration and integration in world communications. The TNCs in communication are seldom limited to one area of activity, but produce andlor distribute many types of communication and service, and are active in other fields of commercial industry. Horizontal integration occurs when corporations buy, or extend their control to, other units of the same stage of production or process. In the film industry, moreover, there is a tendency to build vertical corporations active in financing, production, film processing, distribution and exhibition.

Transnational operation of television companies, or other related industries, has taken place in various ways at different stages of media development. At the early stage, direct foreign ownership was not unusual. In addition, whole packages of equipment and programmes were offered to new television stations, particularly in developing countries. Cheap, or sometimes even free, programme material helped to determine the time structure of the medium, and enhanced the sales possibilities for those firms capable of providing material to meet these time requirements. TNCs also have provided personnel to establish

systems and for training local staff while at the same time handling the international marketing side and its relation to advertising for the new station. In recent years there has been increasing discussion

of the options for dealing with not only the mass media TNCs but the TNCs in general. It is assumed that a legal framework of responsibility for transnational mass media should recognize their freedom of action. However, a certain set of standards that will make it possible to reduce and eliminate harmful conduct seems to be neccessary. Such standards for mass media TNCs can be either legally binding or voluntary. Certain restrictive laws for foreign-owned media have always existed, and new ones are being applied. So far, discussions in the United Nations and Unesco have centred on the problems related to a code of conduct for TNCs, and the nature of this code.’ There is so far no global inventory that gives

quantitative and qualitative information on the TNCs in communication. An additional complication is the fact that some of them have been absorbed by larger conglomerates. They do not make public certain information customarily available, like volume of business, capital investment, revenue, benefits and other commercial data, a fact that makes the task of the researcher difficult. Thus a body of data and knowledge that will permit a more complete and accurate analysis with regard to the transnational flow of information,

1. Reflection of the varied points of view related to the elaboration of an international code of conduct for TNC’s can be found in resolution 1721 (LIII) adopted by the Economic and Social Council in 1972, under which the Council requested the Secretary-General of the United Nations to appoint a Group of Eminent Persons to study the impact of multinational corporations on the process of development and their implications for international relations. This Group, which met in 1973 and 1974, published a report which recommended the establisment within the Secretariat of a Commission on Transnational Corporations and an Information and Research Center on Transnational Corporations. In the terms of reference suggested for the commission thegroup expressed the opinion that the Commission should, interalia, evolveaset of recommendations to be considered and adopted by the Economic and Social Council, which, taken together, would represent a code of conduct for governments and multinational corporations. Also at that time, the United Nations Generai Assembly adopted resolution 3202 (S-VI) concerning the programme for the establishment of a new international economic order, which included a section V, ‘Regulation and controlovertheactivitiesof transnational corporation’, begining as follows: ‘AU efforts should be made to formulate, adopt and implement an international code of conduct for transnational corporations’. Taking note of resolution 3202 (S-VI) of the Generai Assembly, and in pursuance of the recommenda- tion by the Group of Eminent Persons, the Economic and Social Council decided in relolutions 1908 (LVII) and 1913 (LVII), adopted in 1974, to establish a Commission on Transnational Corporations as a subsidiary body of the Council, and an Information and Research Centre on Transnational Corporations, which was to act as the secretariat to the Commission.

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cultural exchange and development is only beginning to be developed’. More studies on transnational communications and

the transnational corporations are certainly needed in order to evaluate the impact and role of these mass media industries, in particular those active in software production and distribution. All of them have a home base, largely in a few highly industrialized countries. Though the communication software TNCs have a smaller commercial volume than the communication hardware TNCs (which are among the largest corporations of the world), they influence the structure and content of world communication. The rapid development of the transnational com-

munication corporations, both software and hardware, has been stimulated by an increasing consumer demand for communication goods and services, which it has been possible to satisfy owing to the expansion and the activities of the TNCs and the technological breakthrough in electronic communication facilities. The countries of the Third World have recently

started to pian and organize their national communication systems. Some of them wish to formulate and implement communication policies concerning the overall communication structures, institutions, services and messages. In many countries, the government and the public

services in communication have to rely on private business and T N C s responsible for building communication infrastructures and procuring communication goods and services. Thus the national communication policies have to consider the role of the TNCs. In some cases, a country depends heavily on the TNCs, which sometime run their business without the co- operation and consent of the host country. Obviously this has created conflicts and obstacles to mutual co- operation, which could have been possible in the context of mutually advantageous ’national policies’. In

some cases, the lack of such national communication policies, the divergent views in examining the technological, economic and cultural implications, and the restrictive regulations have helped to hamper the relationship between national governments and TNCs. Among the problems to be solved are the rights and

duties of the mass media TNCs, and thereby the problem of accountability. There has been little research on the activity and control of mass media TNCs. A number of policy papers and documents have thrown some light on concrete measures that may be taken by countries or companies to prevent unwanted impact. Some measures, such as quota systems, joint enterprises, and government policies restricting foreign activities in the mass media field, can be seen as reactions aimed at controlling the mass media TNCs. The present study may be viewed as an attempt to un-

derstand more clearly the major film and television industries themselves and their transnational influence, recognizing at the same time that considerably more research is needed to understand better the nature of T N C s and their impact on national and international information, communication, understanding.

1. Meeting of Experts on the Impact of Transnational Corporations in the Fields of Competence of Unesco, Paris 1-5 June, 1976. See also Unesco, General Conference, nineteenth session, Nairobi, 1976, item 16 C, document 19 C/76, ’Proposals of the Director-General in regard to Un- esco’s contribution to United Nations Action Concerning the Study of the Impact of the Activities of Transnational Corporations’, and Final Report: Meeting of Experts on the orientation of Unesco’s studies concerning the influence of transnational coporations’ activities in the Organization’s fields of competence (Helsinki, Finland, 12- 14 April 1978), published by the Division for the Study of Development, Paris (Unesco), 1979.

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2. An overall quantitative survey of the transnational flow of mass media materials

The present chapter is not a detailed country-by- country analysis, the aim being rather to set out in general terms the structure of the transnational distribution and trade of the mass media materials. Some quantitative aspects of the flow of television programmes, motion pictures, books, and sound records are studied in order to obtain a general picture of the global information flows. That the flow is studied here within four media is simply due to the fact that these four media togehter are the mainstream of the transnational flow of information where data are easily available. For a comprehensive picture it would also be necessary to complement the study of these flows by an analysis of the transnational distribution of newspaper articles, commentaries, cartoons, news photos, etc.

Transnational television flow

A Unesco survey of world television programme flow in 1974 showed that the global markets are widely dominated by British companies. The results of this study are not repeated here. Although the study provided only very crude estimates of the television flow, its overall findings have not been contested. There are different approaches to the study of the in-

ternational television programme flow. One is purely economic, whereas the other stresses the dominating and cultural role of foreign programmes, in addition to their business value. From the purely business point of view, the dominating role of American television exports is summarized in Table 1, according to which the foreign sales and rentals of American television programmes totalled approximately $100 million a year in the 1970s. There was very rapid growth throughout the 1960s (from $25 million to $100 million in 1970), with stabilization in the 1970s. If inflation is considered, the foreign sales of the American television programmes in 1973 would be almost equal to those of 1963. However, there are also other orms of transnational operations, such as the export of capital for production, Co-production, or Co-financing abroad. It is worth observing that as much as two-thirds of the foreign sales of the American programmes go to the rich market areas: Canada, Australia, Japan and the United Kingdom. This finding of the previous Unesco study is further confirmed by the study of W. Read, who observes that the figures for television receivers

suggest ’that the basic global flow of television programming is among eight rich countries because those eight have most of the receivers and the largest audiences.2 Read also argues that the principal direction of the flow is from the United States to the other seven.

TABLE 1. American Television sales to foreign television companies, in millions of dollars

Year Value Year Value

1958 1960 1961 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967

15 25 45 66 70 76 60 78

1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975

95 99 97 85 93 130 85 175

Compiled from the following sources :

Erik Barnouw, The Image Empire, N e w York, Oxford University Press, 1970. Ross Drake, ’From Daniel Boone to M o d Squad, Some Headaches of Selling U.S. Television Shows Abroad’, TV Guide, 29 April 1972. AI Preiss, ’The Impact of American Commercial Television in Western Europe, Japan & South America’, TeleJilm International. October 1964. William H. Read, America’s Mass Media Merchants, The John Hopkins University Press, 1976, John, Tebbel, ’U.S. Television Abroad, Big New Business’, Saturday Review, 14 July 1962. Tapio Varis, International Inventory of Television Programme Structure and the Flow of T V Programmes between Nations, Research Institute, University of Tampere, No. 20/1973. The Network Project, Global Salesmen, Columbia University, Notebook No. 10, Winter 1975. Broadcasting. 22 October 1973. Variety, 9 January 1974.

From the business point of view, one could argue that the developing countries are of little economic importance to the industrial world’s television business

1. Kaarle Nordenstreng and Tapio Varis, Television Traffic - a One- W a y Street? (Reports and Papers on Mass Communication No. 70, Paris, Unesco, 1974.)

2. William H. Read, ’Global T V Flow: Another Look’, Journal of Communication, summer 1976, pp. 69-73.

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because the bulk of foreign revenue comes from the developed areas. The argument is parallel to the one often used by the transnational corporations, that since some 80 per cent of their business is done between countries of the developed areas, the main concern should be there. However, this is an incomplete picture of the phenomenon. In the global television business, the cultural approach to a study of the worldwide distribution of television programmes would stress that the amount of programme time imported and shown in the developing countries, whether free of charge or at a low price, is equally important because of the social, cultural and political impact of the imported material. In quantitative terms, many of the developing

countries have been importing most of their television programmes from a few foreign sources, and the main rival to the American companies has been the British television industry. In recent years, the foreign sales of British corporations have increased notably. In 1973, they exported almost a third as much as the American companies when measured in financial terms. In 1974, the British exports, reaching most countries of the world, amounted to a total value of about $36 million (18 million pounds), and the year 1975 was even more successful. According to later estimates, British television exports in 1976, excluding motion pictures sold for television, exceeded those of the American companies. In the 1970s the world market economies faced a ser-

ious economic crisis that also affected the television industry and world television markets. One general consequence of this crisis has been that the smaller companies have had difficulties in maintaining and increasing their national programme production, while the large companies have been better able to survive and strengthen their transnational activities. Recent television imports in small countries have shown an increase in foreign programming. In Ireland, for example, there was a slight increase of imported material during the 1970s from some 55 per cent (1971) to almost 60 per cent (1975). In Denmark, 50 per cent was imported in 1971 and 55 per cent in 1976.

The flow of newsfilm

Newsfilm for television can be exchanged either electronically through a telecommunication network, or by air freight. From an international point of view, the exchange networks are most developed in Europe, where the geographic, economic and political factors have made it possible to develop international exchange systems. The Arab region is also making rapid progress in television news exchange systems. Among the Asian broadcasting services, the Asian Broadcasting Union (ABU) has promoted exchanges. In 1958, five European countries started using the Eurovision TV link net for daily exchanges of newsfilm. At the beginning the exchange was modest and unsystematic, but it became more regular in 1961. The exchanges have expanded rapidly and now some twenty-five countries are taking part in them. Eurovision has members in Western Europe, North Africa and the Middle East. Newsfilms are exchanged three times a day and the number of

films has multiplied many times. In 1974, over 5000 items were exchanged in Eurovision, compared with only 1,245 in 1965. In Eastern Europe the exchange of newsfilm was started at a later date. The International Radio and television Organization (OIRT) founded the Intervision News Link Net in 1960 for the exchange of news between members. During the 1950s there had been some special programmes transmitted with a microwave radio net. After the founding of Intervision experimental transmissions were started, and in 1964 the Intervision systematic exchange was established. At that time some of the Eastern European countries were left outside of the net because of technical difficulties, and the exchange took place only once a week, on Fridays. The link net was later developed, and in 1970 daily transmissions were started between all Eastern European countries. A weekly exchange between Eurovision and Intervision was started in 1965, and since 1970 the exchange between the two unions has been carried out daily. Satellite experiments of Intervi- sion exchanges have included exchanges with Cuba. The amount of newsfilm material exchanged has in-

creased both in Eurovision and Intervision, and between the two organizations? The amount of news exchanged in Eurovision has been 4,500-5,000 items annually, excluding the opening of EVN-O midday exchanges in 1975. The international newsfilm agencies originate about half of the Eurovision material. Of this newsfilm agency material, the British Visnews originates about one half of all agency material, the British-American United Press International and Independent Television News Ltd. (UPITN) one third, and the American CBS- News about 10 per cent. When the offers of newsfilm agencies are left aside,

the Eurovision items then come from a few originating countries, of which the most important have been the United Kingdom, France, the Federal Republic of Ger- many, Italy and Switzerland. Their share of the exchanged material has together been some 60 per cent.

In Intervision, the role of the member country as a producer of newsfilms is greater than it is in Eurovision, since the number of members in Intervision is only a third of that in Eurovision. The USSR, however, is. clearly the largest producer and originator of newsfilms in Intervision, and its share of the exchange has increased annually. Poland and Czecholovakia have been the other large news originators. The shares of various countries in Intervision offers have varied considerably every year.

1. Some data on the British overseas transactions in respect of film and television material 1968-74 are presented in HMSO, Department of Industry, Business Monitor, Over- seas Transactions, 1974.

2. Data based on original research by the author for the Euro- pean Broadcast Union (EBU), and OIRT Working Party for Television News 1973-1975. See Tapio Varis and Renny Jokelin, Television News in Europe, Institute of Journalism and Mass Communication, NO. 32/1976, Fin- land, University of Tampere.

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The exchange of newsfilm material between the two network organizations in Europe has been very uneven. Intervision takes two-thirds of the Eurovision material but Eurovision received only approximately 6 per cent of the Intervision material (200 items annually), despite the fact that offers from Intervision to Eurovision have increased regularly. Very little newsfilm material produced directly by the

developing countries is shown in European television news. The material that comes into the exchanges is originated by the transnational newsfilm agencies. Out of all news items in Eurovision exchange about the developing countries, the transnational newsfilm agencies provide some 94 per cent of reports from Asia, 44 per cent from Africa, and 71 per cent from Latin America. Even though some regions of the developing countries are now in the process of organizing their own newsfilm exchanges, and even preparing for reciprocal co-operation with Western European news exchanges within Eurovision, the transnational newsfilm agencies remain the main source of newsfilm for Africa (excluding North Africa), Asia, Latin America and the Middle East. Events in the developing countries are reported mainly when they affect Europe or European interests in those countries. Table 2 summarizes the share in coverage of some developing regions presented by different newsfilm agencies to the European news exchange, Eurovision. According to this table, the newsfilm agency performances in the different developing areas seem to vary little from the overall market shares in Western European exchanges. In summary, the newsfilm flow follows very largely the trend in the flow of television programme material as a whole. In fact, the production and transnational distribution of newsfilm material is even more concentrated than that of other television programmes. In most parts of the world, the imbalance in the flow of news continues. However, many Arab and Asian countries are developing various kinds of systems to improve their own newsfilm production and distribution.

TABLE 2. Transnational newsfilm agencies’ share in coverage of the developing areas on Eurovision, 1975

Visnews UPITN CBS ABC

All areas 46.2% 36.1% 15.5% 2.3% Africa (excl. North) 63 31 6 Asi a/P acific 65 25 10 Latin America 47 32 21

Source: EBU, ’Working Parti Television News’, O.A./5422-Com. Pro. 1456, by Yrjö Länsipuro, London, September 1976.

Although satellite communication creates technical possibilities for the two-way flow of information, the experience so far would suggest that there is a one-way flow: from North America and Europe to many other areas of the world, at least as regards electronically exchanged news material. More research is needed on the non-electronic exchanges (air-freight, correspondents, etc.). The problems of the imbalance are partly

technical and partly depend on whether the economic situation of a country permits it to produce and distribute news.

The flow of motion pictures and sound records

A n analysis of world film production faces certain problems. There is no way of determining the exact number of feature films produced in one year in all countries of the world. Statistics, when available, have often been compiled according to varying criteria. The figures shown cannot give the precise quantity of global film production, but at most only a comparative idea of the capacity for film production. According to available data,l the leading film producers can be grouped into four categories according to their production capacity. First, there are the Asian countries: India and Japan, one crossing the mark of 400 films a year and the other staying slightly below that. In both countries, the production seems to have stabilized at this level in the early 1970s. A second group is that of Italy, the United States and the USSR, with Italy producing close to 300 films, the United States a little less, and the USSR approaching 250 films a year. The third group, countries producing up to 200 films, includes France, the Republic of Korea, Greece, Hong Kong and Spain. Finally, there are four countries that come close to producing 100 films a year: Mexico, the Federal Republic of Germany, the United Kingdom and Pakistan. Co-production is evidently important only in Europe,

mainly among the countries of the European Economic Community (EEC), although Spain is often a partner producer. In France more than half of the films produced in 1972 were Co-productions, in Spain almost a half, in Italy over 40 per cent, and in the Federal Republic of Germany almost 30 per cent. In other countries, Co-productions of films had a minor or non- existent role. All in all, it may be estimated that the global production of long films varies between 3,400 to 3,500 films per year. However, this estimation gives little idea of the number of new films that actually find their way into international distribution circuits. Most probably this figure is not very high, while many films have very limited or no marketing value at all. It may be estimated that only some 10 to 15 per cent of the global film production reaches any significant international distribution annually. Most of the film-producing countries have very little

distribution in the international film market. For example, India and Japan, the leading producers of long films, can rarely sell their products outside their own national markets. A closer look at the importation of films shows the

countries whose film production is meaningful for most other countries of the world. Table 3 shows the share of American feature films of all imported feature films in fifteen countries, and Table 4 the total share of

1. Data based on Unesco Statistical Yearbook, 1974, pp. 819-821.

1 1

American, French, Italian, British and (Federal Republic of German) feature film imports in the same countries.

TABLE 3. The share of American feature films of all feature films imported by fifteen countries in 1970, in percentages

50-60 Italy, Argentina

40-50 Norway, New Zealand

30-40 Netherlands, Israel, Switzerland, Federal Republic of Germany, Canada, Finland

20-30 Yugoslavia, Australia

10-20 Poland, Hungary

1-10 German Democratic Republic Source: Statistical yearbooks of the countries mentioned, as present in Mikko Jokela, Book. Film, Television, Institute of Journalism and Mass Communication, No. 27/1975, University of Tampere.

T ABLE 4. The total share of American, French, Italian, British and German (Federal Republic) feature films of all imported feature films in fifteen countries in 1970

More than 90 Netherlands, Argentina, Switzerland

80-90

70-80

60-70 Australia

40-50 Poland

3040 Hungary

20-30 German Democratic Republic

Norway, Canada,’Federal Republic of Germany

Israel, Yugoslavia, Finland, Italy, New Zealand

Source: The same as in Table 3.

According to these two tables the American films alone have a very dominating role outside the socialist countries, and together with French, Italian, British and German (Federal Republic) films form 80 to 90 per cent of ail imported films in the non-socialist countries studied. Japan can be taken as an example of an industrialized

country with high national film production. In 1970, Japan imported 236 feature films. Slightly more than half of the imports came from the United States, and another bulk (35 per cent), from Italy, France and the United Kingdom. Consequently, as much as 86 per cent of the Japanese film imports in 1970 came from thase four countries. The same trend continued throughout the 1970s. In 1975-76, Japan imported 233 foreign films; of these, 55 per cent came from the United States and 33 per cent from France, Italy, the Federal Republic of Germany, and the United Kingdom.’ Although there are slight changes in the figures for

Japan for 1970 and 1975-76, the structure of imports has remained the same. Switzerland is also a wealthy industrialized country

In the production of films the Swiss resources,how-

ever, are quite different from those of Japan. A relatively small national population cannot support a large domestic film industry and consequently the country has a large importation. In 1970, the Swiss national film production amounted to only five films while 443 films were imported. Of the Swiss imports, about 35 per cent came from the United States, and 57 per cent from the Federal Republic of Germany, Italy, France and the United Kingdom. Consequently, the United States and the four EEC countries accounted for 92 per cent of the total number of films imported into Switzerland. In Argentina, the total number of imported films in

1970 was 391 while the national production was 28 films. Thus, in the total number of new films on the market in Argentina, domestic film production yielded 6.7 per cent whereas importation yielded 93.3 per cent. Of the imported films, 57 per cent came from the United States and 33 per cent from Italy, France, the United Kingdom, and the Federal Republic of Germany. The five countries together provided about 90 per cent of the Argentine film importation. Poland imported 180 films and produced nationally 28 films in 1970. The largest source of film imports into Poland was the U S S R (20 per cent) but as much as 14 per cent came from the Un- ited States. The other imports came from various sources: Eastern Europe, France, the United Kingdom, Italy and other countries. Almost half of the Polish imports came from the socialist countries. Imported films from the United States, France, the United Kingdom, and Italy made up some 40 per cent of the total T o summarize, American films have a dominating

role in all parts of the world except in the socialist countries. The other major suppliers of films for international markets are France, the United Kingdom, the Federal Republic of Germany and Italy. In the socialist countries the USSR is a major supplier of feaure films. There seems to be very little flow of feature films bet-

ween the East and the West. However, the small socialist countries of Europe show many Western films. Occasional films from the socialist countries are imported into the Western countries.

The flow of sound records

Because of the nature of sound records and the process of production there are no official statistics on this field. The production of sound records almost exceeds the transnationality of motion-picture production. Because the production costs are not very high, it is possible for the transnational record companies to produce in several countries.

In order to obtain an idea of the transnational flow of sound records it is best to approach the market from the point,, of consumption rather than production, because the music industry as well as the trade journals produce ampie information on the consumption of records and cassettes.

i. Variety, 9 June, p. 45.

12

For books and motion pictures it is relatively easy to compile statistics based on a single unit, one book or one film. In mechanized music the single unit, an LP or a single, is useful only for best-seller charts of records, hit parades, which have a continously changing character. A better idea can be obtained by studying, for instance, the market shares of various record companies in hit parades in different countries over long periods. The study of hit parades over longer periods gives an idea where the best-selling records come from. The sales of popular music represent at least nine-tenths of the total sales of records. Hence the sales of classical music cannot change the general market pattern, especially since they tend to follow the pattern set by pop music. One could compare the markets of motion pictures

and sound records, although the two forms of mass communication have very different characteristics. It can be estimatedl that the volume of world motion picture markets is approximately $5 billion and the volume of world record markets approximately $6 billion (1974). Consequently, the volumes of the two global markets are very similar. Approximately 30 per cent of the market for films

and records is in Europe, and some 20 per cent in Asia and Australia. More than a third of the film markets and some 40 per cent of the record markets are in North America. Latin America accounts for some 10 per cent of film and 5 per cent of record markets, and Africa only 0.5 per cent in both.

TABLE 5. Leading world sound record and motion picture markets

Country Sales of Motion pictures: total records box oflice gross receipts 1974 1973 or 1974

(S million) (S million)

A country-by-country look at the markets for records and motion pictures is presented in Table 5. According to this table in Western Europe motion pictures have a larger market than records only in Italy and Spain. In most other countries records have clearly bigger markets than motion pictures. The figures of record sales in India are not available, but the film market there is equal to that of Japan. As to the socialist countries, there are no data com-

parable to the dollar-based market volumes of motion pictures. However, the official Soviet statistics and business magazines estimate that in the USSR, for example, there are four to five times more filmgoers than in the United States. The Soviet market for records is estimated to be comparable to that in the Federal Republic of Germany or the United Kingdom. The Yugoslav record market is comparable to that in Belgium or Argentina. In other socialist countries the figures for record sales are lower (Czechoslovakia $37 million, Poland $7 million, Hungary $3 million). The five big transnational corporations in the record

industry are as follows: Electrical and Musical In- dustries Ltd (EMI), of British origin; Columbia Broadcasting System Inc. (CBS); Warner/Warner- Elektra-Asylum (WEA) and Radio Corporation, of American origin, and the NetherlanddGerman (Federal Republic) Polygram. A study of the sixteen main markets of these corporations shows that they cover at least half or more of the record markets of those major areas. In most countries the majority of records are of foreign origin. Only in the United States are some 80 per cent of the records sold domestically produced. The estimated figure for the USSR is approximately 95 per cent.

T h e flow of books

United States Japan USSR Fed. Rep. of Germany United Kingdom France Canada Australia Netherlands Brazil Mexico Italy Sweden Spain Belgium Yugoslavia South Africa India Venezuela

TOTAL

Estimated

2 200 720 5 12 460 450 260 210 140 120 90 85 80 65 60 60 58 45 - -

5 615

1650 " (1974) 390 (1974)

170 (1973) 140 (1973) 210 (1973) 150 * 100 :' 30 (1973) 50 '' 40 " 360 (1973) 40 (1973) 115 (1973) 30 (1973) - (1974) 50 * 390 (1974) 35 :::

- (1974)

3 950

Source: Sound record: Billboard, Inlernational Buyer's Guide, 1975/16, Sec- tion 2.20 September 1976. Motion Picture : Variety, 29 January 1975, p. 24 (U.S.A.), Variety, 5 February 1975, p. 35 (Japan), Varie@, 14 M a y 1975, p. 69 (India), Vuriefy, 18 September 1974, p. 31 (for year 1973).

In 1971, the world total production of books was 548,000 titles, almost double the 1955 figure of 284,000 titles.2 However, the structure of high and low production areas has remained almost unchanged. Africa continues to stay at the lowest level while North America, Europe, Oceania, and the USSR are areas of high book production. About 43,000 translations were made throughout the

world in 1971, of which 40 per cent were inade from English, 13 per cent from French, and 10 per cent each from German and Russian.

Consequently, some three-quarters of all translations in the world are made from these four languages. Some regional patterns in the structure of languages translated exist. English, for example, has a dominant position in the origin of translations in Western Europe, while the Eastern European countries translate a great deal from other than these four dominating languages.

1. Original research by Martti Soramäki. University of Tampere. Data based on figures from Variety and Bilboard magazines.

2. Data based on Unesco Statistical Yearbook, 1974, pp. 663-68.

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TABLE 6. Main sources of imported books in selected countries

importing Y ear Percentage of Main sources country main sources

of the total importation

Austria 1969 93 FRG, NL, SW, USA, YU Belgium 1969 92 FR, NL, FRG, USA, S W Denmark 1968 72 UK, USA, FRG, CZ, SWED France 1974 85 SW, IT, BE, SP, FRG Federal Republic of Germany 1974 73 AU, SW, UK, NL, USA Greece 1968 95 UK, USA Netherlands 1966 82 BE, USA, FRG, UK, FR Norway 1969 79 DENM, UK, SWED, USA, IT Poland 1968 84 USSR, GDR, FRG, IJK, CZ Portugal 1968 87 UK, FR, USA, SP, FRG Spain 1970 76 IT, FR, ME, UK, ARG Sweden 1968 84 DENM, NL, UK, USA, FRG United Kingdom I969 76 USA, IT, NL, SW, FRG Argentina 1970 79 SP, USA, ME, UK Brazil 1968 85 USA, PO, SP, FR, ARG Chile 197 1 75 SP, ARG, ME, USA, FRG Colombia 1970 88 SP, USA, ME, ARG Mexico 1971 79 SP, USA Nicaragua 1970 89 USA, SP, PAN, ARG, COST Paraguay 1970 96 ARG, USA, FRG, JAP, ME Venezuela 1970 86 USA, ARG, PAN, ME, SP United States 1970 71 UK, NL, JAP, FRG, IT Australia 1971 79 UK, USA, HONG K, COST, NL New Zealand 1969-70 87 UK, USA, AUSTRALIA Source: S. Taubert, The Book Trade offhe World, I and II, Hamburg, 1972 and 1976. Abreviations: FRG, Federal Republic of Germany; NL, Netherlands; SW, Switzerland; USA, United States of America; YU, Yugoslavia; FR, France; UK, United Kingdom; CZ, Czechoslovakia; SWED, Sweden; IT, Italy; BE, Belgium; SP, Spain; DENM, Denmark; USSR, Union of Soviet Socialist Republics; GDR, German Democratic Republic; PO, Portugal; PAN, Panama; HONG K, Hong Kong; ARG, Argentina; ME, Mexico; COST, Costa-rica.

In general, translations are most important to small countries. But because books are tied to the language of their origin, their direct international circulation is limited. In most countries of the world translations account for less than 25 per cent of all books published. In book exports and imports, the same concentration

in sources can be found as in the languages translated. Table 6 summarizes the main sources of imports in selecte countries. According to this table, the five main sources of imports account for more than 70 per cent of books imported. Book exports are not necessarily a very large sector

of the publishing industry. The United Kingdom, where exports of books account for almost 50 per cent of the income of the publishing industry, is an exception.’ In the United States, for example, book exports account for just over 6 per cent of the national book industry’s total annual output, although foreign earnings are important to many publishers, particularly in the field of technical, scientific and professional publishing. The importance of some African countries, for instance, to the French publishing industry can be understood by looking at some statistics from L e Commerce Extérieur du Livre en France pour l’Année 1975. In 1975, the Ivory Coast imported books from France that were

worth about 19 million francs, and Moroccan imports of books were worth more than 21.5 million francs. In the same year; the American book imports from France were valued at about 20.5 million francs. The developing countries may be more profitable markets for books, especially textbooks, than for television and film.

Conclusions on the flow of mass media materials

From the business point of view, the modern mass media offer a global market approach for producers and distributors. The industrialized Northern Hemisphere as a whole is the main consumer of the products of the communication industries. The available data confirm that the countries of the Organization for Economic Co- operation and Development (OECD) are the most important market area for the transnational, largely Anglo-American, communication industry. It is in these countries that profits are made. In other countries, the

1. The total receipts of British publishers from book exports were in 1975 worth E 133 million, 39.7 per cent of total sales. (HMSO, Department of Industry. Business Monilor, PQ 489 Publishing and Printing).

14

immediate financial gains are not the most decisive motives for operations; rather the issue there is more of opening the markets and creating patterns for future consumption. As shown in the brief survey of the transnational flow

of telvision programmes, newsfilm, motion pictures, sound records, and books, the transnational structure of the flow is rather similar in each of these areas. World television programme sales are dominated by the American ans British companies, and newsfilm distribution is in the hands of British and American companies. The world motion picture sales take place through the American companies, followed by those in France, the United Kingdom, the Federal Republic of Germany, and Italy, although companies in these countries are often American subsidiaries. Within the socialist countries of Eastern Europe, the USSR is a major supplier of motion pictures. The world markets of sound records are dominated

by five transnational corporations in the United Kingdom, the United States, and the Federal Republic of Germanyhhe Netherlands. These ompanies roduce under different labels in many countries. In book

translations, English is the dominant language of original texts. English, French, and German together represent two-thirds of the sources of translations in world statistics. In this section, the concept of 'flow' has been used in

a limited and measurable way to illustrate the different aspects and dimensions of specific media processes. This approach shows how information, ideas, entertainment, capital and hardware material flow between societies. However, the internationalization of publishing, for example, can be seen as a part of the overall grouwth of transnational media.'Consequently, there is a need for complementing the approach described above by perceiving properly the new dimension of the internationalization of the media industry as a whole.

1. Peter Golding, 'The International Media and the Political Economy of Publishing', University of Leicester, 1977 (mimeo); Armand Mattelart, 'The New Multinational Educators', IAMCR (International Association for Mass Communication Resarch), World Conference, Leicester, 1976 (mimeo).

15

3. Transnational film and television business

There is no comprehensive inventory that identifies the major transnational corporations in communications. Although an attempt to identify the major TNCs according to size is presented in this study, it is clear that the size of the company is not the best criterion. A more fruitful way to approach the major film and television companies is through the analysis of who dominates the world markets. The major TNCs related to communications that are

big in size are active in electronics, electrical appliances or other communication equipment and publishing. The electronics industry producing communication hardware is highly transnational. These companies include the American Eastman-Kodak, RCA, Zenith, Polaroid, and General Electric; the Netherlands Philips; the Japanese Matsushita, Sony, Toshiba, Fuji-Photo Film, and Sanyo; the British EMI; and the German (Federal Republic) Grundig. Big transnational publishing firms exist in the United States, the Federal Republic of Germany, the United Kingdom, France, the Netherlands and Sweden. Recent diversification of the hardware industries into

software and the entry of publishers into audio-visual markets have resulted in the fact that, for example, educational materials are produced by such companies as Xerox, International Telephone & Telegraph (ITT), Westinghouse and Litton. With regard to transnational film and television, these activities are often only a small part of the parent conglomerate’s entire activity.

from 28 per cent to 83 per cent of total revenue for these three, is deducted from their total business. O n the other hand, the broadcasting companies themselves do not rank among the world’s fifty largest industrial concerns, but they do have commanding revenue levels when measured against other firms. Table 7, based on the companies’ own reports, shows

the relative positions of several American broadcasting, motion picture and television programme production or distribution companies (or their parents), and their ranks within the 500 largest industrial companies in the United States. The volume of revenue derived solely from distribu-

tion of material to theatres and television arrays the companies in a list that is remarkably similar. Although figures from several small companies were not obtainable, Table 8 shows that the traditional Hollywood-based communication organizations com- mand leading positions over companies that are comparatively younger. The genealogies and corporate anatomies of the

leading American multinational communication companies reveal, as would be expected, a number of similarities in structure and marketing orientation, even though they do not all deal in the same products. Like all businesses, they are greatly influenced by common goals, as well as by similar political-economic-social- legal forces.

Broadcasting companies American transnational film and television businesses

The companies that dominate the exportation from the United States of motion pictures and television programmes are generally among the 500 largest industrial firms in America, taking account of these companies’ revenue from diversified, conglomerate activities. However, if their other interests and sources of revenue are separated from their motion picture and television programme business, they appear considerably smaller, overshadowed by a host of companies in all industrial sectors customarily thought of as dominating the economy. The motion picture and television programme com-

panies are dwarfed, for the most part, by the three major broadcasting network corporations in the United States. This is true even if non-broadcasting business, which is

The creation of the forerunner of RCA Inc., the Radio Corporation of America, in 1919, was related to the electronics patent tangle and to a desire that American radio communications, which at the time were only point-to-point, should not be under foreign control. The General Electric Co. in 1919 devised a plan whereby RCA would be formed, not only to take over the British stock interest in the American Marconi Co., but also to use, and licence others to use, radio patents held by General Electric, American Marconi, and other companies. Among RCA’s initial activities inherited from Marconi, were maintaining radio links between ships

1. ‘The Fifty Largest Industrial Companies in the World’, Fortune (Chicago) Vol. XCIV, No. 2, August 1976, p. 243.

16

T A B L E 7. Selected broadcasting motion picture and television programme distribution companies ranked according to revenue within Forlune magazine’s 500 largest American industrial firms (in millions of dollars)

Rank Revenue (a) Company

34 69 (b) JO5 191 24 1 279 285

45 1 463

(cl

(4 (e)

4 816 2 602 2 404 1938 1064 811 669 650 520 340 332 3 20 266 213 101 56 51 39

RCA Inc. Gulf & Western Industries Inc. (Paramount Pictures) Transamerica Corp. (United Artists Corporation) CBS Inc. American Broadcasting Companies Inc. Music Company of America Inc. (MCA Inc. Universal) Warner Communications Inc. (Warner Bros.) Avco Corporation (Avco-Embassy Pictures) Wait Disney Productions Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation Columbia Pictures Industries Inc. United Artists Corporation Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. Metromedia Inc. Filmways Inc. Allied Artists Industries American International Pictures Viacorn International Inc.

(a) Calender year 1975, except accounting years ending on these dates for the following companies: 31 July 1975, Gulf& Western Industries Inc.; 30 November 1975, Avco Corporation; 30 September 1975, Walt Disney Productions; 28 June 1975, Columbia Picture Industries; 3 1 August 1976, Metro-Goldwyn- Mayer Inc.; 29 February 1976, Filmways, Inc.; 2 April 1976, Allied Artists Industries, Inc.; 28 February 1976, American International Pictures, Inc.

(b) Transamerica ranks as the fifth largest ’diversified financial’ company in America, according to Fortune. If it were classed as an ’Industrial’ it would be in seventy-ninth place.

(c)If classed as an industrial, Disney would be in 334th position. (d) United Artists as a separate company. (e) Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. ranks below the 500th largest company, which had revenues of $297 million.

Source: ’The 500 Largest Industrial Corporations’, Fortune (Chicago), Vol. XCIII, No.5, M a y 1976, p. 318. Companies’ annual reports to stock-holders and form 10-K reports to the Securities and Exchange Commission.

TABLE 8. Selected motion picture and television programme distribution companies ranked according to revenue derived from theatrical and television distribution (in millions of dollars)

Revenue from theatrical and

television distribution

Per cent of

revenue (a) company’s total Company

478.7 255.9 242.1 239.3 217.0 217.0 123.3 112.5 50.0 17.1 16.5 15.4

59.0 38.2 70.6 72.1 67.9 (b) 6.4 (c) 46.4 21.6 98.0

29.6 39.1

2.6 (d)

MCA (Universal) Warner Communications Twentieth Century-Fox Columbia Pictures Industries United Artists Corporation Paramount Pictures Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Walt Disney Productions American International Pictures Avco Embassy Pictures Allied Artists Pictures Corporation Viacom International

(a) Calendar year 1975, except accounting years ending on these dates for the following companies: 26 June 1976, Colombia Pictures Industries; 31 July 1976, Paramount Pictures; 3 1 August 1976, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer; 30 September 1975, Walt Disney Productions; 28 February 1976, American International Pictures; 30 November 1975, Avco Embassy Pictures; 2 April 1976, Allied Artists Pictures Corporation.

(b) Per cent of total revenue for United Artists Corporation. The figure of $217 millions derived from theatrical and television distribution is about 9 per cent of total revenue for Transamerica Corporation, the parent of United Artists.

(c) Per cent of total revenue for Gulf & Western Industries. (d) Per cent of total revenue for Avco Corporation.

Source: Companies’ annual reports to stockholders and Form 10-K reports to the Securities and Exchange Commission.

1 7

and shore points, and providing other transoceanic radio connections. 1 RCA began radio broadcasting in the early 1920s,

and in 1926 formed the National Broadcasting Com- pany (NBC) to handle that aspect of its business, with two radio networks, one of which was purchased from the American Telephone and Telegraph Co. In 1927, RCA acquired interests in motion picture production, and the following year organized a subsidiary to develop sound motion pictures. In 1928 it helped form Radio-Keith-Orpheum (RKO), which became one of the major Hollywood film companies (although RCA disposed of its ownership by 1943). RCA’s interest in international broadcasting increa-

sed in 1936 when NBC organized an International Divi- sion to transmit a regular programme service on shortwave to Europe and Latin America. With affiliates in Mexico, Central and South America, NBC’s Pan- American network operated commercially until the end of the Second World War, when the service was super- seded by the United States Governments Voice of America. Even by 1941, according to the United States Federal

Communications Commission, RCA had grown to such size that it ’occupies a premier position in fields which are profoundly determinative of our way of life’.3 The FCC declared: ’ R C A was originally founded to utilize wireless techniques for the transmission of messages; today (1941) it bestrides whole industries, dwarfing its competitors in each.’4 At the end of 1975, RCA had assets of $3.7 billion,

of which $554 million were abroad.5 It employed more than 80,000 people in the United States, and about 34,000 overseas. In 1975, revenue of $856 million from foreign activities in more than 100 countries represented almost 18 per cent of RCA’s total. The company’s oldest and largest foreign subsidiary

is RCA Ltd in Canada, manufacturer of television products. In the United Kingdom, major subsidiaries are RCA Ltd, and two food distribution firms, Oriel Foods Ltd, and Morris & David Jones Ltd. Early in 1976, RC A discontinued the colour television picture tube venture in which it had a 49 per cent interest in the United Kingdom, but it continues to produce tubes in France, Brazil and Mexico. RCA sells electronic products through a subsidiary in the Federal Republic of Germany, makes black and white television sets in Taiwan, and produces solid-state components in Taiwan, Belgium and Malaysia. Through subsidiaries, RCA publishes mucic abroad

and in the United States, and international sales account for a substantial part of total revenue for RCA Records. Overseas, the company licenses subsidiaries and independent firms to manufacture records and tapes from RCA master recordings; record masters are sold to the German Democratic Republic. During 1975, RCA Records entered into a joint venture with the Victor Company of Japan, giving it greater growth potential in the world’s second largest phonograph record market. RCA recordings are produced in Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, France, the Federal Republic of Germany, Italy, Mexico, Spain and

the United Kingdom, and recent license agreements allow for production in Nigeria and Iran. Another subsidiary, RCA Global Communications,

has channel facilities in all the major transoceanic cables serving the United States. It intends to invest in virtually every new cable scheduled for service with Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Far East and Latin America. In December 1975, RCA launched its first domestic satellite and now has two in orbit above the United States. Formerly, NBC managed and supplied technical

advice to foreign television stations, and had various other international arrangements. A s of the mid- 1970s, its foreign broadcasting activities consisted of small minority equity interests in two television stations, in Hong Kong and Australia. It has disposed of an interest in a second station in Australia, and formerly had television investments in Argentina, Mexico and Venezuela. NBC does not syndicate television entertainment programmes in foreign markets, and sells only a few news documentaries abroad: this is not considered by the company to be an important business. RCA has withdrawn from the television field abroad because of foreign government regulations and shifting priorities of RCA management. Moreover, FCC regulations since 1973 have generally prevented television networks from engaging in domestic programme syndication, there by reducing incentives to invest in entertainment programmes that would be available for distribution overseas.6 Unlike R C A , which started as a patent pool to handle

transoceanic communication and to sell radio receivers, the origin of CBS Inc. was firmly in the broadcasting

1. Federal Communications Commission, Report on Chain Broadcasting, M a y 1941, as reprinted in Monopoly Problems in Regulated Industries, hearings before the Antitrust Subcommittee of the Committee on the Judiciary. House of Representatives, 84th Congress, 2nd Session, Television, Part 2, Vol. 1, Washington, D.C., Government Printing Office, 1957, pp. 3545-7.

2. See E. R. Deihl, ’South of the Border - American Network Radio and the Latin American Venture, 1930-42’ ; ’One Man’s Vision - David’ Sarnoff s Influence on the Voice of America’, Northern Illinois Universty, De Kalb, 1975 (manuscripts).

3. Federal Communications Commission, Report on Chain Broadcasting, op. cit., p. 3556.

4. Ibid, p. 3554. 5. Financial and organizational information about RCA Corporation is drawn chiefly from its annual reports to stocklolders and its Form 10-K reports to the Securities and Exchange Commission, an agency of the United States Government.

6. The FCC rule in question prohibits national television networks from engaging in the domestic distribution of television programrnes for non-network exhibition, or foreign distribution of such programmes except where they are the sole producers of them. FCC Television Rules, 73.658 0’) state, in part, that ’no television network shall ... after June 1, 1973, sell, license, or distribute television programmes to television station licensees within the Un- ited States for non-network television exhibition or otherwise engage in the business commonly known as ’syndication’ within the United States ...’

18

business. Its forerunner was organized in January 1927, and two years later the name was changed to the Columbia Broadcasting System. CBS purchased its first radio station in 1928.1CBS’s interest in foreign broadcasting was expanded in 1937 when daily shortwave broadcasts to Latin American began. By 1942, afiliates throughout Latin America were receiving service on CBS’s Network of the Americas. These ventures were discontinued after the end of the Second World War. Since the early 1960s, the company has diversified into marketing services, musical instruments, publishing, education services, leisure activities and research and development for other industries and the military. At the end of 1975, CBS, with 29,000 employees, had

assets of $1.2 billion, of which $82.8 million was ouside the United States.2Foreign operations contributed $312.2 million to the company’s total revenue of $1.9 billion. Net income from foreign operations for the year was $24 million. With more than 100 subsidiaries in 32 countries, CBS’s major foreign activities are the manufacture and sale of recorded music and musical instruments, as well as music and book publishing. Since the mid-l960s, CBS has developed a substantial international recorded music business, making the CBS Records Group (along with the European EM1 and Polygram) one of the world‘s largest producers, manufacturers and marketers of recorded music, with 1975 revenues of $484 million. CBS Records also acquires and develops talent on a worldwide basis, while promoting foreign artists for international markets. In 1975, CBS planned a new joint venture company in Jamaica to give it increased distribution throughout the Caribbean region, and the same year a wholly owned record company was created in Greece. Planning continued for establishment of a wholly owned record company in Finland, and for joint-venture companies in the Philippines, Iran, and Nigeria - the latter ’marking an important step toward development and penetration of the vast African market’. In 1974, an agreement permitted CBS Records International Division to manufacture and release recordings in the USSR while another division of C B S releases Soviet recordings in North America. The CBS International Publishing Division deals in

original works, adaptations and translations produced abroad and in the United States. Most of these publications are in the medical, science, health, business, and technological fields, for educational and professional use. NEISA, the division’s subsidiary in Latin America and Spain, is the world’s largest publisher of Spanish-language medical books. Its new distribution centre in Puerto Rico, opened in 1976, gives this unit an expanded capability to penetrate the elemmtary and secondary Spanish-language text field in that important market. Books and materials published by C B S subsidiaries are sold in 115 countries. In January 1977, CBS purchased Fawcett Publications for $50 million. CBS has a 20-per-cent investment in a cable televi-

sion system in Canada, and sells theatrical and television exhibition rights to feature films it has previously

financed or produced. In 1967, CES purchased the Republic Corporation’s Hollywood studio and equipment for $9.5 million. A subsidiary, Cinema Center Films, was established

to produce feature films for television broadcast and global distribution. By 1972, Cinema Center Films had released twenty-seven pictures, but CBS decided to phase out this operation. Meanwhile, in 1970, CBS had established Viacom International, to which it passed rights to CBS motion pictures, television programmes, and its ownership of domestic cable television subsidiaries. The following year Viacom became an independent company when, in compliance with FCC regulations, CBS disposed of its stock ownership. Because of arrangements with Viacom, CBS does not

now distribute television entertainment programmes overseas. However, through an agreement with the European Broadcasting Union, CBS News supplies eighteen countries with daily videotapes of news. Dur- ing 1975, it also began distributing a daily news film service to 3 Japanese television networks and to stations in Puerto Rico. CBS has no investments in foreign television stations, nor does it offer management or technical advisory services? O f the national networks in the United States, the

American Broadcasting Companies Inc. is the most active and ambitious overseas. ABC was established in 1943, as a result of FCC rules that forced NBC to dispose of one of its two radio networks. A merger with United Paramount Theatres (UPT), itself an offspring of government action to create more competition in the motion picture field, was approved in 1953, and ABC was absorbed by UPT. ABC is a diversified company which at the end of

1975, had assets of $ 697.8 million and employed about 9,000 people.5 Its revenue of $ 1.1 billion amounted to only 22 per cent of RCA’s and 55 per cent of CBS’s revenue for the same year. ABC’S foreign interests in broadcasting have been

much more extensive than those of RCA or CBS. In 1959, ABC International was formed to oversee foreign sales and to establish a global system of ownership, management, programme production and distribution, and advertising services. The following year, the Central American Television Network (CATVN) was organized, with ABC assuming responsibility for selling programmes to affiliate stations and handling adver-

1. Additional details on the early development of CBS are available in Federal Communications Commission, Reporf on Chain Broadcasting, May 1941, op. cit.

2. Financial and organizational information about CBS Inc. is drawn chiefly from its annual reports to stockholders and its Form 10-K reports to the Securities and Exchange Commission.

3. CBS Inc., 1974 Annual Report, p. 21. 4. According to statements by CBS executives to one of the co-authors.

5. Financial and organization information aboutABC is drawn chiefly from its annual reports to stockholders and its Form 10-K reports to the Securities and Exchange Commission.

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tising sales. By 1968, the Latin American Television In- ternational Network Organization was operating, modelled on C=TVN. In the m+ntime, ABC VHAD ACQUIRED OWNERSHIP INTERESTS IN TELEVISION IN THE Middle East and the Orient, and by the end of the 1960s was distributing nearly 900 programmes in more than 90 countries. This decade of activity coincided with policy

statements made late in 1959 by Oliver Treyz, then President of the ABC Television Network. According to an ABC press release, he argued that the United States needed its ’programmes sold abroad so that they constantly can be improved through growing foreign revenues which, when added to domestic, are essential for the improvement of quality’. H e deplored foreign government restrictions and foreign television service regulations that limited the importation or broadcast of American-made programmes. His conception of television seemed to imply that foreign stations should be mere outlets for programmes produced in the United States. ’The destiny of American television’, he declared, ’should be to serve ail the people of the world.’ H e urged that the industry ’harness the latent forces of U.S. television to bring the American point of view through television to most of the areas of the free world’. By 1969, ABC had minority interests in fourteen for-

eign companies operating television stations in Latin America and the Far East, and in three foreign production companies. ABC International was providing programme purchasing and/or sales representation services for stations in twenty-three countries. Four years later, ABC International was acting as programme consultant andor sales representative to television stations in thirteen countries, in addition to maintaining minority ownership interests in a number of foreign broadcasting companies. However, ABC an- nounced that it had been divesting itself of interests during the preceding several years, and that its remaining investments were not substantial.2 By the end of 1976, ABC International was no longer

a sales representative for foreign stations, although it continued as consultant to overseas stations and purchased programmes in their behalf. This arrangement, however, is not exclusive, and stations may acquire programmes by themselves. ABC International has contracts as programme-buying consultant with stations in Australia, Bermuda, Chile, Costa Rica, EI Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Japan, Nicaragua, Panama and the Republic of Korea. ABC International has minority ownership interests

in television stations in Bermuda, Guatemala and in two Japanese stations. It has disposed of investments in stations in Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Lebanon, and Venezuela and also sold its interest in a Mexican programme production unit. ABC originally hoped to create a worldwide com-

mercial television network based on the American model, but because this idea did not work out satisfactorily from a financial and administrative point of view, it decided to reduce its holdings overseas. A major difficulty was that suficient international

advertising support could not be mustered, primarily because global agencies and companies were not accustomed, or perhaps not able, to operate in the same way they had in the United States. Moreover, language differences and programming tastes posed obstacles to a fully integrated system. In some cases, foreign partners expressed desires to buy out A B C investments. None the less, ABC maintains an important advisory role in programming purchases in several countries, many of which are heavily dependent upon American T V programmes. T o broaden the company’s business overseas and to

develop talent in Europe and the United Kingdom, Anchor Records, a music publishing and record production firm, was established in 1974 in the United Kingdom. Un 1973, ABC sold its syndication subsidiary, ABC

Films. The new firm, subsequently named Worldvision Enterprises Inc., had foreign distribution rights to ABC sports presentations, but this contrat expired at the end of 1976. Although there is little non-news production by ABC, some of its news documentaries were distributed by Twentieth Century-Fox, and its made-for-TV feature films have been licensed to Viacom, Columbia and Paramount for foreign distribution.

It can be concluded that the present foreign involve- ment of the American networks is growing in activities other than programme distribution. One area of common interest is the phonograph record business, with CBS currently leading, followed by RCA and then ABC. Foreign publishing and sales are important to CBS, and to a smaller extent to RCA, but not to ABC. Manufacture of hardware overseas is the exclusive domain of RCA, just as the programme buying consultation service and investments in foreign television stations are exclusive to A B C . With television operating in virtually all the world’s countries, there no longer is much need for management and technical advisory services to help inaugurate broadcasting, although in the past several systems came into the world with the assistance of A B C , CBS and RCA. The exporting of sports and news materials, although

perhaps important to receiving nations, is not considered significant by the networks, and revenue from this source is vastly overshadowed by that from other businesses. In the production and distribution of entertainment programmes, the networks have yielded to the major Hollywood film companies? Foreign distribution in particular has shifted to Hollywood corporations that already had overseas marketing arms to handle theatrical feature films, and thus did not have to depend upon the smaller revenue from television

1. ABC Television Network, press release, 14 September 1959.

2. American Broadcasting Companies Inc., 1973 Annual Report, p. 11.

3. See Thomas Guback, ’Les relations cinema-TV aux Etats- Unis aujourd’hui’, Film Echange (Paris), NO. 2, spring 1978, pp.65-84; Thomas Guback and Dennis Dombkowski, ’Television and Hollywood, Economic Relations in the 1970s, Journal of Broadcasting (Philadelphia), Vol. YX, No. 4, Fall 1976, pp. 511 - 527.

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sales to keep distribution offices operating abroad. The motion picture companies, therefore, also warrant close examination as international traders in theatrical films and material for television.

Motion picture companies

The corporation with the largest film and television revenue in 1975 was MCA Inc., receiving $289.1 million from theatrical rentals and $189.6 million from television. The firm’s total revenue was $81 1.5 million, of which about $171.2 million, or 21 per cent, was derived from foreign activities. Assets in 1975 were valued at $624 million, including about $52.2 million in net assets ouside the United States; close to 12,000 people were employed by MCA at the end of 1975.

The company was incorporated in 1958, and four years later acquired more than 80 per cent of the stock of Decca Records Inc., which at that time owned almost 90 per cent of the stock of Universal Pictures Inc. In addition to a savings and loan association, MCA owns a subsidiary that produces, manufactures and distributes phonograph records and tapes on the MCA and Coral labels, and on the Europa label in the Federal Republic of Germany, where it also has a processing plant. The MCA Music Division publishes popular and classical music on a global basis. Records and music publishing yielded $137.9 million in revenue in 1975. Another subsidiary, formed in 1972, is developing a video-disc system in conjunction with the Netherlands N.V. Philips company. In 1975, MCA acquired the American publishing house, G.P. Putnam’s Sons, and purchased, for $7 million, a 50-per-cent interest in forty-six motion picture theatres in the Federal Republic of Germany. MCA has wholly owned subsidiaries in the United

Kingdom, Australia, Canada, Japan, the Federal Republic of Germany and the Netherlands. In addition, it has a 49-per-cent interest (as does Paramount Pictures) in Cinema International Corporation (CIC), a Netherlands company, formed in 1970. CIC distributes theatrical films for MCA in virtually all areas outside the United States and Canada and has about eighty offices around the world. Paramount and Universal are the main suppliers for CIC, but the company occasio- nally acquires for local distribution films made abroad by foreign producers. Amsterdam is the legal headquarters of CIC, but its distribution activities around the world are operated generally from its London office. Universal’s theatrical revenue in 1975 from foreign

markets was approximately $1 10 million, while its revenue from theatres in the United States was about $179 million, thanks to such successful1 shock’ pictures’ as Jaws, Earthquake, and Airport 197.5. For example, the latter two films had worldwide rentals of $72 million during 1975, and Jaws was the highest revenue-earning film in the United States and Canada up to that time. MCA - TV, the global syndication division, had its

most successful year in 1975, with revenue of $189.6

million, including $38.3 million from sales in the domestic market. The company’s total foreign revenue was $171.2 mil-

lion in 1975. This consisted of $33.7 million from syndication to foreign television, about $1 10 million from theatrical release of films, and approximately $27.5 million from records, music publishing, mail order business, and real estate activities. In 1975, MCA produced and released nine films for

theatrical exhibition, whereas during the four preceding years, it produced and released annually an average of fourteen pictures. The company leads the industry in film production for American network prime-time television. From 1973 to 1975, series produced by MCA averaged approximately thirteen hours a week on network prime-time, and the company also produced specials and feature films especially for initial exhibition on television. In general, American television shows are produced

only under network contracts that provide for license fees covering a major portion of the production costs, which for some one-hour action programmes in the late 1970s usually were over $300,000 per episode. Recovery of the balance of the production costs, and any profits, usually depends upon succeess in foreign syndication, domestic syndication, and additional network telecasts in non-prime-time hours. There are various arrangements under which MCA’s theatrical films and television films are owned, produced, and distributed. Other parties may receive revenue and/or net profits from certain fims, but MCA or its subsidiaries generally own the films and control global distribution. Warner Communications Inc. (WCI), in 1975, had

the second largest revenue from film and television, $255.9 million.2 WCI is engaged primarily in recorded music and music publishing, motion pictures and television, magazine and paperback book publication and distribution, and cable television. Its assets in 1975 were $804 million. WCI employed about 5,000 people, of w h o m about 1,250 were in film and television production and distribution. Of WCI’s $669.8 million in revenue during 1975,

$1 18.1 million came from operations abroad, excluding Canada (considered part of the domestic market by the company). Total revenue from theatres was $202.3 million, comprising $95.3 million from the United States and Canada, $92.5 million from overseas, and $14.5 million from pay television and other sources. Licensing of material to television yielded $56.3 million in 1975, of which $27.3 million came from theatrical films, and $26.3 million from series programmes. Slightly more than two-thirds of these amounts came from the United States market. Domestic publishing and distribution

1. Financial and organizational information about MCA Inc. is drawn chiefly from its annual reports to stockholders and Form 10 - K reports to the Securities and Exchange Commission.

2. Financial and organizational information about Warner Communications Inc. is drawn chiefly from it.s annual reports to stockholders and Form 10-K reports to the Securities and Exchange Commission.

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produced $40.2 million, while these activities overseas appraised of each movie from pre-production to the yielded $21.8 million in 1975, although unprofitable arrival of the picture in their company? operations during four consecutive years prompted This strategy, therefore, amounts to selling an inter- WCI to dispose of its foreign publishing enterprises late national product with advertising and promotional in 1975. Domestic recorded music business produced $220.7

million in revenue, while $75.4 million were derived from foreign recorded music operations, excluding the revenue from a 50 per-cent owned afiliate in Japan. In 1975, WCI added Italy, Netherlands, N e w Zealand and South Africa to the markets it already had in Australia, Canada, France, Federal Republic of Germany, Japan and the United Kingdom; Brazil was added in 1976. ’Strong local artists’ rosters’, according to the company, are ’being built in each country. Local successes, moreover, are gaining in popularity beyond their own countries, making international crossover a two-way exchange that quickly translates into profits’. WCI declared that ’an increasingly high penetration of local markets’ was anticipated for 1976 and believes that international crossovers (‘Italian music sells well in Japan, for example’) can be expected to increase.’ Record distribution throughout the European Economic Community was facilitated when a pressing plant was opened in 1976 in the Federal Republic of Germany. WCI, like others, promotes the natural tie-up between

the marketing of recordings and motion pictures. Many phonograph records are sound-tracks, which offer the possibility of co-ordinating the promotion of film and music. Similarly, joint promotion is possible with books and films, and can be carried out simultaneously in several countries by multinational companies. Other cross-media links are possible through WCI’s

subsidiary, Licensing Corporation of America. It licenses the names, photographs, and representations of real and fictional personalities for advertising and promotions, and acts as agent for owners of trademarks and copyrights of fictional creations, including Superman and Batman. This subsidiary conducts its business in the United States and in foreign markets. WCI’s main operating companies in motion pictures

and television are Warner Bros. Inc. (WB) and its subsidiaries. WB’s business includes the financing, production, and theatrical distribution of feature films, and the distribution of series and made-for-TV films to television networks and stations. Some of WB’s films are made in California at the Burbank Studios, which the company shares with Columbia Pictures Industries. During 1975, WB released eighteen feature films for global theatrical distribution, and ten feature films solely for foreign theatrical distribution. WCI has elaborated a specific international distribu-

tion strategy. It says:

techniques geared to specific countries. WB-produces pictures in Europe and Asia for dis-

tribution in foreign markets. ’Overseas production of foreign-language features has been a growing, success fu1 activity for Warner Bros. and a source of box-office hits bearing the WB trademark from R o m e to Singapore’.3 Films made in French, Italian, Spanish and Far Eastern languages have contributed to this increasingly profitable business, according to the company. Film production is financed directly by W B or under

arrangements with independent producers. The company also purchases completed films produced by others, or acquires distribution rights to such films. Agreements negotiated with independent producers vary according to the film itself, the amount and type of financing offered by WB, the territories covered, the period of distribution, and other factors. It is often the case that producers, directors, writers and actors participate in the revenues and/or profits of motion pictures in which they are involved. WB operates a worldwide theatrical film distribution

chain, although outside the United States it frequently engages in joint ventures. For example, WB and Columbia have combined their distribution facilities in certain countries in order to reduce overhead expenses. Warner Bros. owns sixteen subsidiaries for film distribution overseas, in addition to a production company in Italy. The parent company, W C I , has subsidiaries in the United Kingdom, Canada, France, the Federal Republic of Germany, Australia, the Netherlands, Italy, Japan, N e w Zealand, South Africa, Brazil and the Antilles. Until 1969, Warner Bros. had a 25-per-cent interest in the associated British Picture Corp., which operated more than 250 theatres, and produced and distributed theatrical feature films and television programmes, Warner’s holding was acquired by EMI. In terms of total revenue from distribution to theatres

and television, the third ranking company in the United States was twentieth Century-Fox Film Corp., with $ 242.1 million from these sources in 1975.’l Its major activities are motion picture and television programme production and distribution, foreign theatre operation, television broadcasting, film processing, and records and music publishing. Twentieth Century-Fox employs about 5,200 people worldwide, and had assets in 1975 of $ 322 million, including $ 63.1 million of net assets abroad. Foreign operations, excluding those in Canada

Applying domestic release Patterns is impossible when 1. Warner Communications Inc., 1975 Annual Report, dealing with as many markets as there are regions and cultures. Warner Bros. representatives must be 2. Warner Communications Inc., 1975 Annual Report, p. 35.

3.1975 Annual Reporl, op. cit., p. 35. diplomats, economists, union negotiators, specialists in 4. Financial and organizational information about Twentieth impordexport regulations, and tax and censorship ex- Century-Fox Film Corporation is Drawn chiefly from its perts. Also, in order to give each film the individual annual reports to stockholders and Form 10-K reports to (marketing) attention it requires, they must be kept fully the Securities and Exchange Commission.

pp. 30 - 31.

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(also considered a domestic market by the company), provided $170.1 million of the company’s total revenue, $342.7 million. Included in foreign revenue was $44.3 million derived from the operation of theatres, Rental of theatrical films overseas contributed another $94.3 million. The balance, $31.5 million, came from licensing material to television, phonograph records, music publishing, and other operations. Rentals from theatrical motion pictures in the United

States and Canada were $91.4 million in 1975. About $13.6 million was derived from licensing of theatrical films to television networks, and an additional $8.5 million was produced by syndication. Worldwide rentals of feature films yielded $210.8 million, and revenue from television programmes contributed another $3 1.3 million. Under terms of an anti-trust consent decree judge-

ment with the American Government in 1951, Fox was compelled to dispose of its theatre holdings, but this applied only to the United States. Fox’s International Theatres Division, at the end of 1975, owned or operated 13 1 screens, of which 77 were in its major foreign circuit, Hoyts Theatres Ltd, in Australia. Another 33 cinemas were operated in N e w Zealand by Amalgamated Theatres Ltd. Other theatres were in Western Europe, the Middle East, East Africa, and Latin America. In Sydney, Fox opened in 1976 one of the world’s largest theatrical structures, costing $14.7 million and containing seven auditoriums with seating capacity of about 4,300. For international distribution to cinema theatres and

television, Fox has about seventy-five foreign offices, about a third of which are joint ventures. In 1972, for example, the firm combined with the British Rank Organisation Ltd to form Fox-Rank Distributors Ltd, in order to service both companies while reducing the overhead expenses for each. Like other companies, Fox acquires foreign films for

distribution outside the United States, handling about twenty-five of these in 1975 and about fifteen in 1976. Its fee may range between 25 per cent and 35 per cent of the distributor’s gross receipts. Final decisions about foreign production and pick-up deals are made in the home office in the United States, as is the case with other international companies. In effect, this means that policy matters affecting foreign film industries - financing, overall content, where production will take place, how and where pictures will be distributed - ultimately are established in the United States (with consultation of foreign offces), leaving industries abroad with relatively little autonomy. In the United Kingdom, for example, Fox is not particularly interested in producing pictures exclusively for the British market, but rather considers their likely attractiveness to American and world audiences. The company invested between $12 million and $15 million in British production in 1975. A portion of that amount was drawn from distribution earnings in the country, and additional sums, customarily, reborrowed from a consortium of American banks with offices in the United Kingdom. Ranking fourth in total revenue from film and televi-

sion is Columbia Pictures Industries, with $239.3

million from these sources for the accounting year ending in June 1976.’ Total assets at the end of that period were $278.7 million, with net foreign assets valued at $14.4 million. Total revenue of $332 million included $109 million from foreign operations, of which about $59 million came from theatrical release of motion pictures. The remaining $50 million of foreign revenue is attributed to licensing material to television, phonograph record business, and other sources. Global sales of television programmes produced $67.8 million, and an additional $19.3 million was derived from licensing of feature films for television exhibition. Columbia had domestic theatrical rentals of about $93 million in fiscal 1976. Columbia Pictures Industries and its subsidiaries

produce and distribute on a worldwide basis theatrical motion pictures, television series and features, produce and distribute phonograph records, publish and distribute sheet music, produce television commercials, and operate a television and several radio stations in the United States. It has an approximate 30 per cent interest in two television stations in the British Virgin Islands and the Netherlands Antilles. In mid-1976, the company had about 2,800 employees, of which about 900 worked outside North America.

Plagued by several unprofitable years and large bank debts, on which the interest alone in the fiscal year 1976 was over $14 million, Columbia has disposed of some of its properties during the last few years. It recently sold some of its television stations, and in the fiscal year 1976 completed the sale for $23.5 million of its music publishing subsidiaries to EM1 Ltd. In a related transac- tion, the British company agreed to make substantial investments in Columbia’s current and future film production, as did Time Inc., the American publishing conglomerate. In addition, Columbia is seeking other funds outside the United States, and these arrangements may well lead to significant production commitments abroad, according to the company. The Columbia Pictures Division arranges with in-

dependent companies for the production of most of the films it distributes. Columbia generally reserves for itself worldwide distribution rights, and is entitled to the gross receipts and net profits, less any sums that might be due to other parties. Agreements with independent producers generally provide that each picture’s story, cast, director and budget must be approved by both Columbia and the independent producer. As a result, Columbia is involved in all stages of the production process and must consent to each significant commitment made by outside producers. Feature film projects customarily are financed directly by the company, or under arrangements with other parties. During the 1976 fiscal year, Columbia released

twenty-four feature films, of which thirteen were distributed worldwide. For fiscal year 1977, the company

1. Financial and organizational information about Columbia Pictures Industries is drawn chiefly from its annual report to stockholders and Form 10 - K reports to the Securities and Exchange Commisssion.

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anticipated releasing about eighteen films for theatrical exhibition. Of these, seven were scheduled for global distribution, two were to have been distributed by Columbia only in North America, and nine others were intended only for distribution outside the United States and Canada. Overseas, Columbia’s productions are not necessarily

designed to serve only the needs or tastes of the countries where they are made. The company’s international operation develops local productions that also have the potential for exploitation in other territories, thus leading to films that have international, rather than local, interest. As with other film companies, Columbia’s foreign operations are subject to fluctuation in currency exchange rates and regulations, as well as to quotas and other restrictions imposed by foreign governments upon the importation and exhibition of American television programmes or theatrical films. None the less, Columbia declares that ’such regulations, quotas, and other restrictions have not had a material effect upon the company’s foreign operations ...’I Columbia maintains an international distribution

chain in 51 foreign localities. In thirteen countries, it releases films through local, independently-owned distribution companies. In thirty other locations it shares facilities - about a dozen each with Warner and Fox and the remainder with other companies - and in eight countries, it has its own offce. In sum, Columbia has about sixty foreign exchanges, not including those in Canada. Columbia’s television division continues to be the

number two supplier of Amerian network programming. In 1976, the company contributed five hour-long series and more than seven hours per week of daytime programming. These are available for internationl syndication, as are feature films and several series, which are licensed in virtually every foreign country. T o carry out its foreign activities, Columbia has sub-

sidiaries incorporated in Austria, Belgium, Federal Republic of Germany, France, Greece, Italy, Nether- lands, Portugal, United Kingdom, Denmark, Finland, Norway, Sweden, Iran, Japan, N e w Zealand, Brazil, Colombia, Mexico, Panama and Canada. In a dozen other countries, Columbia has film distribution offices, some of which are shared with other American motion picture firms. The next two American companies in size of reven-

ues, Paramount Pictures Corporation and United Artists Corporation, themselves subsidiaries of international conglomerates, each drew about $21 7 million in revenue from theatres and television in 1975 or an overlapping accounting year. In 1949, as a result of an anti-trust consent decree

reached with the Department of Justice, Paramount Pictures Inc. split into two firms: United Paramount Theatres, which later acquired the American Broadcasting Company, and Paramount Pictures Corporation, which was engaged in film production and distribution. In 1966, Paramount Pictures merged with Gulf & Western Industries (G&W) and the former became a subsidiary. Randed according to its sales of $2.6 billion in fiscal year 1975, G&W was the

sixty-ninth largest industrial concern in the United States. Its $3.3 billion of assets made it the thirthy-ninth largest industrial company in the country.1 G&Ws activities are organized in eight major operating groups: manufacturing, consumer and agricultural products, natural resources apparel products, paper and building products, automotive replacement parts, financial services, and leisure time, of which Paramount is one subsidiary. G&W employs about 75,000 people. Its manufacturing group accounts for about a third of this number, and owns or leases plants in 13 foreign countries? G&W’s leisure-time operations centre mainly in

Paramount Pictures, which dimances, produces, and ditributes motion pictures and television series. Other leisure-time activities include book publishing through Simon & Shuster (New York), music publishing, distribution of educational films, manufacture and distribution of coin-operated amusement devices, real estate development, and foreign theatre operation. The latter is carried out through a 51-per-cent ownership of Famous Players Ltd in Canada, whose 300 theatres and 400 screens represent about a quarter of all those in Canada and probably account or close to half the country’s total theatrical gross. Famous Players also owns a five-thirty-five screen theatre in Paris, and half of a French company that operates thirty-five other theatres (two dozen of which are in Paris); it also distributes films in France. Paramount and Universal each have a 49-per-cent

ownership of Cinema International Corporation. CIC, in turn, owns or operates four theatres in London, and in 1973 acquired from M G M , for more than $17 million, twenty-one foreign theatres owned or leased by MGM mainly in South America, and a 50-per-cent interest in a firm that operated thirteen theatres South Africa and which is building seven theatres there. CIC also operates one theatre in Amsterdam and two in

The most important aspect of Paramount’s business is the financing and production of feature films. Those in which Paramount is involved may be produced entirely by the company, produced by independents and financed in whole or part by Paramount, or produced by others and acquired by Paramount after completion. When Paramount finances all or part of a film produced by an outside maker, it customarily retains a percentage of the proceeds from distribution as a means of recoup- ing its investment, and it also generally obtains an ownership interest in the picture or enters into a profit- sharing plan with the producer. In fiscal year 1975, Paramount released twenty motion pictures for theatrical distribution in the United States, and seventeen features (including reissues) in 1976.

Egypt.

1. Columbia Pictures Industries, 1976 Form 10 - K reports to the Seciirities and Exchange Commission, pp. 1 - 2.

2. The 500 Largest Industrial Corporations’, Fortune, op. cit., p. 320.

3. Financial and organizational information about Paramount Pictures and Gulf & Western Industries is drawn chiefly from G&W annual reports to stockholders and Form 10 - K reports to the Securities and Exchange Commission.

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For theatrical film distribution, Paramount operates nineteen branch offices in the United States, one in Puerto Rico, and six in Canada. Elsewhere, Paramount motion pictures are handled in most territories by CIC. Paramount pictures also has 16 wholly owned subsidiaries abroad. Paramount has ver 600 features in its television

library, of which about 470 have been released for broadcast. The principal foreign markets for televising of Paramount theatrical films are the United Kingdom, Federal Republic of Germany, Australia, Canada, Japan, and France.

Few details about the financial operations of Paramount Pictures have been released by its parents, Gulf & Western. In any case, the entire leisure-time group of G&W had revenue of $451.4 million in fiscal year 1976. Of this amount, theatrical motion pictures contributed $152 million, with about $103.3 million coming from the United States and Canada, and the remainder, about $48.6 million, from other markets. Series and films for television provided another $65 million in revenue, foreign theatre operation $103 million, book publishing $7 1 million, and an additional $60 million came from other sources. As is the case with other American film companies,

production and financial decisions involving foreign subsidiaries are made in the United States, thereby suggesting that the destiny of film industries abroad is not entirely in foreign hands. This is particularly truc of Paramount, as it is clear that its activities are thorougly integrated into the corporate decision-making process of its parent company, Gulf & Western Industries. The G&W president recently declared that ’we have one of the most effective systems that any company could have. It has been designed for Gulf & Western and it works’:

W e have a five-year business plan which is broken down by year. Starting in July the business plan for every aspect of each of the eight groups is defined. Not only do we talk about return on investment goals, we also talk about sales and earnings, our inventory levels ... our capital expenditure ... budgets ... the cash that will be generated from that group ... And when that is done, the operating people and corporate know exactly what the goals are for the year and there are no unanswered questions as to what we expect from them or what they expect from us..!

In mid - 1973, Paramount acquired a 50 per cent interest in the UPITN corporation. The company was formed originally by two other stockholders, United Press International and Independent Television News Ltd., a British television firm, and was engaged in distributing news film. In April 1974, UPITN discontinued its distribution service in the United States, but continued to deal with television stations in 55 other countries. Paramount subsequently sold its interest in- UPITN to an American news-paper firm, the Sacramento Union Corp. Another major Hollywood-based company that has

become a small part of a large conglomerate is United Artists Corporation (UA). It was acquired in 1967 by Transamerica Corporation, whose 1975 revenue of

$2.4 billion mades it the fifth largest diversified- financial corporation in the United States, and whose assets of $4.9 billion give it eighth place in that category? Transamerica employs more than 25,000 people. It engages in such business as property, life, health and disability insurance, pension and mutuai funds, investment advice, consumer lending, real estate, mortgage banking, moving and storage, air travel, auto rental, information processing, music publishing, phonograph records, radio and television broadcasting, film processing, and motion picture financing and distribution.3 As Transamerica’s entertainment subsidiary, United

Artists contributed $319.7 million in revenue, or about 13 per cent of the total for its parent company. About $98.7 million of the United Artist amount came from recorded music and related sources. A further $29.6 million were derived from the licensing of filmed material to television. The major source of revenue was theatrical film rentals, which amounted to $187.4 million in 1975. At the end of that year, UA’s assets were $360.4 million, of which net assets in foreign territories were valued at $28.9 million. About $198.2 million of UA’s total revenue came from the United States and Canada, and the remainder, $121.5 million, from areas outside North America! In addition to obtaining distribution rights to certain

films, United Artists distributes, for theatrical release, feature films produced by independent producers, but financed wholly or partially by UA. The company also distributes these pictures to television, but is phasing out its series business. Through an agreement with M G M , UA distributes MGM’s film library and future theatrical productions through 1983 to theatres and television (on a syndication basis) in Noth America and Puerto Rico. In the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico film

distribution is carried out through thirty-five offices. Elsewhere, distribution is chiefly through wholly owned subsidiaries or branches, numbering more than eighty. In a few countries, UA pictures are handled by local firms on a percentage or straight sale basis. During 1975, UA released twenty-two of its own films and handled six MGM pictures. At the end of 1975, it had about 820 feature films available for realeased to television. In addition, it licenses to television about 1,400 pre- 1950 feature fims acquired from others.

1. David N. Judelson, president Gulf & Western Industries, address to the N e w York Society of Security Analysts, 10 June 1975.

2. The Fifty Largest Diversified-financial Companies’, Fortune (Chicago), Vol. XCIV, NO. 1, July 1976, p. 208. ’Diversified-financial’ companies include insurance, investment and lending institutions, and those providing the public with other financial services.

3. Financial and organizational information about United Artists and Transamerica Corporation is drawn chfrom annual reports to stockholders and Form 10 - K reports to the Securities and Exchange Commission.

4. For film distribution, Canada is considered part of the domestic market, but Puerto Rico is considered foreign.

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Foreign production policy of United Artists is similar to that of other American companies. It generally looks at the world market potential for a proposed film, rather than at its possibilities for the country in which it is made. Although foreign managers may recommend policy, ultimate decisions about pick-up deals and production abroad are made in the United States. The distribution fee customarily charged by UA is between 30 per cent and 40 per cent of the payment made by the exhibitor to the distributor. In financing production overseas, UA can use loans from foreign or American banks, although it does not deal through its parent company, Transamerica. A major American motion picture company that has

undergone significant changes in management policy during the 1970s is Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc., which had revenue of $123.3 million in fiscal year 1976 from theatrical motion pictures and television material. ‘The company finances and produces feature films and television programmes, operates a film processing laboratory, and also owns and operates the MGM Grand Hotel in Las Vegas. In late 1973, coinciding with the opening of its hotel, MGM implemented a new operating policy of financing and producing fewer pictures per year and eliminating to a great extent its worldwide distribution organization. At the end of fiscal year 1976, MGM had assets valued at $393.3 million, of which almost $105 million were attributed to its Grand Hotel. Net foreign assets totalled $6 million, while foreign revenue for the year amounted to $33.1 million of the firm’s total, $273.2 million. At the close of fiscal year 1975, MGM employed about 6,500 people, MGM’s major source of revenue for fiscal year 1976 was the hotel trade and gaming, contributing $142.7 million, or 52 per cent of the company’s total revenue. Revenue from theatrical feature films exhibited in

theatres and on television amounted to $95.6 million in fiscal year 1976. In the previous fiscal year, $100.2 million were derived from motion pictures, including $35.5 million from the United States and Canada, $32.9 million from abroad, and $31.7 million from television licensing. Programmes made especially for television generated $27.8 million in revenue during fiscal year 1976. In addition to disposing of its film sutio in the United

Kingdom, MGM had phased out by 1974 its distribution offices in the United States and Canada. Prior to late 1973, the company distributed films through sales offices in thirty-seven countries. A year later, ‘MGM had twenty-five sales offices in twenty-two countries, although most of these also handled films from Twentieth Century-Fox, pursuant to a joint agreement. T o reduce furttrer distribution costs, MGM entered into an agreement with United Artists in October 1973, allowing the latter to distribute all MGM feature films during a ten year period, to theatres and television stations in the United States and Canada, MGM however, retained rights to distribute to television networks. In December 1973, Cinema International Coporation began the theatrical and television distribution of MGM’s films for ten years, in virtually all foreign territories.

In the early 1970s, the management strategy of MGM called for it to make from four to eight features per year, as opposed to nineteen to twenty-three films it had previously produced annually. From 1970 through 1973, MGM limited the average production cost of its pictures to about $2 million, but this guideline has been abandoned. Towards the end of 1975, MGM did not have a bank production loan commitment, the method by which it usually financed films in prior years, but rather drew upon its own funds generated by current operations. In a few instances, MGM has Co-financed films with

United-Artists and Columbia. Usually, though, MGM engages independent producers on a picture-by-picture basis, reserving to itself approval of each step in a film project’s development. MGM normally acquires an ownership interest in the picture and is granted perpetual worldwide distribution rights. The independent producer customarily shares in any profits from the picture, on a formula basis, after MGM has received its normal fees and recovered financing and other costs. MGM believes that its new policy gives it certain

advantages over other major Hollywood production companies. Inasmuch as MGM need not supply any given number of pictures to a distribution organization, it feels it will be able to concentrate its production resources on those films which, in management’s opinion, have a better chance of being commercially successful. Moreover, MGM is not obliged to produce or release pictures at given intervals to feed a global distribution organization, and thus can await proper development of script an other production resources? Walt Disney Production’ $520 million of revenue in

the 1975 accounting year would classify this company as the 344th largest industrial firm in the United States. Its assets, $782.7 million, are greater than those of Columbia Pictures Industries and Twentieth Century- Fox Corporation combined, and are close to $100 million greater than those of American broadcasting C o m - panies Inc. The production and distribution of theatrical and

television films is overshadowed by the company’s principal business, the operation of two amusement parks. The firm’s other activities include music and records, character merchandising, publications, and educational media materials, Subsidiaries of the company market music, and manufacture, license, and sell phonograph recordings of music written in connection with theatrical and television motion pictures. Disney also arranges for publication in 24 languages of its liter- ary properties and characterizations. About 18,000 people are employed by the company?

1. Financial and organizational information about Metro- Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. is drawn chiefly from annual reports to stockholders and Form 10 - K reports to the Securities and Exchange Commission.

2. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc., 25 September 1975, pp. 27 - 28.

3. Financial and organizational information about Walt Dis- ney Productions is drawn chiefly from annual reports to stockholders and Form 10-K reports to the Securities and Exchange Commission.

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During fiscal year 1975, film rentals amounted to $1 12.5 million. Of this sum, $61.2 million were derived from theatres in the United States, and $37.6 million from foreign theatres. Revenue from television was $13.7 million. The major source of Disney’s revenue was entertainment and recreational activities, which contributed $337.1 million. Disney’s motion pictures are distributed in more than

115 countries. Outside the United States, they are handled generally by other organizations, although Disney has wholly owned subsidiaries for film distribution in France, Japan and the United Kingdom. The company declares that it ordinarily takes from five to seven years to market a feature picture throughout the world. Dis- ney’s television programmes are broadcast regularly in such countries as Federal Republic of Germany, France, Italy, Spain, the United Kingdom, Japan, Australia, Brazil, Mexico, Venezuela and Canada. Some programmes, originally telecast in the United States, have been re-edited for theatrical exhibition overseas. Four major types of films for theatrical release are

made by the company: motion pictures using (a) animated cartoon techniques, (b) live actors, (c) live actors and animation, and (d) live nature action. This diversification, while permitting a continuous production and marketing programme, has made it possible to increase the firm’s volume of business and income with less danger of saturating the market for its films than if only animated cartoons were being made. Althoug the larger Hollywood communication firms

may be thought of as the principal international traders in theatrical films and television material, there are many smaller concerns. Those discussed below have aggregate theatrical and television revenue only slightly larger than $10 million. The largest of this group is American International

Pictures, considered the major independent company in the industry. Release overseas to theatres and television is handled by foreign distributors who acquire rights to AIP films.

Considerably smaller is Avco Embassy Pictures Corporation, a subsidiary of the Avco Corporation. The film company, acquired by Avco in 1968, usually distributes about a dozen pictures annually. It produces films for theatrical and television release, and is a global distributor for independent domestic and foreign producers. Embassy provides foreign representation through sales offices in the United Kingdom, Italy, France, Japan and Australia, in addition to those in Un- ited States.2 Allied Artists Pictures Corporation is a subsidiary of

Allied Artists Industries. In addition to films, Allied Artists Industries manufactures motors homes and men’s sportswear, and distributes, imported consumer products and pharmaceuticals.3 There is another group of companies with small film

revenue which derive their principal business from licensing material to television. Probably the most important of these is Viacom International Inc.4As a continuation of the business previously conducted by CBS Enterprises, Viacom claims to be the most

successful television programme marketing organization in the world. It distributes television programmes domestically and to stations in more than 110 foreign countries. Viacom normally acquires from others the rights to

distribute programmes. In the past, the major source was the CBS Television Network, with the remainder being obtained chiefly from independent producers. In 1974 and 1975, about a third of Viacom’s revenue was attributable to material obtained from CBS. In 1972, Viacom began acquiring theatrical feature

films and those made especially for television. By the end of 1975, the firm had rights to 262 such motion pictures. Prior to 1976, Viacom had released 178 features in theatres and on television in 38 countries. In 1972 Viacom began developing and producing

television entertainment programmes. During 1975 and later, Viacorn’s highly diversified international marketing efforts included global broadcasts via satellite of sporting events. Through the first half of 1975, Viacom distributed

news and public affairs broadcasts and the CBS Newsfilm service to foreign television systems. However, CBS terminated this arrangement in 1975 even though Viacom considered such material to be an effective complement ot the distribution of entertainment programmes. In any case news filsm distribution was not a major source of revenue for the company. Filmways Inc. is also engaged in film and TV

programme production and international distribution, as well as publishing and recording services. Anothers subsidiary, Filmways International Ltd,

distributes theatrical films and TV programmes through representatives in France, Greece, Spain, the United Kingdom, Japan, Philippines, Australia, Argentina, Brazil, Mexico and Canada. Filmways also produces features films for television and motion pictures for global release, some financed and distributed by MCA’s subsidiary, Universal?

1. Financial and organizational information about American International Productions, Inc., is drawn from annual reports to stockholders and form 10-K reports to the Securities and Exchange Commission.

2. Avco Corporation is a diversified company engaged in the following activities: consumer loans; health; life and casualty insurance; credit card operation (Carte Blanche); manufacture of commercial products such as aircraft engines and wings and specialized f a m equimpent; production for the government of defense and aerospace equipment; land development; and motion picture distribution. Financial and organizational information about Avco Corporation is drawn from annual reports to stockholders and Form 10 - K reports to the Securities and Exchange Commission.

3. Financial and organizational information about Allied Artists Industries is drawn from annual reports to stockholders and Form 10-K reports to the Securities and Exchange Commission.

4. Financial and organizational information about Viacom International Inc. is drawn chiefly from annual reports to stockholders and Form 10-K reports to the Securities and Exchange Commission.

5. Financial and organizational information about Filmways, Inc. is drawn from mannual reports to stockholders and Form 10 - K reports to the Securities and Exchange Com- mission.

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Metromedia Inc. produces television material for global distribution through its subsidiary, Metromedia Producers Corporation (MPC). The parent firm’s other activities include radio and television broadcasting in the United States, outdoor and direct mail advertising, publishing, presentation of touring ice shows, and operation of ice-skating rinks. During 1975, MPC planned to acquire foreign syndication rights to television series by 1977, the company was claiming record foreign sales, thanks to foreign distribution. 1 Another syndication firm is National Telefilm

Associates, Inc. (NTA), three-quarters owned by Tele- Communications, Inc., primarily a cable television company, which also provides pay television via cable and is in the microwawe relay business. In April 1973, NTA acquired all the outstanding stock of NBC films and NBC Canada Ltd, and certain assets of NBC Inter- national U d , from the National Broadcasting Com- pany. These subsidiaries had comprised NBC’s syndication and non-network programme distribution business, which NBC was required to dispose of owing to FCC rules that also affected CBS and A B C . Worldvision Enterprises Inc. was formed by several

broadcasting executives in 1973 when American Broadcasting Companies, Inc. divetted itself of its programme syndication division as required by FCC rules. The new firm acquired foreign and domestic distribution rights to all programmes then held by ABC Films, and continued to distribute ABC sports programmes until the end of 1976. Based upon the material thus far presented, some

tentative conclusions may be offered about the value of the overseas markets to American motion picture and television companies. It must be stressed, however, that not all companies report their revenues in ways that make possible a complete picture of their foreign business, nor a good comparison among them. In 1975, RCA and CBS derived about $1.2 billion from foreign operations; the corresponding figure for ABC, however, is not reported publicly. The major portions of this amount are from sales of hardware (mostly for RCA), recorded music, and published materials, but a very little (and undetermined) amount from the sale of sports and news programmes, and also from the licensing to others of entertainment programmes for foreign distribution. Combining the available data for American

broadcasting and motion picture companies during 1975 or an overlapping accounting year, one finds that foreign activities yielded more than $2 billion in revenue. (This excludes, as noted above, ome amounts not publicly reported: the foreign revenues of ABC and several motion picture and television programme distribution firms, as well as the Canadian revenue of a number of companies). The actual total amount could well have been $2.5 to $2.75 billion. Concerning theatrical operations, MCA, Fox,

Paramount, and Cinema International Corporation are significant owners of foreign theatres. But only Fox and Paramount report publicly their revenues from theatrical operations, which in 1975 amounted to $147.3 million.

Other measures are available for estimating American companies’ international motion picture and television programme business. The Motion Picture Ex- port Association of America (MPEAAY has estimated that in 1971 about $305 million was remitted to the Un- ited States from overseas by American companies from the rental or licensing of filmed material. O f this amount about $230 million were derived from theatrical release and the remainder, $75 million, from television release. In 1972, the MPEAA estimated that $342 million

were remitted to the United States by American firms; about $258 million came from theatrical release and $84 million from television. Member companies of the MPEAA were said to have remitted $232 million from theatres and $67 million from television. Other companies reportedly remitted $26 million from theatrical release and $ 17 million from television. The MPEAA estimated for 1973 that total

remittances were 5390 million, of which $275 million came from theatrical release and $115 million from television. MPEAA member companies remitted $250 million from theatres and $97 million from television, whereas other firms remitted $25 million from theatres and $18 million from television. For 1974, the MPEAA declared total remittances of

$460 million: O f this amount, $350 million came from theatrical release and $1 10 million from television. The nine members of the MPEAA were said to have remitted $400 million, and all other companies $60 million. The MPEAA estimated that for 1975 foreing receipts

were about $530 million. About 80 per cent of this amout, $424 million, came from release of material to theatres and the remainder, about $106 million, from television distribution. For 1976, the MPEAA claimed that its member com-

panies received abroad approximately $700 million in rental fees, of which a little more than $462 million came from theatres and the remainder from television licensing. According to the MPEAA, this resulted in a positive contribution of some $400 million to the U.S. balance of payments. In hat year, about 49.5 per cent of theatrical revenues for member companies came from abroad, whereas the foreign market provided about 23.4 per cent of ail television revenue?

1. Financial and organizational information about Metromedia, Inc., is drawn from annual reports to stockholders and Form 10-K reports to the Securities and Exchange Commission.

2. MPEAA member companies are: Allied Artists Internatio- nal Corporation, Avco Embassy Pictures Overseas Corporation, Columbia Pictures International Corpora- tion, Metro-Godlwyn Mayer, Inc., Paramount Pictures Corporation, Twentieth Century-Fox International Corporation, United Artists Corporation, Universal Inter- national Films, inc., and Warner Bros. International.

3. Jack Valenti, president, Motion Picture Export Association of America, statement in International Communications and Information, hearings before the Subcommitte on In- ternational Operations of the Committee on Foreign Relations, United States Senate, 95th Congress, Ist Ses- sion. Washington, D.C., Government Printing Ofice, 1977, pp. 210 - 213.

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Based upon these MPEAA data, obtained from information submitted by member firms, it seems that about three dollars are earned from foreign theatrical releases of films for every dollar from television release. The nine MPEAA member companies are responsible for approximately 90 per cent of the dollars said to be remitted to the United States from foreign theatrical and television release. Within this group of nine, Allied Artists and Avco Embassy are small firms, so the vast proportion of revenue for the entire film industry is earned by just seven companies. Other data originating with the Motion Picture Ex-

port Association of America, and published in the American trade newspaper Vuriefy,l indicate that in 1977, total overseas theatrical film rentals only for the MPEAA members were $563.3 million. The top fifteen foreign markets for American companies in 1977, with their estimated rentals, were: (1) Canada, $64.3 million; (2) Federal Republic of Germany, $51.7 million; (3) Japan, $48.9 million; (4) France, $46.5 million; (5) Italy, $39.6 million; (6) United Kingdom, $36.1 million; (7) Spain, $29.3 million; (8) Australia, $26.1 million; (9) Brazil, $2 l .2 million; (10) Mexico, $17. l million; (11) South Africa, $11.8 millon; (12) Sweden, $10.4 million; (13) Netherlands, $9.4 million; (14) Switzerland, $8.9 million; and (15) Argentina, $8.8 million. The United States Government does not measure or

record the overseas earnings of American motion pictures and only monitors the overseas business of American film and television programme distribution companies as it affects the balance of payments. The Department of Commerce provides annual figures on direct investment receipts - that it, net payments to American parent companies by their foreign affiliates for the rental of films abroad. The data do not represent total rental revenue earned overseas by American companies, but only the net amounts paid by subsidiaries to American parent companies. The figures exclude payments made to American firms by unaffiliated companies abroad. These data reveal that in 1975 royalty payments to

American parents companies by their foreign affiliates in respect of film rentals amounted to $293 million. Of this sum, $11 1 million came from the nine members of the European Economic Community, $24 million from the rest of Europe, $75 million from Australia, Japan N e w Zealand, and South Africa, $36 million from Latin America, and $26 million from Canada. The remaining $2 1 million came from other parts of the world.2

Parallel data from the Department of Commerce, pertaining to the volume of exports of motion picture film and sound tracks, provide additional indicators of the international activity of American film and television programme companies. In 1975, for example, approximately 483.7 million linear feet of exposed and developed motion picture film were exported from the United States. This included 16 m m , 35 mm and larger sizes, as well as feature films, short subjects, and sound tracks. The value declared by exporters was $39.2 million, although this obviously has no relationship to the

anticipated box office receipts, rental value or production costs, and at best reflects the cost of the raw stock and printing. In the same year, imports of motion picture film totalled 68 illion linear feet with a declared value of about $14 million3

Trade associations

Industry trade associations are on important of the circulation of American film and television programmes. They have the role of assuring suitable revenues and keeping markets open by reducing trade barriers and other restrictions. Althougt United States law prohibits agreements restraining commerce among competitors in the domestic market, it makes an exemp- tion where overseas trade is concerned. The Webb- Pomerene Export Trade Act of 1918 allows domestic competitors to co-operate in foreign trade by forming export associations that might otherwise be held illegal under anti-trust laws. Companies supposedly com- petivive in the American market are allowed to com- bine, to fix prices, and to allocate among themselves their foreign customers.4 This legislation was one of the United States

Government's earliest efforts to stimulate exporting by small and medium-size firms at a time when few companies were concerned with foreign markets. But a 1967 study by the Federal Trade Commission found that, in reality, just the opposite actually took place; companies that 'have gained advantages from the act (have) not been the smaller firms in our economy, but rather those which are large in an absolute sense and which simultaneously have major postions in the markets they serve'? A number of associations in the motion picture and

television field have been organized under terms of the Webb-Pomerene Act.

The following observation of the Federal Trate C o m - mission holds true for the late 1970s:

Although these associations do not function as selling agents for their members, the range of their activity is nervertheless quite extensive. Serving as negotiating agents with foreign governments is among their most important functions. Negotiations relate to such matters as license quotas, taxation, currency convertibility, and tariffs. The associations operate to inform members of impending changes in treatment anywhere in the world and they negotiate modifications or concessions in treatment. Where necessary, they serve' to

1. Variety (New York City), Vol. CCXCI, . No. 6, 14 June, 1978, p. 3; Vol. CCXCI, No. 7, 21 June 1978, p. 3.

2. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Economic Analysis, International Investment Division, Research branch.

3. Department of Commerce, U.S. exports schedule B, com- modity by country, 1975; US. exports of domestic marchandise, 1975; U.S. general imports, 1975; and Service industries, trends and prospects, August 1975.

4. See Federal Trade Commission, Webb-Pomerene Associations: a SO- Xear Review Washington, D.C., Government Printing Office, June 10967.

5. Ibid., p. 34.

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implement group boycotts. Beyond this, the associations actively promote unifomity in such matters as booking practives and fee (rental) structures among their various member distributors. In a few instances the motion picture association has assisted in financing theater construction.

The most important of these groups is the Motion Picture Export Association of America (incorporated in 1945), which is the international arm of the Motion Picture Association of America. By bringing together 'the nine largest producers-distributors of film in the world'l and allowing them to act in concert through a single organization, the MPEAA presents a Kind of united front to other nations of the world. In addition to headquarters in the United States, the MPEAA maintained, as of 1977, offices in Paris, London, Rome, N e w delhi, Manila, Mexico City and Rio de Janeiro. In addition, forty-two boards composed of representatives from member companies existed in forty-two other countries, where they keep abreast of, and deal with, developments there that affect American motion picture interests. 2 A parallel group is the American Motion Picture Ex-

port Company (Africa) Inc. (AMPEC), established in Aprii 1961, with offices in Nigeria. The seven major Hollywood companies (all MPEAA members) became members of AMPEC and licensed it to distribute their films and to act as their sole bargaining agent and representative in five English-speaking African nationS.Nigeria has been the most important market serviced by AMPEC. For French-speaking countries south of the Sahara,

the major American film companies organized in September 1969 the Wewt Africa Film Export Co. Inc., changing its name the following December to Afram Films Inc. This association, whose members belong to the MPEAA, also is registered under the Webb- pomerene Act, and has the same duties as AMPEC. Afram, with offices in Senegal, was chartered originally to distibute the films of its seven members in fifteen African countries, and in 1973 two more nations were added to its service area. When the exporting of television programmes took on

added significance as a business in the mid- 1850s, some American firms in the film and broadcasting industries believed it was necessary to do for television what the MPEAA had been doing for motion pictures. Accordingly, the Television Program Export Associa- tion (TPEA) was created in December 1959. Its members were the three television networks, independent television programme producers and distributors, and television programme subsidiaries of some of the motion picture companies. For several reasons, the TPEA became inactive in the

late 1960s. The television programme production and distribution business already had been shifting from the networks to the film companies, and the latter believed it was more efficient to handle trade matters through the Television Committee of the MPEA than to support the TPEA, a separate and parallel group. It also seemed that the networks were uneasy about being part of an export cartel, in view of their domestic broadcast

licenses and government requirements that they be competitive. Moreover, the television programme export business was small compared to that motion pictures, and some companies did not seem willing to make the necessary commitments to keep the TPEA alive? One further objective of trade associations is the

maintenance of a close relationship with various services of the United States Government, particularly those that deal with international trade and diplomatic relations. Most governments, of course, including that of the United States, try to stimulate exporting by all domestic businesses. However, in the past the United States. Government has been especially interested in foreign distribution of American media materials because of the favourable image they were through to create for the United States! The economic power of films distributed abroad by

American multinational companies is particularly im- pressive, because less than 10 per cent of the features produced in the world in any given year are made in the United States, yet for years they have occupied about half the screen time in world theatres (excluding those in socialist countries). According to a representative of the MPEAA, much of this success is attributable to the worldwide distribution networks of the major American film companies. The deep penetration of world markets by American

motion pictures, an MPEAA executive once observed, has been accomplished in spite of trade restrictions directed at them. The exportation of American media materials, moreover, is said to contribute positively to the United States' balance of payments, quite apart from revenues earned directly by them. 'We know, an MPEAA official has asserted, 'that motion picture and television programs are one of the most effective means of creating demand for American goods in foreign markets. When attractive U.S. products are seen on the screen, it generates an immediate demand for them which benefits other American export industries.5

Concluding notes

Although isolated financial and organization details can be assembled to outline the shape of transnational film and television business, corporate secrecy hides some of the most elementary aspects of the operations of multinational companies, such as specific management strategy, marketing tactics, contract terms, product-line revenue by country, etc. The creation of public

1. Valenti, op cit., p. 209. 2. Valenti, ibid., p. 209. 3. Motion Picture Export Association of America, Interim Report on Television, October 21, 1960, pp. 2, 4.

4. See Thomas H. Guback, 'Hollywood's International Market', in Tino Ballio (ed.), The American Film Industry, pp. 387 - 409, Madison, University of Wisconsin Press, 1976; and United States Information Agency, Research and Reference Service, The Impact of American Com- mercial Movies in Western Europe, December 1962.

5. George C. Vietheer, 'Industry Held Its O w n Overseas in Year if Economic Turmoil', Motion Picture Hearald (New York City), Vol. CCXLII, No. 1, January 1972, p. 8.

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ignorance through the selective withlolding of information about a social process as crucial as communication is to be regretted. However, in examining a medium or two very

closely, one can lose sight of their integration into a much broader global pattern that involves not only film and television, but other media, as well as advertising, marketing research, computer networks, and large-scale investment. Theatrical films and television programmes must be thought of as parts of a massive flow that seems to emanate from a few centres in highly industrialized, market-dominated societies. This outpouring embraces the more traditional forms of public entertainment and news, as well as raw information and knowledge whose consumers need not necessarily be the mass public. A cardinal characteristic is that the various forms of communication in this flow are seen by their purveyors as commodities subject to market-place forces. and this es- tablishes the bench-marks for their production and consumption. In this respect, an advantage enjoyed by American

transnationals is the size of their domestic market, which has allowed production to be on a financial level often dwarfing competitors. While this in itself does not insure superior products, it has permitted the amassing of capital that supports worldwide systems for distributing products. Indeed, the principal American motion picture firms contitute the only integrated, worldwide network for theatrical film distribution, which at the same time facilitates he global dissemination of material for television. In the other direction, the gateway to the American

market is through American distribution firms, because foreign companies do not maintain film exchanges in the United States. Consequently, in the United States, the commercial theatrical distribution of foreign films is negligible. Aside from a few French, Italian, or British films - sometimes productions in which American companies have investments - and some Spanish-language and C hinese-language films for ethnic audiences, film- producing countries of the world can expect no reciprocity in the United States through commercial distribution and exhibition circuits. There are, of course, no formal governmental import barriers or quotas to protect the American industry, but a restricted market exists none the less. Its historical roots are in the vertically-integrated film industry that existed into the early 1950s. Overseas, American films also have cultivated

patterns of public taste for decades, and this un- doubtedly has facilitated the distribution of American television material, which is made by the same industrial complex. From a solid domestic market, the transnationals have staked out their foreign territories. In the 1920s and 1930s, their exportation was ration- alized by arguments in favour of convention-free trade; foreign trade restrictions were regarded as hindrances to the natural operation of market forces. In the late 1040s end the 195Os, the necessity of disseminating America’s image in the Cold War became an added reason for exportation. In the late 1960s and the 1970s, American films’ positive contribution to the balance of payments

became still another industry-espoused rationalization of its export programme. In contrast to the number of theatrical films produced

in some countries (e.g., India, Japan), the level of production in the United States is not great, and in 1976 the MPAA companies released less than 125 pictures. Dominance in today’s world markets, therefore, stems less from volume of production and more from the marketing and distribution machinery that has grown over decades. The upward spiral in costs has worked to restrain

large-volume production by the big companies, and has necessitated sophisticated, expensive marketing campaigns to stimulate audience acceptance of high- risk, high-budget films, nationally as well as abroad. These trends are not likely to be reversed in the immediate future, and will be accompanied by increased cross-media saturation for film products with book and recorded music tie-ins. Aside from forcing the diverstiture of American

theatrical chains by production-distribution companies, American anti-trust laws have done little to disrupt domestic diversification by transnational film enterprises or to dismantle their cross-media ownership structures. These structures carry over into foreign operations. Although American production has tended in recent times towards being spatially decentralized, concentration in ownership and control continues un- abated.

It is clear that although multinational firm’s subsidiaries incorporated overseas are legally established foreign companies, they are not independent. They are operated to serve the interests of their parents companies. Particularly in the production and distribution of media materials by transnational firms, ultimate decisions customarily are made in the firms’ home countries. Consequently, host nations are subjet to forces over which they have little control, as the transnationals move investments, production facilities, and products to suit their own needs?Moreover, the interests of transnationals often are aided by some foreign businesses enlisted as commercial allies in the production, distribution, or retail functions. Multinatio- nal enterprises are also assisted loy multinational banking establishments that facilitate global commerce. Although many countries, from time to time, have in-

stituted trade barriers to deal with these matters, have created funds to stimulate local film industries, or have set limits on the quantity and quality of foreign material to be televised, these efforts customarily have been

1. Although the flow normally is seen as -being from industrialized to non-industrialized countries, one should not ignore that some highly industrialized nations are in a dependent position as far as theatrical films and television programming are concerned and import these in significant quantities.

2. In the labour movement, the growth of transnationals was an important reason for the founding in London, in 1974, of the International Federation of Unions of Audio-visual Workers (FISTAV), which brings together broadcasting, theatrical and laboratory worders from dozens of countries.

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made without attention to the interlocking relationship between film and other media, and the positions they have in the general cultural climate, particularly as it is affected by the operations of transnationals. Considera- tion of a national communications policy allows these issues to be raised and assessments to be made of what interests communications serve and what priorities and ownership patterns the media should have.

Other transnational television and film businesses

The international film industry had already created a world-wide distribution system for American films before the coming of television. Consequently, television has been a new business for the major film companies which has not insolved creating new distribution networks. Furthermore, the major broadcasting companies with a strong production centres and foreign sales departments also have been able to achieve and maintain a dominant position in world television programme markets without necessarily owning or controlling subsidiaries or fliliates abroad.

Television and film industries in the United Kingdom and Hong Kong

In the United Kingdom exports have been a source of revenue to the book publishing industry for a long time. In recent years, the export of British television programmes also has become a major source of revenue, and some of the major corporations make almost a third of their total sales in foreign countries. The major British corporations in the transnational television business are the non-commercial British Broadcasting Corporation and five of the commercial companies: Associated Television Network Ltd (ATV), Thames TV Ltd, London Weekend Television, Yorkshire Tv, and Granada TV. These corporations do not deal directly in transnational distribution and marketing, but have either subsidiaries or international divisions that take care of their foreign operations. The relations of these major corporations with their marketing links are presented in Table 9. Practically all the British television programmes abroad are distributed by these companies.

The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a non-commercial broadcasting organisation that operates under certain constitutional documents: the Charters of the BBC. The BBC is regarded as a strictly British corporation that produces programmes for the British audience. Consequently, it can be studied in the context of transnational television only through its worldwide distribution of television programmes. In this respect a separate company, BBC Enterprises,

was created in 1960 to service the growing demands of international distribution of TV programmes. BBC Enterprises is a commercial group of the BBC that brings money to the B B C and makes BBC programmes available in world markets. The BBC Enterprises Group includes seven main divisions: TV Programmes sales; Education and Training Sales and Hire; Film Library Sales; Production Facilities; Character Merchandising; Exhibition; and BBC Records. In the financial year ended in March 1975, BBC

Enterprises achieved total gross sales of about $10 million (5 million pounds) from all of its divisions. Televi- sion programme exports to Africa, the Middle East and Japan were particularly strong and the United States was the most important market. The worldwide television sale of the BBC programmes in television, non- theatrical and film library markets earned some $8 million (4 million pounds). Sales to the thirty C o m - monwealth countries grossed over $2 million (1.2 million pounds), thus accounting for over a quarter of the total foreign sales. In 1960, BBC Enterprises sold 1,200 programmes to

twenty countries. In the 1970s the number of titles sold annually to over ninety countries was ten times greater. From London, Sydney and Toronto alone, BBC Enterprises distributed a total of 7,418 hours of television programmes to seventy countries in 1974 - 1975. According to Peter Dimmock, General Manager, the sales increased rapidly in 1972 - 73 for a number of reasons: the company concentrated more on foreign sales, an agreement was made in the United states with Time-Life, and the two European, one Middle Eastern and one Far Eastern sales agents and the Sydney and Toronto offices were active. Approximately 10 - 15 per cent of the BBC producions goes to foreign markets. Because of the world’s economic situation it is expected that most countries cannot produce enough of their own

TABLE 9. Major British corporations in transnational television in the mid- 1970s

Corporation Transnational distributor

The British Broadcasting Corporation Associated Television Corporation Limited (ATV) Thames Television Limited

London Weekend Television Richard Price Yorkshire Television Trident Television Granada Television

B B C Enterprises Incorporated Television Company Limited (ITC) Thames Television International Limited

Granada Television International Division

32

programmes, but will buy them from the big producing and distributing companies. The distribution activities of B B C Enterprises are

conducted through its London headquarters, through its offices in Sydney and Toronto, and through sales representatives travelling throughout the world. In 1975, over 1,300 B B C - TV films and series were

available to industry, educational institutions, and film libraries throughout the world. Many of the titles were sold on video-cassettes. Major foreign areas for sales were Australia, New Zealand, and Canada. The time- Life multi-media division achieved sales of more than $1 million in American non-theatrical markets.

The other British television corporations are commercial companies operating on regional bases but forming a joint network of Independent Television (ITV); ITV is composed of fifteen programme companies and of Independent Television News. Although the emphasis has been on regional coverage and origina- tion, the five central companies that are also known in the transnational television markets dominate the ITV network. The commercial broadcasting corporations are also British companies like the BBC and are producing programmes for the British audience. These programmes are sold abroad, but they are not produced expresser for international markets. However, when a company makes almost a third of its sales abroad, its transnational interests are obvious. One of the major commercial television corporations

engaged in transnational business is ATV Network Ltd, a member of a widely diversified group, Associated Television Corporation Limited. It is located in Birmingham and provides television programmes in the Midlands for the local area and for the ITV nationwide network. Nearly 60 per cent of the ATV programmes are distributed to the whole of the United Kingdom. Programmes for the international market amount to less than 3 per cent of the company’s output, although they account for a major share of the foreing revenue of the British TV exports. Besides television, the ATV Corporation is active in

film making, theatres, recordings, music, publishing, the manufacture and supply of telephone answering equipment, theatrical costumes, and merchandising and property companies. The revenue of the ATV Corpora- tion in 1975 was more than $120 million (60 million pounds) and profit after taxation was almost $6 million (3 million pounds). The main shareholders of ATV corporation are the Internationl Publishing Corporation Ltd, Mirror Group News papers Ltd, and IPC Magazines Ltd. The transnational distribution of ATV films and

programmes is handled by the following subsidiaries: Associated Training and Education Company Ltd, Halas and Batchelor Animation Ltd (50-per-cent owned), Independent Television Corporation, ITC of Canada Ltd, Incorporated Television Company Ltd. In general the foreign sales of ATV programmes are handled by Independent Television Company Ltd (ITC). ATV/ITC programmes have been sold to more than

100 countries, with the main market in the United

States. ITC operations in 1974 - 1975 saw a great increase in feature film sales. Many of the ATV programmes are Co-financed by foreign corporations. In 1975, ATV had seven Co-productions with European partners. ITC is both a film production company for television and other commercial markets and the international arm of ATV. In 1974, ITC created a new department, World Film Sales, to handle the theatrical distribution of ITC’s feature films outside the United States and Canada. North America is handled by such American distributors as Avco Embassy. The film production and distribution subsidiaries of

ATV have been important sources of the company’s revenue at home and abroad. The production subsidiary still enjoys worldwide receipts from film series that were made in the earliest years of the company’s trading. ITC’s Co-productions with Radio televisione Italiana (RAI) are co-financed by ABC Entertainment Inc. and distributed by Avco Embassy in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom, and by ITC in the rest of the world. Thames Television Ltd broadcasts to the London

ITV area on week-days. Thames is a comparatively small company employing fewer than 1,750 staff, compared with, for example, BBC TV’s 15,000. In 1974 - 75, the net profit after taxes was almost $2.6 million (1.3 million pounds). According to Thames Television’s own sources, all Thames productions are made for London and national audiences, with no concessions to foreign requirements. Nevertheless, Thames programmes are now seen in eighty-seven countries, with the main markets being the English-speaking C o m - monwealth and the United States. All Thames programme departments contribute to foreign sales, including the schools and religious progammes abroad. Thames television is owned jointly by EM1 Ltd and Rediffusion Television Ltd. The company, in turn, fully owns four subsidiaries, of which Euston Films Ltd produces television films, and Thames Television Inter- national Ltd (created in 1974 - 75) carries out foreign sales of Thames programmes. The foreign sales of Thames programmes have shown

a fourfold increase since 1971 - 72. According to Thames Television sources, the company is second only to the BBC as a British television programme exporter Thames’s exports are worth about a third of the exports of the BBC. The main purchasers are the English- speaking countries (with the principal market being once again the United States), but for other areas Thames has developed its own dubbing system to accelerate the progress of sales in foreign - language markets. Thames Television is developing new areas of activity, such as feature film production with EM1 Films, and radio broadcasting. However, according to its Chairman, the future of Thames Television depends on television programmes and the company intends ’to stay in the forefront in entertainment, drama, current afairs and documentaries’. The company is very interested in co-financing. For example, a Co-production on Joseph Conrad has been filmed both in Poland and in the United Kingdom in co-operation with the Polish television.

33

Thames also publishes books related to its programmes; this is seen as part of the marketing structure. It is concentrating rather heavily on enduring programmes instead of series. Television is viewed as a stimulus for the publishing and record industries. The other major British commercial companies are

London Weekend Television, Yorkshire Television and Granada Television. Each provides a large share of ITV nationwide network programming. London Weekend, which operates only during weekends, is responsible for 43 per cent of the network programmes shown during the weekends. The international sales of London Wee- kend are handled by Richard Price. Yorkshire Television is a subsidiary of Trident

Television Ltd. About 80 per cent of Yorkshire programmes go into the national network. Trident Television, which was formed in 1970, provides a number of service functions for its two subsidiaries, Yorkshire Television and Tyne Tees Television, including the foreign distribution of programmes. Granada Television received its name in 1954 when

Granada Theatres diversified into television. The television company is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Granada Theatres Group. Its foreign sales are handled by Granada Television International Division. The other European television and film companies

have similar arrangements for their foreign distribution although they do not have such a dominant role as the American and British companies. The foreign sales of Italian television programmes from RAI, for example, are handled by SACIS (Societa per Azioni Commercial Iniziative Spettacolo), which distributed almost 1,400 hours of RAI telefilms abroad in 1974. The Federal Republic of Germany’s programmes are distributed internationally by TransTel. About 80 per cent of the programmes distributed by TransTel are produced by ARD television stations, or Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen (ZDF), Bavaria, Telepcol, Tele-Saar and Studio Hamburg, (Up to 90 per cent of dubbing is done by TransTel). One of the main film and television production

centres outside the United States is Hong Kong. The two production companies, Shaw Brothers and Golden Harvest, are both expanding transnationally. The main audience for their foreign distribution is the Chinese population in Asian countries exclusive of the People’s Republic of China). Shaw Brothers has had co- productions with British, American, European and Asian companies and is estimated to be the most successful film company in Southeast Asia. It produces about four films each month, providing work for 1,500 people. Golden Harvest is a conglomerate of twenty- four companies. It produces an average of fifteen Chinese and two English films a year, but employs in its studios only some 160 people. In 1973, the two companies produced 250 films together with subsidiaries and some Taiwanese companies. In 1976, 150 full-lengh features were produced. In addition to these two bi companies, there are some twenty film producers in Hong Kong that operate either independently or under contract to the two big companies.

Shaw Brothers and Golden Harvest maintain distribution throughout Asia. Shaw Brothers has 14 theatres in Hong Kong and 143 in Southeast Asia. It has a monopoly of Hong Kong-made films in Singapore and Malaysia, distributing them through Cathay Films. The Cathay organization is partly owned by the British Rank Organization. Golden Harvest owns 24 theatres, and exhibits in 500 theatres in Southeast Asia and Japan. It also supplies a worldwide network of almost 15,000 theatres, controlling theatres in the world’s major Chinese ethnic neighbourhoods.

Transnational newsfilm Agencies

Transnational newsfilm agencies perform a vital function by supplying television companies and networks with international news material. In large parts of the developing world, television companies are dependent on these agencies for almost all of their foreign news material. Among the Asian countries, for example, some 80 to 100 per cent of the foreign newsfilm material originates in newsfilm agencies. The productions of the newsfilm agencies form about a half of the international news exchange of the West European TV network, EUROVISION. Practically all television countries of the world subscribe to the services of the newsfilm agencies. Commentaries are usually done by the individual receiving companies. There are three major transnational newsfilm

agencies: Visnews (British), UPITN (BritisWAmerican), .and CBS News (American). T w o others, ABC News (American) and DPA - Etes (Federal Republic of Ger- many) are also entering the field. Consequently, the major transnational newsfilm agencies are based in Western countries. It seems that the socialist countries do not even plan to establish their own international newsfilm agencies, perhaps because they would be too costly. The activity of 2the Western newsfilm agencies has been strengthened because they have operated as parts of affiliates of he established major news agencies. The most widely used news agency, Visnews Ltd, is

owned by the British Broadcastin Corporatin; Cana- dian CBS, Australian A B C , N e w Sealand NZBC and the wnews agency Reuther, which itself is a transnational corporation owned by several newspapers. The newsfilsm services of Visnews reach practically all TV countries; film and tapes are distributed to 174 broadcasting companies in 97 countries. U P I T N owned is jointly by the British commercial

television new ITN, and the American news agency UPI. At one time Paramount Pictures also was a co- owner. The effectiveness of U P I T N is based on the international news-gathering network of UP1 and the technical facilities of ITN’s international news production. Daily shipments of newsfilms are made by UPITN form London, N e w York and other centers to more than 100 foreign television stations, excluding the United States. The DPA - Etes, based in the Federal Republic of

34

Germany, is regarded as an agency complementary to the major ones. DPA - Etes provides background information on current events, particularly about the relations of the Federal Republic of Germany with the European Economic Community and the developing countries. There are more than fifty TV companies receiving DPA news film, most of them in Latin America, and some in Africa, Asia and Europe. DPA - Etes co-operates actively whith the Pakistan Television through the Asian Television Service, distributing newsfilm to more than sixty countries.

Major non - American transnational corporations indirectly related to film and television

Among the 500 largest non - American corporations there are more than thirty that have relevance to the communications industries. However, most of them deal almost exclusively with hardware and are active in electronics, electrical machinery, domestic appliances, and publishing. The major transnational corporations outside the United States that are active in transnational film, television and audio-visual material, but which are not themselves television or film companies, include the British EM1 Ltd, the Rank Organization Ltd, and the Netherlands German (Federal Republic) PolygradPolydor, which is owned jointly by Philips and Siemens. EM1 is a transnational corporation active in the fields

of music, electronics and leisure. The EM1 Group employed, in the mid- 1970s, over 48,000 people in more than thirty countries. The parent company, EM1 Ltd, has over sixty principal operating subsidiaries in the United Kingdom and other countries. Total revenue is over $1 billion. Almost two-thirds of the EM1 Group’s total sales take piace abroad (61 per cent in

The worldwide activities of EM1 include the manufacture and sales of records and tapes; music publishing; medical, industrial and defense electronics; domestic electronic products; cinemas, hotels, and restaurants; film production and distribution; live theatre, bingo, squash and other entertainment, EM1 is also half owner of Thames Television. About half of the total sales of the EM1 Group comes from music. Electronics provide 30 per cent, leisure 13 per cent, and television business only 6 per cent. The business of television refers mainly to consumer electronics, such as colour television sets. The main areas of the EM1 Group’s business are Europe and North America, which together yield 81 per cent of total sales. The Group has established EM1 (North America) Inc. to co- ordinate its planned expansion in that area and to provise management services for its elextronics and film interests. It takes place alongside the established record and music business in the United States and Canada, headed by Capitol. The main film production company of the Group is EM1 Film Distributors. Their traditional markets are in Australia south Africa, and N e w Zealand. Some of the EM1 subsidiaries operate in the

1974 - 75).

fields of audio-visual programming and specialized film-making. The Rank Organization, along with its subsidiaries, is

active in leisure-time industries, manufacturing and property. Its leisure activities include film exhibition at home and abroad, film production and distribution, studios and laboratories, radio, television, hotels, etc. In manufacturing the company is active in production of scientific instruments, electronic equipment, radio and television receivers, educational products and theatre - lighting equipment, etc. The Rank Organization’s ther activities include manufacture abroad of television and radio receivers and audio equipment, film exhibition overseas, film distribution in the United Kingdom, and Southern Television, in which the Rank Organization has a 37.5 per-cent participation. The fixed assets of the RANK Organization in 1975

amounted to over $100 million (52.6 million pounds). Total revenue was about $700 million (352.7 million pounds). In 1975, the exports and overseas revenue of the company amounted to almost $400 million (195.7 million pounds). Almost 80 per cent of the foreing revenu (154.6 million pounds) comes from exports and activities of associated companies owned jointly with the Xerox Corporation. Profits from overseas subsidiaries, film revenues and royalties earned overseas, and shares of profits of overseas-associated companies make up about 5 per cent (9.7 million pounds) of foreign earnings, and the rest omes from the value of goods exported by the company and its subsidiaries. The main areas of Rank’s foreign operations in terms of revenues are Australia and North america, followed by Western Europe. The company and its subsidiaries employ almost 34,000 persons within the United Kingdom and more than 5,500 persons outside he home country. Rank’s interest in leisure activities has included the

owning of theatres at home and abroad. These operations also have embraced theatrical catering and television rentals in Ireland, Canada, Netherlands, and Portugal. The company has maintained its interest in film production. Rank also supports films by means of a distribution guarantee. (However, the problems of the British film production industry have not been resolved, and this is reflected in Rank’s film distribution, which has had reduced volume and contracting markets.) In Malaya and Singapore, the Rank Organization holds a 24-per-cent interest int the Cathay Organization (Malaya) and Cathay Organization Private Ltd. In N e w Zealand, Rank has a 50-per-cent interest in the Kerridge Odeon Corporation, which is active primarily in film exhibition. Other film exhibition companies associated with Rank include Ceylon Theatres Ltd in Sri Lanka, and the Greater Union Organization Pty. Ltd in Australia. Rank Xerox, which manufactures and markets

xerographic equipment for high-speed document copy- ing and duplicating, is owned jointly with the Rank Organization and Xerox Corporation. Rank Xerox has its own subsidiaries in Europe, Asia, Africa and Australiasia, and also in Japan through Fuji Xerox Co. Ltd, which is 50-per-cent owned by Rank Xerox. The

35

subsidiaries abroad are wholly owned, apart from those operating in Australasia, which are 75-per-cent owned, and Nigeria, which are 60-per-cent owned. Rand Xerox employs 30,000 people, Polygram is a software-producing company jointly

owned by two hard-ware-producting companies: N.V. Philips’ Gloeilampenfabrieken in Eindhoven, Nether- lands, and Siemens A.G. in Munich, Federal Republic of Germany. The Polygram Group has interests in several activities. Phonogram International B.V., in Baarn, and Polydor International G m b H in Hamburg, with their subsidiaries in many countries, represent the group’s activities in the field of sound carriers (recordings). Polytel companies of the group operate in he television and film sector. Polygram’s revenue in 1974 was $480.5 million, ear-

ned mainly in the field of sound carriers. Because of increasing costs, the earning capacity of the company in 1975 was difficult to maintain. In 1975 the music publishing houses of Polygram, C hapell and Inersong expanded their activities. The development in the telefilm markets by Polytel companies was less successful because of the financial situation of most European broadcasting companies. The recent expansion of Polygram has taken place mainly in the United States, the United Kingdom, and the Federal Republic of Germany.

Aspects of relations between transnational software and hardware industries

The transnational film and television industries are often related to the transnational hardware industry, as exemplified by the analysis of the major corporations. A very high level of transnationalization, according to the United Nations’ definitions, exists in the electronics industry. The transnational communication hardware industry produces radio and television receivers, transmitting equipment for broadcasting, motion picture projection equipment for theatres, and other audio-visual products. The production and distribution of this hardware are strongly dominated by transnational corporations. The transmitting equipment is usually imported from abroad, but receiving sets may be assembled locally in a foreign-owned subsidiary. Because the new audio-visual television markets in-

volve great investments and considerable risks, the hardware and software corporations have to some extent combined their marketing efforts. This can be exemplified by the case of Philips, the largest non- American corporation in the field. Philips started its transnational expansion very early in the century when it achieved a monopoly in the Netherlands and Belgian markets and was later allowed to enter the British market. 1 Since then, Philips has expanded its foreign operations, and a number of companies have joined in partnership with it. Today Philips and its associates has over 400,000 employlees throughout the world. In 1975, Philips and MCA Inc. joined their interests

to innovate the videodisc systems that had been

developed independently (Video Long Play System, VLP, and Discovision). The two partners reached an agreement whereby Philips would produce the standard type M C A / V L P video disc player for the European and American markets, while MCA would be primarily responsible for the production and distribution of software for this system because it is the parent company of Universal Studios. In addition, MCA would produce programmes especially attuned to the possibilities of the video disc. The two corporations intend to establish a licence office for dealing with third parties interested in using the Philips/MCA video-disc system commercially. Another company with hardwarehoftware interests

in the new video-disc technology is R C A , which together with its software affiliate NBC is developing a system competitive with that of PhilipdMCA. The Japanese Sony has recently joined with Paramount to form a new company, SonylParamount H o m e Entertainment Center, which plans to distribute a video- disc system as well. Another example of hardwarehoftware interests in

joint activities is provided by the pool in which Philips participates in combination with a number of European publishing companies, and which deals with the commercial application of the PIP system (Programmed In- dividuel Presentation), an audio-visual system developed by Philips. The initiative for setting up a pool for producers and distributors of software for the PIP system was taken by Philips in 1975. In addition to Philips, six software producers are participating. The purpose of the pool is to co-ordinate the production of cassettes, increase efficiency, provide better customer- service, and improve the protection of copyrights. Futher examples of hardwarehoftware joint interests

are companies such as the Polygram Group, owned by Philips and Siemens. Within Polygram, Polytel manufactures cassettes, which are often produced in co- operation with broadcasting corporations. As to the world market for consumer electronics, it is

estimated that almost a third is handled by Japanese companies (Matsushita, Sony, Hitachi, Toschiba, Mitsubishi, Sharp, and Sanyo) and a quarter by American firms (RCA, General Electric, Zenith, Motorala, Magnavox, Admiral and Sylvania).

Concluding notes

In world television there is very high level of transnationalization in the hardware-producing electronics industry. The major hardware industries usually establish joint enterprises with software companies for the leisure or home-entertainment industry. These corporations (like Polygram or Sony/Paramount H o m e Entertain- ment Center) operate transnationaliy. There is a tendency towards conglomeration in the transnational film, television, and audio-visual communication industries

1. Research carried out for the present study, 1975 - 76, at the University of Amsterdam by Frans Crone and Piet de Kroon..

36

although the development in the transnational software production and distribution follows a different pattern. From the business point of view, world television

sales have not shown equally rapid increases for the major American programme distributing companies; as they did earlier. Although the major British TV companies, for example, derive almost a third of their total sales from foreign countries, the transnational television business is looking for new areas for revenue. Historically, it has always been much smaller than the international film market. As in the first half of the 1970s, the American companies still dominate the world television programme market (as they do in motion pictures), but the British companies have increased their share, exporting a third of what the American do. If films for television are exluded, British TV sales are estimated even to exceed those of the American companies.

The main exporting television and film companies are usually members of widely diversified groups of leisure, music and entertainment industries. Most of the major transnational newsfilm agencies are also owned by British and American television companies. They operate on the Basis of the international production and distribution services of the television commpanies and the news-gathering networks of the dominant transnational news agencies (Reuten, UPI). In the major non - American transnational leisure and hardware industries (EMI, Rank), film and television corporations contribute only a small share of their operations. The nature and scope of their activities could be better understood by studying them as transnational leisure-time industries, and also as transnational hardware industries, especially active in producing consumer electronics.

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4. Case-studies: Thailand and Argentina

Muence of the transnational media in Thailand

The emergence of media culture in Thailand is a direct result of the country’s march into the modern world system, set in motion by nineteenth century colonialism. The responses of the Thai elite to modern communication technology imported from the West have always been positive because Thai culture historically has been inclined to receive changes introduced by foreign cultures. However, these changes and the transition rom the era of absolute monarchy to the era of the ’bureaucratic polity’ did not alter the basic Thai social- institutional structure, which has been described as follows:

Thai society is (stili) characterized by a gross two-class structure, in which the classes are physically as well as economically separated .... The rural agrarian segment is separated geographically from the urban ruling segment. The agrarian segment is, in the main land-owning and survives by a quasi-subsistence economy. The ruling segment is salaried (when its members own property, this is usually urban or sub- urban) and lives on a cash economy!

Historically, the interest in extending and strengthening territorial control led very early to restructuring the communication process in the country by the gradual linking of different levels and their incorporation into a relatively unified system. Thus, during the period of monarchy modern and powerful means of mass communication were enthusiastically introduced. Te initial steps taken by the Thai kings to introduce print technology set a pattern for later attitudes towards other new communication technology. Cinema was introduced early in this century and expanded rapidly. The radio came to Thailand and, unlike print and cinema, it has been from the very beginning (193 1) a government-controlled venture. There has been a rapid growth of radio stations during the last decades, but they serve mainly as organs for different traveles of the bureaucracy. Almost all radio stations are self- supporting through the sale of advertising. Television has followed a similar pattern since its introduction in 1955, and the present number of television stations according to some observers, exceeds the country’s actual needs. In the 1950s Thailand began to concentrate on

American-induced economic development. Transnationl communication organization that entered the country during the second half of this century

included news agencies, film distribution companies, marketing research units, advertising firms, television programme agents, hardware dealers, etc. In addition, national communication software such as books, journals, magazines, phonograph records, theatrical films, TV programmes, etc., also entered freely. In some cases, direct investments have been made by transnational corporations in the local media for example, in newspapers and satellite connections.

The economic movements that began in the 1950s greatly affected the mass media situation in Thailand, since the amount spent on advertising through the various media was artificially increased. According to the Bank of Thailand, in 1960 only $5.9 million was paid for advertising of all kinds in the kingdom, and in 1971 an estimated $322.5 million, while in 1974 the total advertising budger paid to the mass edia was calculated to be $60 million. During this period of artificial growth the government-controlled media organizations operated on a commercial basis, namely radio and television, expandedi n number at the fastest rate ever known, as advertising revenue from the ’cultural industry’, mostly foreign-owned, flowed in to give financial support. Advertising revenue received by the mass media in 1975 is shown in Table 10.

TABLE 10. Advertising revenue received by the mass media in Thailand in 1975

Revenue Media

Million baht Million U.S.$ 3%

Radio stations 360 18 30 Television stations 300 15 25 Daily news papers 260 13 22 Magazines 60 3 5 Cinema theatres 1 O0 5 8 Others 120 6 10

TOTAL 1 200 60 100

-

Source: Departement of Business Conditions, the Bank of Thailand.

1. David Wikon, Politics in Thailand, New York, Cornell University Press, 1962, P. 275.

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TABLE 11. Mass media resources and their distribution in Thailand

Media Total Bangkok- All other Thonburi % areas %

Publishing houses National dailies (circulation) Regional newspapers (circulation) General Magazines (circulation)

Government Journals (circulation) Radio Stations (radio sets)

Television Stations (television sets) Cinema theatres (cinema seats) Cinema producers Cinema distributors

2,000 25

1,500,000 130

130,000 300

300,000 337

3 3 7,000 20 1

5,369,735 9

761,015 634

366,65 1 140 169

1,400 25

800,000 - - 200

150,000 331

168,500 69

599,527 4

374,112 96

95,898 140 87

IO 100 53 - - 61 50 100 50 33 1 1 44 49 15 26 100 51

600

700,000 130

130,000 1 O0

150,000

-

-

168,500 132

4,761,208 5

386,843 538

270,753

82 -

50

47 100 1 O0 33 50

50 67 89 56 51 85 74

49

-

-

-

Sources: Information on publishing houses and general magazines: the Bangkok Post, 19 June 1975; figures on national dailies and regional newspapers: Thai- American Business, August 1916; data on government journals: Sulak Sivaraksa, Idormation imbalance in the Printing Media in Siam, Asian Mass Com- munication Research and Information Center, Singapore, 1975, facts on radio and television: Public Relations Department and National Statistical Office; Materials on cinema: Department of Revenue, the Thai Motion Picture Producers Association (TMPPA), and the Motion Picture Exhibitor Association (MPEA).

Although there are some eighty advertising agencies in Thailand, more than half of the in revenue in 1974 went to a handful of big agencies, mostly foreign- controlled. Thailand's topten agencies, according to their billing records, are: Ted Bates Ltd, Ogilv & Master Ltd, Diethelm Advertising Ltd, Ling-McCann Ericson Ltd, SSC & B. Lintas, C.J.L. Niramit, Densu Ltd, Leo Burnett Ptc. Ltd, Grant International Inc., and Associated Communication Ltd.

The multinational agencies in advertising received most of the advertising revenue in the country because advertising is by and large an activity controlled by the multinational corporations in the various fields that operate in Thailand, especially those dealing with consumer goods and services.

Since the 1950s, the growth of communication hardware accumulated by the bureaucratic agencies has been spectacular, with many ministries and departments operating their own radio and TV stations. Others have their own communication systems, despite postal and telegraph services. Compared with the mass media in the private sector, the government media have grown at a much faster rate. Table 1 1 illustrates the mass media resources accumulated by both the government and private sector up to the present.

T o allow a comparative perspective, the distribution of media resources is divided into in the table 'Bangkok - Thonburi' (both highly urbanized, and the centres of governmental, industrial and commercial life, comprising about 1 1 per cent of the total population) and 'all other areas' (the rest of the country, predominantly agricultural, with 80 per cent of the population).

A review of the available information reveals that (a) most media organizations are located in Bangkok-Thonburi and most of their products are consumed by people living the same area, (b) while media products originating in this area go to the people living in 'all other areas', there is no information flow in the reverse direction, and (c) media resources in ail fields show an inbalanced picture, except in radio and, to a certain extent, cinema.

Film

Motion pictures were introduced by Japanese military and business men at the beginning of the century. In 1916 Thai businessmen formed the first film import company in the country, and theatres have mushroomed ever since. In 1937, Bangkok alone had ten theatres and, as the number grew, the demand for foreign feature films also increased. Film programmes scheduled in Thailand were for the most part of American origin in those early days.' In 1927, the Thai began to make films themselves.

Although the Thai film industry has been encouraged from the very beginning, its growth has been very slow. Thailand's first film censorship law was promulgated

in 1930, indicating that the film business prior to that date was not so large, although the popularity of films

1. See Karjanakpun (pseudonym), The Past Era of Musical Cinema and Theater, Bangkok, Raungsil Press, 1975, (in Thai).

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T A B L E 12. Number of cinema theaters, seats and showings in Thailand

Provincial Bangkok- Total Rural % urban % Thonburi %

Cinema theaters 634 70 1 1 468 74 96 15 Cinema seats 366,65 1 13,309 4 257,444 70 95,898 26 Showings per week 13,044 1,260 10 8,424 64 3,360 26 Showings per year 678,288 65,520 10 438,048 64 174,720 26

was well established in the country ever since their initial introduction. The volume of activities related to cinema business has steadily increased since the 1950s, along with rapid population growth and economic, social and cultural changes. Population growth explains, at least in part, the expanding size of the potential film market: in 1929 there was a population of only 11.5 million in Thailand; by 1962 it had reached 28.0 million, and in 1973 it totalled 39.9 million. A cultural vacuum created by the steady erosion of traditional cultural forms and value systems is also one of the chief factors contributing to the rapid growth of cinema in Thailand. Today films are referred to as to cheapest entertainment, and more than 10 million people, especially the young, go regularily to the cinema. A cinema ticket in Bangkok - Thonburi can cost form 10 baht ($0.50) to 30 bath ($1.50); and from 5 to 25 bath in up-country theatres. Most theatres around the country, particularly in Bangkok, are among the most modern buildings; they are the palaces of the common people. In 1976 there were 634 cinema theatres with 366,65 1 seats. In less than three decades, the number of theatres has increased by more than 400 per cent. Most of them (87 per cent) are situated in uban areas. Table 12 gives a national perspective of some aspects important to the feature film business in Thailand.

Commercial feature films have been imported into Thailand since the first decade of this century. Most imported films before 1960 came from the United States, Taiwan, the United Kingdom, Japan and India. With its commitment to a free-enterprise system, Thailand traditionally poses no major restrictions to businessmen in this field. Freight and insurance charges have to be paid on films imported into the country, and in addition a standard import tax charge.lAs in the case of domestically produced films, imported films are subjected to entertainment and municipal taxes and business taxes. Before a film can be shown, it must be submitted to the film Censorship Committee (FCC) for which the standard charge of around 2,000 bath ($100) is made. Before profits can be remitted abroad, a var- iable tax is levied, being 15 per cent on the first 500,000 bath ($25,000), 20 per cent on the next 50,000 baht and 25 per cent on transfer payments over 1 million baht. Thus generally the principle of free competition applies to the conduct of the film import business in Thailand.

As a result of the close ties with the United States that developed during and especially after the First World War, the Thais started to see more American

film. In the 1 9 5 0 ~ ~ all major American film corporations set up ofices for their representatives in Bangkok: Columbia Pictures, Metro-Goldwyn Mayer Inc., Twentieth Century-Fox Inc., Paramount Pictures Inc., United Artists Corporation, Universal Pictures, Warner Brothers Seven Arts Inc., and Walt Disney Production Inc. Since the mid-twentieth century, American film companies have been the best organized group of film importers in Thailand, with few corn- petitors to equal them. With film representatives statio- ned in Bangkok, American films distributed by these companies are ensured a stable market in Thailand. They can study Thai film market trends so that their penetration can become more effective. Their bargaining power vis-a-vis theatres exhibiting their films, especially those located in Bangkok is known to be tremendous; business deals can be flexible to the extent that the highest profits possible within the limits imposed by the Thai film market are guaranteed.

Since the 1950s Hong Kong and Taiwan have also emerged as major film suppliers to the Thai market. Shaw Brothers, for example, has for many years ensured exhibition of its films through is connection with one of the largest first and second-run theatrical circuits in the country, the Union Odeon Company. Recently Golden Harvest has digned a contract with one of the most influential Thai distributors, Saha Mongkon Films. The fact that Chinese has been the primary minority language explains, at least partially, the expansion of Chinese films in Thailand.

Other foreign films imported into Thailand to any significant extent come from India, Japan and Ítaly. Im- porters of these films include individuals, small companies, and individual theatre owners. This pattern of film imports also generally applies to films originating in most other countries, which have little direct influence in the Thai film market.

From 1961 to 1976, the total number of films exhibited in Thailand was 9,068; with American films ranking first with 32.37 per cent, films from Hong Kong and Taiwan ranking second with 21.85 per cent, and Thai feature films coming third with 12.37 per cent. In- dian, Japanese and Italian films ranked fourth, fifth and sixth, with 7.28, 6.48 and 5.38 per cent respectively.

1. Beginning on 24 December, 1976, this import tax rate has been changed to 30 baht ($1,50). This has shocked foreign film importers.

40

TABLE 13. Amount of foreign exchange spent for foreign film royalties (in millions) and number of foreign films imported, 1961 - 1975

Foreign Exchange .,.._I

Baht toreign US.%

1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975

TOTAL

24.9 23.6 22.1 26.7 28.8 35.3 42.0 41.0 40.8 54.5 46.7 46.0 44.7 58.7 66.8 602.6

(I) Feature films only.

Source: The Bank of Thailand.

1.245 1.180 1.105 1.335 1.440 1.765 2.100 2.050 2.040 2.725 2.335 2.300 2.235 2.935 3.340 30.130

4 10 439 491 437 398 38 1 419 483 458 53 1 536 757 635 5 64 605 7.544

Table 13 shown the amounts paid by Thailand for renting foreign films over a period of fifteen years, 1961 - 75.

Although data accumulated by the Bank of Thailand offer no precise details as to type (cinema films, telefilms or television programmes, etc.) and nation- ality, according to a reliable source around 62.5 per cent of all foreign exchange in each year is paid to eight American film corporations operating in Thailand,' whereas approximately 37.5 per cent is paid for films imported from other countries, including those shown by television stations. It is therefore apparent that American feature films, released through multinational film corporations operating in Thailand, represent the largest single group of foreign films that earn foreign exchange from Thailand.

Although it is impossible to obtain exact figures of revenue earned by films originating from each nation, the most reliable date available show that in 1971 the film groups that earned most of he revenue from film exhibition business were categorized as Western, Hong KondTaiwanese Indian -Japanese and Thai. Table 14 shows the percentage of revenues shares and sources of these major film groups, divided into total shares and their originating sources: first - and second - run theatres. It is apparent that Western films earn the most revenue in Thailand, 44 per cent of the total amount. Films in the Hong KondTaiwanese-Indian-Japanese group come second, 40 per cent, while is Thai films rank third, 16 per cent. The Thai film industry has grown slowly. With some

fifty years of history behind it, it has been an 'industry' only in a nominal sense. If anything, the trend has been towards fragmentation. During the 1950s an average of some twenty-five films per year were made. From 1961 to 1976, there was an average of seventy per year. Besides the well-known fierce competition from foreign films, Thai film-makers face the following basic problems: capital for producing films is difficult to obtain; the unprofessional approach to film-making and a desire to become rich quickly among the producers; heavy rechance on imported equipment and materials, including negative and positive film, sound-recording equipment as well as processing chemicals; difficulties arising from the Thai film censorship law, etc. Faced with so many basic dificulties, the Thai film industry has very little prospect of expanding in a socially meaningful way. Thus far, it would seem that its cultural contribution is not very great, despite the fact that morethan 1,000 films have been made since the cinematic technique was introduced in Thailand. Strong competition between local film-makers also

gives rise to irrational, additional costs in marketing their films. For instance, Thai film makers are well known for their unrealistic emphasis upon advertising.

Television

Thailand has the distinction of having been the first country in the whole of the Asian mainland to have

TABLE 14. Revenue shares (in millions) and revenue sources of major film groups.

Groups Shares

~

First-run Second-run ~ ____ ~ ~ _____ ____

Baht us. s % Baht us. $ % Baht U.S. s %

Western 215 10.75 44 86 4.30 45 129 6.45 43 Hong KondTaiwanese 200 10.00 40 80 4.00 41 120 6.00 39 Thai 81 4.05 16 27 1.35 14 54 2.70 18

24.80 100 193 9.65 1 O0 303 15.15 100 TOTAL 496

Source: Somchai Phumsa-ard, Movies in Thailand. Bangkok. The Motion Picture Exhibbitor Association, 1971 (in Thai), p. 61.

1. This estimate was made by representatives of American film corporations operating in Thailand.

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TABLE 15. Advertising revenue of television stations (in millions)

Total advertising Revenue Share of TV stations Year

Baht US.$ % Baht US.$ %

1960 118.0 5.90 100.0 17.5 0.875 15 1967 287.0 14.35 100.0 98.0 4.900 34.1 1968 348.0 17.40 100.0 124.0 6.200 35.6 1969 4 19.0 20.95 100.0 182.0 9.100 43.4 1974 1200.0 60.00 100.0 300.0 15.000 25.0 1975 1200.0 60.00 100.0 300.0 15.000 25.0

Sources: For 1960, S.W. Dunn (ed.), infernafionai Handbook ofAdverfising New York, Mc Graw Hill Book Co., 1964, p. 797; for 1967-69, Investor Aprii 1971; for 1974, Media, January 1976; and for 1975, the Bank of Thailand.

television: under the auspices of the government, the Thai Television Company began broadcasting in June 1955.

From the start in 1955, television has been a commercial medium, most of its programmes being sponsored by local and foreign advertisers. From time to time, however, the government also allocates subsidies to the television stations. The amounts allocated are believed to be high, since revenue from advertising earned by the provincial stations remains insufficient to keep them in operation. Table 15 showns the annual revenue earned from advertising by the Thai television industry. T o provide a comparison, the total amount spent on advertising in Thailand in each year is also given, and the percentage of this amount received by the television industry has been calculated.

It is quite clear that during the past years the Thai television industry has enjoyed a substantial increase in popularity as a medium for mass advertising. From 1960 to 1975, advertising revenue earned by the industry multiplied more than seventeen times. None the less, as advertising revenue increases, the number of television stations also increases, and revenue has to be shared between the many stations in operation. Strong competition obviously exists, and the rates of television advertising in Thailand are believed to be the cheapest in the world. There are no standard rates, and charges for adverstising depend on the advertiser’s credit position and on his personel relationships with colleagues in the industry. Although, according to the law, only 10 minutes of advertising are permitted per hour, all television stations exceed this limit, some to the extent of 20 mintutes per hour. 1 All television stations are subjected to control by the Radio and Television Control C o m - mittee (RTCC), but in practice most of them operate without much interference unless ’special circumstances’ occur.

Thailand does not yet produce television sets on a large scale. Some are assembled in the country, but most are imported. Since the establishment of the first television system in 1955, the number of television sets imported annually has steadily increased. In 1955, 2,556 sets were imported, and by 1965 all accumulated imported receivers rose to 187,460, an increase of more than 73 times in one decade.2 In 1974, there were about 684, 700 television households in Thailand.

The regional distribution of television sets was as follows: 49.9 per cent in Bangkok, 30.6 per cent in the Central Region (excluding Bangkok), 6.3 per cent in the North, 8.4 per cent in the Northeast, and 4.8 per cent in the South.3 Since 1968 - 69 the increase in ownership has been marked: television receivers have increased by 483,100 sets, a rise of 298.8 per cent of the previous total. As might be expected, television viewing is predominantly a regular activity of the Thai living in the urban centres. In theory, Thai television stations vary in their

original ’format’ purposes. For example, the PRD’s stations in up-country provinces set out to bridge the gap between the government and the people, the army’s station aims to link the army with the public and to give military instructions to its officiers, the bangkok Broadcasting Television and Co. Ltd and the Bangkok Entertainment Co. Ltd aims at making commercial profits. But in fact most staions have one thing in com- mont: they are run by the revenue earned from advertisers. In essence, commercial television allows the sponsors to have de facto control over programming. Television in Thailand has thus become one of the major marketing tools for consumer products and services, and it may be argued that it has been largely responsible for bringing about the era of mass consumerism. Since they are fed by advertisers’ budgets, television stations, though all affiliated with the government in some form or another, are highly competitive. Co-operation between the various television stations under the two controlling bodies, namely, the PRD and the army, is in the main non-existent. Although there are plans for a national television network which will integrate all of the Thai TV stations into one system, many doubt that such attempts will succeed. Owing to the tremendous com- petitiveness existing among the stations, the advertisers enjoy a great bargaining power over them. In this way, the advertisers’ role in influencing the programming is almost unlimited. The structure of television pro-

1. Bangkok Post, 3 February 1976. 2. Oversea Technical Co-operation Agency, Government of Japan, The Project of National Television Broadcasting Network in Thailand, Feasibility Report, 1967, p. 386.

3. Report of the Radio and Television Survey, Bangkok, National Statistical Offce, 1974, (in Thai), p. 14.

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gramming in the up-country T V stations does not differ very much from that of Bangkok - Thonburi. A one- week count of the most influential advertisers in up- country TV stations during 16 - 22 October 1976 revealed that the South Sea Agency, Ted Bates (Thai- land) Ltd, SSC & B. Lintas, Far East Advertising (Thai- land) Ltd, Diethelm Advertising Ltd, Combined Advertisng Ltd, and Diamond Films were among the firms that sponsored most of the programmes. As television in Thailand is mainly commercialized,

foreign-produced programmes occupy a very special position vis-à-vis local productions, since the former cost much less than the latter. A Thai-made programme is as a rule more expensive than a foreign series programme of the same length, and Thai television executives are strongly profit-oriented, It must be noted that imported programmes are all dubbed 'live' by local artists in the local language to assure the largest possible audience. Foreign TV viewers have been equally served: FM radio frequencies are used by the various TV stations to carry the soundtrack of imported films and features. T o give some idea of television programming, a

structural analysis of TV programmes in Thailand from October 1970 to June 1971 is provided in Table 16. At the time of this survey, there were eight TV stations in Thailand: four in Bangkok - Thonburi and four in up- country areas.

TABLE 16. The structure of television programmes: Summary Comparison by Percentage

Type of programme Bangkok-Thonburi Provincial region regions

News 16.30 16.18 Commentary 1.81 1.57 General information 3.80 6.03 Entertainment 62.20 58.87 Advertising 16.05 18.13

Source: The percentages (rounded ofn have been calculated by Guy B. Scan- dien. "Broadcasting in Thailand,' 1973, (draft), p. 20.

From 1970- 71 to 1976, the structure of TV programming appears to have changed very little. The traditional emphasis upon entertainment remained. Hence, according to some researchers, one might con- clude that the commercialized TV system in Thailand has little, if any, prospect of becoming a truly meaningful source of public education, as has been those who often stated by set up TV stations. A survey carred out by the author from 17 to 23

October 1976 revealed that television stations together broadcast a total amount of 472.9 hours per week, or 24,590 hours per years. Of this amount,as much as 12.9 per cent is categorized as 'Others' (for the most part commercials and station announcements).l

Altogether, 'Series' took up 29.7 per cent of all broadcasting time in the country, broken down into 46.8 per cent American, 8.6 per cent Hong Kong- Taiwanese, 13.4 per cent Japanese, and 31.5 pert cent Thai. Programmes categorized as others' come second in importance, and ranking third, fourth and fifth are 'daily news' (10.5 per cent), 'long films' (9.3 per cent), and 'Sports' (7.6 per cent) respectively. Considered from the point of view of total time of

telecasting, Thailandimported some 36.5 per cent of its programmes and the total amount of foreign material may be broken down as follows per week: 119.8 hours, American, 2.4 hours, Australian; 19.7 hours, Hong KongDaiwanese; 0.9 hours, Federal Republic of Ger- many; 4.3 hours, Indian, and 25.7 hours, Japanese. Thus the United States is the single most powerful exporter of television programmes to Thailand. Then comes Japan, followed by Hong Kong and Taiwan, which are left far behind by the United States. Productions from other countries account for a very minimal percentage of all TV programmes imported. It is also significant that American programmes, within the general structure of Thai programming, come first in importance in three categories: 'Series' (46.8 per cent), 'Long films' (38.0 per cent) and 'children's films' (68.4 per cent). Although the figures available may give the impres-

sion that Thailand is self-sufficient in its own television productions, with an average of 63.5 per cent of all on- the-air time being dominated by local programmes, it must be borne in mind that the amount of time taken up by any given programme is not necessarily the only im- portat aspect of programming; as much as 20.7 per cent of all the time categorized as Thai comes under the heading 'Others', which comprises mainly commercials. Many commercials are imported outright from the countries that manufacture the products being advertised. Advertisers on Thai TV seem to be redominantly foreigners dealing with consumer products. Thus, if the heading 'others' is excluded (since they are not programmes in the proper sense), the general picture of programming structure looks rather different: Thai productions account for about 50.3 per cent of all TV programmes broadcast. The strongest field of local production is that

categorized as 'daily news', which accounts for an average of 16.8 per cent of all domestic programmes (including 'others'). This programme is unsponsored, although some large commerciai companies give some financial support to it. Thai TV stations rarely produce news reports of their own. More often than not, 'daily news' is news from the government to the people, i.e. that released by the PRD every day. The second

i. Programmes were categorized according to the standard developed by K. Wordenstreng and T. Varis in Television Traffic-rr One-way street? Paris, Unesco, 1974 (Reports and papers on mass communication, NO. 70).

43

strongest area of domestic production is ’series’, whose failure to reflect truthfully the social scene in Thailand has been attributed by some observers to the strict television censorship codes prevailing. ’Series’ account for 15 per cent of all local programmes. Other local programmes in all other categories are few in quantity and, according to most opinins, weaker in quality. Although television has been in existence for more

than two decades, television training in Thailand is still in an embryonic stage. Sudies in some areas of TV programming and production did not begin until early in the 1970s. Meanwhile, television producers, directors, and artists almost always lack sufficient training. The same problems affect the programming personnel in the Thai television industry, who usually acquire their trade through the learning-on-the-job method. Sometimes foreign programmes have been selected according to the ratings given by commercial firms located in foreign countries. Many television stations even boast that some newly arrived programmes received high ratings in the country from which they came. Despite the fact that the television industry in Thai-

land is not yet well organized and its programming rather unsatisfactory, during just over two decades of experience, the number of television sets owned has greatly increased, although television is by and large still an urban medium. The significance of television in Thai cultural life will increase rather than decrease in the future. It has become easier for the poor people to own a set, as the hire-purchase system is more and more widespread in the country. Television has become a cheap from of family entertainment, since the advertisers, representing the commercial class, pay most of the operating expenses. In he final analysis, however, it is the public that actually pays the cost.

Conclusions

In the whole areas of international communication as it concerns Thailand, it is thus apparent that along with most developing nations in the world, the country suf- fers from all the crucial imbalances familiar to well- informed researchers in the field. The case study of film and television clearly reveals a pattern of dependency. Thailand has always been on the receiving end of the international information flow. The direction of the flow has been persistently one way, fom a few countries associated more or less with international capitalism, while the volume of flow has been generally determined by the individual nation’s degree of economic, historical and cultural affinities with the Thai population. With the widespread presence of transnational in-

formational and cultural materials, especially those shown on the cinema and television screens, it is difficult to deny that the cultural integrity of the Thai people is at stake. Only a few well-informed individuals in Thai society, however, appear to be aware of the problem of cultural integrity. Lacking a comprehensive set of national cultural

policies, the rules commerce are allowed to be the

major decisive factors that determine the kinds of cultural products disseminated in the Thai market. In this way, those who have better distribution channels, cheaper products, etc., have a good chance of dominating the market. The experience of film and television media is an exemple of such a commercial game. From this study it must be self-evident that only with

a truly comprehensive set of measures taken at the governmental level can Thailand hope to overcome the problem of communication imperialism confronting it. Many new and basic national policies must come forth with great strength and continuity, or the prevailing situation will persist.

Television and film in Argentina

With a population of over 25 million (1975) and a degree of urbanization of 79 per cent, Argentina is among the ten most urbanized countries of the world. Educational and literacy rates are high, and the country shows a more balanced income distribution and a more stratified social structure than most other Latin American countries. The specific conditions governing the entry of the

Argentine economy into the world market (cheap labour in the pampa region, high productivity, the generation of surpluses by an important urban sector resulted in a domestic market sufficiently large and with sufficient purchasing power to support a relatively early industrialization. The industrial growth arising from a decline of import capacity during the 1930s was, however, based more on the existence of an unsatisfied demand than on deliberate support for industrial stratification. The result was a limited industrialization characterized by light industry and production of non- durable consumer goods. Because this type of production requires high technology and investment, changes in the legislation at the end of the 1940s provided a broader basis for foreign capital to operate. During the 1950s investments started to climb, headed by North American capital and followed by Western European, especially Swiss, British, German (Federal Republic), Netherlands, Italian and French capital. The corresponding reorganization of the productive sectors resulted in a heavier share of the industrial sector in the GNP, faster growth of the dynamic branches, and higher productivity and sales for foreign firms. The transnational companies operating in the country

found fertile ground for their activities nd had privileged access to local credit sources, in comparison with national firms. This was due to a policy of favouring foreign capital and to a progressive denationalization of the Argentine banking system. Advertising, the natural ally of the transnational corporations, developed as fast as the needs of this pattern of industrialization required, thus influencing the development of all the Argentine media. In 1971 a poll conducted by the North American

magazine Advertising A g e revealed that advertising expenditure in. Argentina represented nearly 128 per cent

44

of the Gross National Product.1 This proportion put the country in the eleventh place in the world scale, behind the United States (2,ll per cent), Denmark (1,64 per cent), the Federal Republic of Germany (1,56 per cent), the Netherlands (1,38 per cent), and Sweden (1,56 per cent), but ahead of Canada, France, the United Kingdom and all other Latin American countries. Advertising on radio declined not only as a natural

consequence of the growth of television in the country but also as a result of government policy. The Official Service of Radio Broadcasting (SOR) had, in 1973, 23 stations financed by the national budget and, to a very limited extent, by the payment of licences by other radio stations. The rest of the service was composed of 124 stations, of which 77 were commercial and privately owned, 36 commercial under state administration, 3 dependent on provincial governments, 5 on communal governments, and 3 on national universities. A n occasional source of revenue for the SOR came from commercials in certain geographical areas, provided that no privately owned radio station operated in that zone.

Given the above-mentioned policy of favouring foreign capital, the transnational corporations found several ways of penetrating the field of mass communications will be examined here especially as regards the television and film industries.

Television

Direct investment of TNCs in mass communication media in Latin America is usually eigher through local subsidiaries of TNCs or through locally registered firms in which TNCs have shares. Argentine TV is a remarkable model of the second

type. The situation can be briefly described as follows: investments were initially made by the three big United States TV and radio chains, namely GBS, N B C - RCA and A B C in corresponding Argentine TV - production firms. In the case of Proartel, Time - Life Inc. and the Latin American consortium Goar Mestre y Asociados also had interests. The creation of the private TV - production firms paved the way for the integration of Argentine business men from various other economic sectors, some of them already linked to transnational interests before 1960. The partnership of local business men and transnatio-

nal corporations expanded indirectly towards the inter- ior of the country, because the production firms stimulated the creation of channels in all commercially important cities. Among the business men linked to the production firms, those with previous interests in the printing and, film industries and radio-broadcasting played a leading role.

Since 1965 control through direct investment has weakened, as the production firms have been 'rescued' from North American transnational corporations by local business men or transnational groups such as Goar Mestre y Asociados and Panamericana TV. During the 1970s, new transnational firms with head-

quarters in the region ermerged in Argentina and the

rest of Latin America to try to fill the 'economic space' left vacan by North American TNCs. It should be stressed, however, that this process occurred strictly in the TV field, since the overall trend in the Argentine economic system for the same period was rather towards an increasing denationalization of industry and the consequent strengthening of foreign investments. A s to transmitting and reception equipment, foreign

penetration was more evident. Nearly all T V transmitting equipment was imported, primarily from RCA and General Electric. With the introduction of video tape recording most of the TV stations purchased Ampex equipment. The same transnational corporations that invested in

the production forms, together with others such as Zenith, Philco, Ford and Philips, installed assembly plants for TV sets during the 1960s and complete factories later on. Argentina experienced a TV boom in the period analysed: from 800,000 T V sets existing by 1960, the figure jumped to 4,080,000 by 1973.2As a result, new firms, both national and transnational for instance, Sony), became active in the domestic market. The question of equipment imports has recently been raised in connection with the possible introduction of colour television, and its consequent impact on resource allocation policies. With respect to national and international

transmitting equipment, dependence on TNCs has increased in direct relation to the diffusion of transmissions via satellite, which are controlled either by transnational corporations or by international organizations in which Argentina has a very small economic participation, and which are increasingly used in the field of international communications. In turn, an accelerated development of cable and microwave networks can be observed in the area of national communication. These systems are installed and operated by the state telephone company, the Empresa Nacional de Telecommunicaciones (ENTEL), which obtains equipment from TNCs such as ITT and Siemens. In the early 1960s Argentina was a heavy importer of

American TV film material, but this situation has changed, as there is now a relatively low proportion of imported programmes. Table 7 shows the trend in this area. A high degree of dependence can nevertheless be

observed in information services, which rely on material provided by the big international news agencies; United Press Internatioal and Associated Press are especially active. The training of personnel for television operations

seems to be another way for TNCs to assure a certain influence over the systems. Although there has been a progressive incorporation of national personnel at the

1.Advertising Age. August 30, 1971; 27 March, 1972; 24 April, 1972.

1. Heriberto Muraro, Neocapitalismo y Communicacion de Masa, Buenos Aires, Editorial Universitaria de Buenos Aires, 1974, p. 198.

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T A B L E 17. Percentages of national and foreign programmes broadcast on television by 13 in buenos Aires

Year National Foreign

1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 197 1 1972

56.32 56.80 56.59 50.69 60.3 2 59.54 72.73 73.71 73.41 74.90 67.12 76.86 71.65

46.68 43.20 43.4 1 49.3 1 39.68 40.46 27.27 26.29 26.59 25.10 32.88 23.14 28.35

Source: Rio de la Plaia Canal 13 (1973), p. 120.

executive and technician levels (by 1973, foreign executives and technicians represented an insignificant minority), production firms and TV stations preferred to hire persons trained by transnational corporations operating in the country, especially for work related to sales, programmes and information services. After the economic boom of the 196Os, advertisers in

Argentina began to rely heavily on television. The TV industry is one of the most concentrated businesses in the country, for in 1971, the four TV stations existing in Buenos Aires (channels 7,9, 1 1 and 13), received 67 per cent of the national TV advertising expenditure. The rest was divided among twenty-seven stations in the provinces. 1 The high price of TV advertising (in 1973, on Chan-

nel !! in Buenos Aires, a second cost 17,300 pesos on Saturdays and Sundays, and 13,300 pesos on weekdays), has drastically reduced the number of clients, and consequently, the companies with high advertising expenditures are primarily transnational corporations. These top transnational advertisers have also

benefited from a pricing policy offering progressive dis- counts and frozen prices for given periods in return for high expenditures. With this system, prices for big firms can be as much as 40 per cent lower than those paid by smaller competitors. Some fifty advertising agencies control around 70 per

cent of the billings of the four Buenos Aires TV stations. The leading forms are: Leo - Burnett - Novas, Hugo Casares, Grieg y Asociados, Grant Advertising, Johnson, Benton & Bowles, McCann Erickson, and J, Walter Thompson Argentina.2 As might be expected, the television industry

stimulated the emergence of firms engaged in market and audience research activities. Most of these firms are linked either to international advertising agencies or to research institutions associated with transnational corporations.

Argentine television has developed as an 'entertain- ing' rather than 'informing' medium, carefully avoiding the use of explicitly political or editorial comments. Some cultural and political consequences of this development will now be analysed. The impact of television on the Argentine society is evident from the following statistics: according to audience research for 1973, approximately 92.5 per cent of the homes in Buenos Aires (where 36 per cent of the country's population lives) had TV sets, and the average viewing time '(for persons over 6 years old) was 2 hours and 49 minutes per day.3 The portion of total transmitting time devoted to im-

ported film material, although comparatively lower than in other countries of the region, remained nevertheless on the average at 20 per cent. In fact, with the exception of a few Spanish, AN AND French programmes, all imported material was produced by North American (and in some cases Japanese) transnational corporations, primarily Screen Gems, Warner Brothers and Metro - Goldwyn Mayer? The high cost of producing programmes not only

prevented the emergence of new independent producers, potentially capable of introducing changes inontent, but also forced the existing firms fo stick to conservative patterns, in order to diminish the economic risks. The Argentine experience indicates that the presence

of transnational corporations in the field of mass communication media has not resulted in the systematic and explicit generation of messages aimed against government teams or political groups, while reinforcing values or doctrines clearly favourable to the transnational interests. In fact, the heavily self-censored TV became a kind of 'neutral' element, devoted mainly to entertainment. However, the strong trend of T V towards entertain-

ment, and the coutinuous advertising appeals, generate a certain type of message that propagates values, behaviour norms and consumption patterns that are not devoid of cultural and political consequences. The legislation governing television in Argentina

offers an example of how, despite national attempts to insure the independence of the media, transnational corporations are still able to exert a decisive influence. The Ley de Radiodifusion (Law of Radio -broadcasting) was passed in 1957, during the de facto government of Juan Domingo Peron. It explicitly ruled that the holders of TV station licences should be Argentine citizens, and that the forms engaged in TV broadcasting should be independent of the transnational chains of mass communication. The law did not however specify anything with

respect to production firms which were established in

1. Data provided by L a Camara Argentina de Anunciantes. 2. Armand Mattelart, Agresion desde el Espacio: Cultura y Napalm en la Era de íos Satelites, pp. 198 - 200, Buenos Aires, Editorial Siglo Veintiuno, 1974.

3. Data provided by Videometro IPSA, Buenos Aires, 1960 - 13, and an audience survey organism, Mercados y Ten- dencias, Buenos Aires, 1975.

4. Mattelart, op. cit., p. 117.

46

the country as entities formally separated from the stations, but which provided them with programmes and commercial representation. In fact, this separation was only formal. In Buenos Aires, both types of firm operated from the same buildings, sometimes not even having separate pay-rolls and with executives fulfilling jobs for both at the same time. This lopp - hole was used by transnationals for intervening in mass communications.

The first cinema theatre was opened in Argentina in 1900. After some time, the national film industry became very active and around 100 films were produced between 1915 and 1921. During the 1920s, there was a sharp decline, primarily due to the lack of a solid industrial base, which continued up to the appearance of the sound film. With sound, the national films had the advantage of using the audience’s language and music, which helped popularize local production not only on the national market but also in other Latin American countries. Production jumped from fifteen films in 1936 to fifty-six in 1942. However, according to the Heraldo del Cinematogra$sta, of the total amount of 20 million pesos derived from film in 1938, only 6 million corresponded to locally produced motion pictures. Commerciai sanctions imposed because of Argentina’s neutral policy during the second World W a r led to a shortage of raw fiilm stock and a critical situation for the national industry, resulting in a struggle of conflicting interests between producers and exhibitors. In 1944, a government decree established several protectionist norms compelling theatres to ex- hibit national productions, while subsidizing the local film industry. The results can be seen in Table 18. In spite of a relative decline in 1950, foreign films continued to predominate. From the 1950s onwards, with the progressive liberalization of the economy by the end of the decade, national film production was less able to compete with foreign material. By 1973, there were 1,739 theatres in the country, but

only 479 (27.54 per cent) opened daily. The total number of seats was 801,494, of which 25 per cent was

TABLE 18. Films exhibited in Argentina according to country of origin

Country 1959 1960 1962 1963

Argen tin a 23 31 32 27 United States 217 182 198 150 Italy 45 43 47 69 United Kingdow 44 43 45 41 Federal Republic Germany 37 46 27 22 France 37 50 51 43 Spain 21 19 17 23 Mexico 10 1 1 38 38 Other 18 36 19 10

Source: El Heraldo del Cinc. i 959 - 1963, Buenos Aires. ~

in Greater Buenos Aires. Attendances at theatres increased in 1973 to a yearly rate of 2.6 per inhabitant. A survey of 123 theatres in Buenos Aires indicated

that three firms controlled over 34.32 per cent of the seating accomodation, the rest being shared by seventy- four other firms. There are groups of theatres called ’circuits’ with the same showings, i.e., having collective contracts with the distribution sector. No direct foreign investment was detected in the analysis of the most important firms operating in the field. However, a link is found in the exlcusivity contracts existing betwen distribution firms and circuits. There are two basic types of distribution firm: depen-

dent, which are subsidiaries of foreign firms, and independent, or Argentine firms not linked by ownership relations to foreign corporations. Columbia Pictures distributed its fims in 1971 and

1972 through a local firm exclusively handling Columbia films. In 1973 and 1974, its films were distributed by a firm which also distributed films for War- ner Brothers. Finally, in 1975, its films were distributed together with those of Fox Films. Metro - Goldwyn - Mayer distributed in 1971 and

1971 through an exclusive firm, in 1972 and 1973 in association with Fox Films, and in 1975 with Paramount and Universal. Table 19 summarizes this development of relationships between producers and distri butors.

TABLE 19. North American film producers and their distributors in Argentina, 1971 - 75

Distributors in Argentina Producers

1971 - 12 1915 - 14 1975

Columbia Pictures Columbia Columbia-Warner Bros Warner Bros. Columbia-Fox

Warner Bros Warner Bros. Columbia-Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Columbia-Fox Fox Films Fox FOX-MGM Columbia-Fox CIC

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer MGM FOX-MGM Columbia-Fox CIC Paramount and Universal CIC CIC CIC

1 Cinema International Corporation.

47

The so-called independent firms also have an unstable and chequered existence. Most of them distribute a very limited number of films yearly. Between 1971 and 1975, a total of 1,850 films were

shown in Argentina for the first time. Of these 43.1 per cent were distributed by firms ’dependent’ on North American concerns, while other types of ’dependent’ firms distributed 8.4 per cent. Besides commercializing most of the films imported from the United States, North American ’dependent’ firms also distribute local and non - American pictures.

It is suggested that the dependent firms are merely subsidiaries of foreign companies. On the other hand, all the ’independent’ firms (with the exception of commercial departments of the big local production firms) are stili linked to one or more foreign producers, although no direct investments are detectable. Dependent firms often pay in advance for the rental

rights of the films they import. Contracts are usually made for five consecutive years and for each specific film. Independent firms tend to be more selective, while the dependent ones limit themselves to the distribution and promotion of whatever is sent to them by their respective headquarters. Unlike some other countries, Argentina has not fixed

any limitation on the origin of films imported into the country. Nor are there any laws limiting the sums of money to be paid to foreign firms. There is no doubt that the Argentine cinema is extremely dependent on foreign countries, and especially on the United States. The relative importance of the latter explains the leading role played by distribution firms dependent on North American concerns such as Columbia, Warner Brothers and Fox. The classification of films by origin can often be mis-

leading. For example, most of the Taiwanese films exhibited during the period under examination were actually produced by North American firms operating from Taiwan. On the other hand, Co-productions are also problematic, since in most cases the local sources give no information about the participation percentages corresponding to the respective associated countries. Table 20 provides information concerning the number and origin of films released in Argentina during 1973. If these aspects are taken into account, the importance of foreign dominance appears even more clearly. The production levels of the Argentine cinema are not

only below those of European countries, but also those of countries like Mexico and Brazil. There are only to important production firms: Argentina Sono Film and Aries. The others are small and unstable firms, created

TABLE 20. Films available for exhibition in 1973 by origin

Origin Number Per cent

Argentina 447 United States 1472 Italy 632 France 329 United Kingdom 215 Fed. Rep.of Germany 138 Mexico 195 Spain 134 USSR 59 Others 364

TOTAL 3 985

Source: EI Heraldo del Cine. No. 2256, December 1974.

11.2 36.9 15.9 8.2 5.4 3.4 4.9 3.4 1.5 9.2 100 -

almost exclusively to profit from the fact that no taxes have to be paid during production (taxes are paid only when commercialization has started). Production equipment and raw film are imported

from abroad. In practice, four transnational corporations control the Argentine raw film market: Ferrania, Agfa - Gaevert, Kodak and 3M. With respect to laboratories, there are only three capable of properly processing black and white films and one able to make colour copies of acceptable quality. The amortization of investments in film production is

difficult owing the lack of external markets. In turn, limited production further reduces the export capability. In 1976 the production cost of a modest film was approximately 40 million Argentine pesos ($ 163,000). The average income per ticket after tax deductions was 180 pesos. Of this sum a maximum of 25 per cent went to the producer, that is 45 pesos. Thus to amortize a locally produced film some 887,000 spectators were required ( a rather high figure for a country with an annual cinema attendance of only 63 million). In summary, the basic causes of the Argentine film

indutry’s slow development are structural problems in the country’s economy and low attendance at the cinemas. In addition, the prices of imported raw materials are constantly increasing, while the income received by the medium (at dollar value) decreases. It is more profitable to import films than to produce them locally. Furthermore, the influence enjoyed by the North American film industry successfuly prevents the passing of laws that could endanger its interests.

48

5. Conclusions

Although the studies presented have concentrated mainly on film and television, they have shown that the problems of mass media TNCs is multidimensional. Little research exists concerning the transnational mass media industry and even less on the impact of mass media TNCs on the social, economic and cultural life of nations relationships between countries, or international understanding. One of the immediate conclusions is that there should be a continuing collection of data and information on the activities of mass media TNCs. This would be of worldwide interest in order to avoid misun- derstanding and misconception of the role of the TNCs, which now stems in particular from the lack of publicly available data. It would also be of interest to policy- makers who intend to formulate measures for national communication systems. The general trend of the TNCs in communication is

towards conglomeration: film, television, discs and other mass media producs have become or are becoming increasingly important in the growing entertainment and leisure-time industries. Another characteristic is the transnationalization (some-times called internationalization) of the mass media and the increasingly global marketing organizations, which could be called transnational cultural industries. In order to place the TNCs in communication

properîy the perspective of the transnational power structure it is necessary to realize not only that the world market economy is organized into a transnational system of entreprises but also that world information production and dissemination are largely in the hands of a few transnational corporations. In the international process of economic integration

and improved worldwide communications there is a tendency towards a new type of concentration in transnational activity. Whereas previously the major TNCs gave their local subsidiaries a fairly high degree of autonomy, production strategy now stresses greater centralization of decision-making according to product lines. This applies to the hardware industry but is not altogether clear in the case of software. However, the present studies show, for example, that to a great extent foreign subsidiaries of the major film companies are not independent but are operated to serve the interests of their parent companies. Decisions that affect the culture of the host country are made abroad by TNCs whose primary interests are private and commercial. It can be assumed that in other areas, such as book publishing, there is also a tendency to place manufacturing in

countries that offer the best cost levels and facilities for marketing these products internationally. The effects of this kind of transnational production on local production have not been well documented. The two case studies undertaken in Argentina and

Thailand illustrate in particular the feeling that, because of foreign influence on an area as sensitive as communications, it is necessary to ensure the country’s own cultural integrity and national independence. While various international bodies are engaged in formulating guidelines for the TNCs in general, much less attention is paid to the RNCs in communication. It is sometimes suggested that the present imbalance in world information flows should become the subject of negociation in international forums in the same manner as trade and finance. Some countries have introduced concrete measures to

control foreign mass media influence. This is done by a quota system complemented by national laws and taxes for imported films. However, as demonstrated in the two case studies, once foreign influence has become dominant it has been very difficult to introduce and enforce laws designed to stimulate national film and television industries and decrease foreign dependency. TNCs in film and television have often used the

methods of Co-production and Co-financing. As indicated by the present study, the dominant companys’ attitudes towards these forms of co-operation vary. As far as the receiving countries are concerned, these arrangements might offer one of the few possibilities of having some say in the production of international film and television programmes. There exist examples of this kind of co-operation between countries with different social systems. One area for critical research might be the study of past experiences in Co-production and co- financing, particularly how such arrangements can support the goals of national development and cultural policy. The Cultural implications of the TNCs are multi-

dimensional. The strong foreign influence on national film and television has led many researchers and political figures to ask what the cultural identity of a people or cultural sovereignty actually is in the aera of universalized leisure culture. Communication is seen as an area of economic and cultural life that should be particularly protected against foreign penetration because it is essential to national and cultural identity and to the improvement of the quality of life. However, the problem exists, not only between nations but also

49

between the local elite created in part by the transnational business culture and the other segments of the population. Some of the economic implications of the TNCs,

such as heir impact on domestic media, consumption and employment, deserve further study. One can also ask to what extent the TNCs’ interests in profit-making, conquering markets, etc., conflict with national development programmes and the communication policies of developing countries. Foreign-made films and television programmes also affect the flow of capital away from the national media industry. The present studies have shown that importation of television programmes into small countries tends to increase rather than decrease as a result of the economic difîïculties of many local broadcasting companies. Foreign mas-produced programmes are cheaper to use than locally produced programmes. The Thai case study raises the question of what should be the optimum duration of broadcasting time in small and developing countries in order to avoid becoming too dependent on foreign sources. The TNCs are actively entering the field of mass

education, particularly by introducing new technology. The big electronic companies have educational divisions and are increasingly interested in the traditional mass media. A detailed study has not yet been made of the extent to which the new educational techniques, such as the utilization of satellites for educational purposes, the use of audiovisual teaching materials or electric data processing affect dependency on foreign- based TNCs. Usually the introduction of a new medium, as shown by the introduction of television into Thailand, takes place without much public discussion and critical evaluation of its social and cultural impact. It is not quite clear, for example, how the use of space communication or computers will help to achieve a more balanced flow of information or improve international understanding. The tentative general conclusion of the present collec

tion of studies suggests that the international production and dissemination of information, at least in the case of film and television, is highly dependent on some internationally dominant companies. The TNCs’ impact is different in various countries. According to the present studies transnationalization

in the mass media is especially apparent in the hardware industry, and modern communication technology makes the relationships between hardware and software more problematic. One of the reasons for the transnationalization of the electronics industry has been the demand for economies of scale in production and a high profit margin. Economies of scales logically lead to export and such production requires cheap labour. The transnational electronics industry tends to establish itself in areas where labour is cheaper and where there are markets for export. Highly skilled labour, however, as well as research and innovation activity are kept in the home countries. Obviously, the TNCs in the electronics industry vary in their behaviour, and it may be erroneous to group them lall in the same category. The studies presented here suggest that government

action to control foreign influence in the mass media may have very opposite effects in different socio- economic conditions. In principle, transnational mass media are allowed to operate, produce or maintain services in other countries because their presence is thought to be of value to the country and to the information flow and therefore to better international understanding and peace. At present, the world production and dissemination of films, television programmes and other audio-visual material are characterized by a certain imbalance. This imbalance can be corrected only by the adoption of national and international communication policies that strengthen the creation of alter- native ways and means of mass communication, especially the creation and promotion of ’national cultural industries’.

50

ABC A B U AIP AMPEC ARD

ATV BBC BBDO C B C CBS CGE CIC DPA EBU EM1 FCC FL A C S O G&W IBM ICU ITC ITT ITV LP 3 M MCA MGM MPAA MPEAA NBC NTA NZBC OIRT OPIC PIP PRD RAI RCA RKO RSO RTCC SACIS SOR TMPPA TNC TPEA UA UP1 UPITN V N U WB WCI WEA ZDF

American Broadcasting Companies Inc. Asian Broadcasting Union American International Pictures, Inc. American Motion Picture Export Company (Africa) Inc. Arbeitsgemeinschaft der öffentlich-rechtlichen Rundfunkanstalten der Bundesrepublik Deutschland Associated Television Corporation Ltd British Broadcasting Corporation Batten, Barton, Durstine & Osborn Canadian Broadcasting Corporation Columbia Broadcasting System; CBS Inc. Cie. Générale d’Electricite Cinema International Corporation Deutsche Presse Agentur European Broadcasting Union Electric and Musical Industries Ltd Federal Communications Commission (United States) Facultad Latinoamericana de Ciencias Sociales Gulf & Western Industries, Inc. International Business Machines Corporation Informatie en Communicatie Unie Independent Television Company Ltd International Telephone and Telegraph Corporation Independent Television Long-playing record Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company MCA, Inc. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. Motion Picture Association of America Motion Picture Export Association of America National Broadcasting Company National Telefilm Associates, Inc. New Zealand Broadcasting Council International Radio & Television Organisation Overseas Private Investment Corporation Programmed Individual presentation system Public Relations Department Radiotelevisione Italiana RCA corporation Radio-Keith-Orpheum Corporation Robert Stigwood Organisation Radio and Television Control Comittee Societa per Azioni Commerciale Iniziative Spettacolo Official Service of Radio Broadcasting Thai Motion Picture Producers Association Transnational Corporation Television Programm Export Association United Artists Corporation United Press International United Press International and Independent Television News Ltd Verenigde Nederlandse Uitgeversbedrijven Warner Bros. Inc. Warner Communications Inc. W arner-Elektra- Asylum Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen

51

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55

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Swindon Book Co., 13-15 Lock Road, KOWLOON; Federal Publications (HK) Ltd, 5a Evergreen Industrial Mansion, 12 Yip Fat Street, Wong Chuk Hang Road, ABERDEEN; Hong Kong Government Information Services, Publications Centre, GPO Building, Connaught Place, HONG KONG. Akadémiai Könyvesbolt, Váci u. 22. BUDAPEST V; A. K. V. Könyvtárosok Boltja, Népkoztársaaág utja 16, BDDA- PEST VI. Snaebjöm Jonsson & Co., H.F., Hafnarstraeti g. REYKJAVIK. Orient Longman Ltd., Kamani Marg. Ballard Estate, BOMBAY qooo38; 17 Chittaranjan Avenue, CALCUITA 13; 36a Anna Salai, Mount Road, MADRAS 2; B-3/7 Asaf Ali Road, NEW DELHI I; 8011 Mahatma Gandhi Road, BANGALORE 560001 ; 3-5-820 Hyderguda, HYDERABAD 500001. Sub-depots: M o r d Book and Stationery Co., 17 Park Street, CALCUTTA 700016; Scindia House, NEW DELHI 110001; Publications Section, Ministry of Education and Social Welfare, 511 C-Wing, Shastri Bhavan, NEW DELHI 110001. Bhratara Publishers and Booksellers, zg JI. Oto Iskandardinata I I I, JAKARTA; Gramedia Bookshop, JI. Gadjah M a d a 109, JAKARTA; Indira P.T., JI. Dr. S a m Ratulangi 37, JAKARTA PUSAT. Iranian National Commission for Unesco, Avenue Iranchahr Chomali no. 300, B.P. 1533, TEHRAN; Kharazmie Publishing and Distribution Co., 28 Vessal Shirazi Street, Enghélab Avenue, P.O. Box 314/1486, TEHRAN. Mckenzie’s Bookshop, Al-Rashid Street, BAGHDAD. The Educational Company of Ireland Ltd, Ballymount Road, Walkinstown, D u n m 12. A.B.C. Bookstore Ltd., P.O. Box 1283, 71 Allenby Road, TEL AVN 61000. Licosa (Libreria Commissionaria Sansoni S.p.A.), via L a m a m o r a 45, casella postale 552, 50121 FIRENZE. Librairie des Presses de l’Unesco, C.N. Ivoirienne pour l’Unesco, B.P. 2871, ABIDJAN. Sangster’s Book Stores Ltd., P.O. Box 366, IOI Water Lane, KINOSTOK. Eastern Book Service Inc., Shuhwa Toranomon 3 Bldg., 23-6 Toranomon j-chome, Minato-ku, TOKYO 105. Jordan Distribution Agency, P.O. Box 375, AMMAN. East Aírican Publishing House, P.O. Box 30571, NAIROBI. Korean National Commission for Unesco, P.O. Box Central 64, SEOUL. The Kuwait Bookshop Co. Ltd., P.O. Box 2941, KUWAIT. Mazenod Book Centre, P.O. MAZENOD. Cole & Yancy Bookshops Ltd., P.O. Box 286, MONROVIA. Agency Cor Development of Publication and Distribution, P.O. Box 34-35, TRIPOLI. Librairie Paul Bruck, 22 Grande-Rue, LUXEMBOURO. Commission nationale de la République démocratique de Madagascar pour l’Unesco, Boîte postale 331, ANTANANARIVO. Federal Publications Sdn. Bhd., Lot 8238 Jalan zzz, Petaìing Jaya, SELKWOR; University of Malaya Co-opera- tive Bookshop, KUALA LUMPUR 22-1 I. Sapienzas, 26 Republic Street, VALLETTA. GRA.LI.CO.MA, I, rue du Souk X, Avenue Kennedy, NOUAKCHOTT. Nalanda Co. Ltd., 30 Bourbon Street, PORT-LOUIS. SABSA, Insurgentes Sur, n.O SO32-401, M~XICO 12, DF; Librería El Correo de la Unesco, ActipAn 66, Colonia del Valle, MEXICO 12, DF. British Library 30, boulevard des Moulins, MONTE-CARLO. Instituto Nacional do Livro e do Disco (INLD), Avenida 24 de Julho, igzr-r/c e 10 andar, MAPUTO. Keesing Boeken B.V., Postbus I I 18, 1000 B C AMSTERDAM. Van Dorp-Eddine N.V., P.O. Box zoo, Willenstad, CURAÇAO, N.A. Government Printing Office bookshops: Retail bookshoF25 Rutland Street; Mail orders-85 Beach Road, Private Bag C.P.O., AUCKLAND. Retail-Ward Street; Mail orders-P.O. Box 857, HAMILTON. Retail-Cuba- cade World Trade Centre, Mulgrave Street (Head Office); Mail orders-Private Bag, CHRISTCHURCH. Retail -Princes Street; Mail orders-P.O. Box I 104, DUNEDIN. Librairie Mauclert, B.P. 868, NIAMEY. The University Bookshop OC Ice; The University Bookshop of Ibadan, P.O. Box 286; The University Bookshop of Nsukka; The University Bookshop OC Lagos; The A h m a du Bello University Bookshop of Zaria. í‘ublicutions.’ Johan Grundt Tanum, Karl Johans gate 41/43, OXLO I ; Univenitets Bokhandelen, Universitets- sentret, P.O.B. 307, Blinden, OSLO 3. For ‘The Courier’: A/S Narvesens Litteraturtjeneste Box 6125, OSLO 6. Mirza Book Agency, 65 Shahrah Quaid-e-azam, P.O. Box 729, LAHORE 3. Editorial Losada Peruana, Jirón Contumaza 1050, apartado 472, LIMA. The M o d e m Book Co., Inc., 922 Rizal Avenue, P.O. Box 632, MANILA D-4n4. ORPAN-Import, Palac Kultuw, 00-gol WARSZAWA; Ars Polona-Ruch, Krakowskie Przedmiescie NO 7,00068 WARSZAWA. Dias & Andrade Ltda., Livraria Portugal, rua do Carmo 70. LISBOA. Libreria Alma Mater, cabrera 867, Rio Piedras, PUERTO RICO 00925. ILEXIM, Romlibri Str. Biserica Amzei no. 5-7, P.O.B. 134-135, BUCURESTI. Periodicals (subscripiiom): Rom- presfilatelia, Calea Victoriei nr. 29, BUCZTRF,$TI. Librairie Clairafrique. B.P. 2005, DAKAR; Librairie ‘Le &-tégai’, B.P. 1594, DAKAR. Federal Publications (S) Pte. Ltd., no. I N e w Industrial Road, off Upper Paya Lebar Road, SINGAPORE 19. Modern Book Shop and General, P.O. Box 951, MOOADISCIO. Van Schaik’s Bookstore (Pty.) Ltd., Libri Building, Church Street, P.O. Box 724, PRETORIA. Mundi-Prensa Libros S.A., apartado 1223. Castel16 37, MADRID I ; Ediciones Liber, apartado 17, Magdalena 8 ONDÁRROA (Vizcaya); Donaire, Ronda de Outeiro, 20, apartado de correos 341, LA CORUNA; Libreria Al: Andalus, Roldana, I Y 3, SEVILLA 4; Librería Castells, Ronda Universidad 13, BARCELONA 7. For ‘The Couricr’ only: Editorial Fenicia, Cantelejos 7, ‘Riofrio’, Puerta de Hierro, MADRID 35.

Sri Lanka Sudan Sweden

Switzerland Thailand

Togo

Turkev Uganda USSR

United Kingdom

United Rep. of Cameroon

United Rep. of Tanzania United States of America

Upper Volta unikiav

Venezuela

Yugoslavia

Zaire

Zimbabwe

Lake House Bookshop, Sir Chittampalam Gardiner Mawata, P.O. Box 244. COLOMBO 2. Al Hashir Bookshop, P.O. ßox I I 18, KHARTOUM. fublicoíions: A/B C.E. Fritzes Kungl. Hovbokhandel, Fredsgatan 2, Box 16356. 103 27 STOCKHOLM 16. For ‘The Courier’: Svenska FN-Förbundet, Skolgränd 2, Box 150 50. S-104 65 S’rocKHoLhi; Wennergren-Williams AB,

Europa Verlag, Rämistrasse 5. Bo24 ZURICH; Librairie Payot, 6, rue Grenus, 121 I GENEVA I I. Suùsapan Panit. Mansion g, Rajdamnern Avenue, BANGKOK; Bibondh and Co. Ltd., 4-42 Charoen Krung Road, Siyaeg Phaya Sri, P.O. Box 402, BANGKOK; Suksit Siam Company, 1715 Rama IV Road, BANGKOK. Librairie hangélique, P.N. 378, LOME; Librairiedu Bon Pasteur, B.P. I 164, LOME; Librairie Modeme, B.P. 777, h M é . Haset Kitapevi A.S., Istikkl Caddesi, No. 469, Posta Kutusu zig. Beyoglu, ISTANBUL. Uganda Bookshop, P.O. Box 145, KAMPALA. Meehdunarodnaja higa, MoaKvA. G-zoo. H.M. Stationery Office, P.O. Box 569, LONDON SEI gNH; Government Bookshops: London, Belfast, Birmin- gham. Bristol, Cardiff, Edinburgh, Manchester. Le secrétaire gknéral de la Cnmmission nationale de la République Unie du Cameroun pour l’Unesco, B.P. 1600,

Dar es Salaam Bookshop, P.O. Box 9030. DAR ES SALAAM. Unipub, 345 Park Avenue South, NEW YORK, NEW YORK 10010. Librairie Attie, B.P. 64, OUAOADOVOOU; Librairie catholique .Jeunesse d’Aírique’, OUAGADOUGOU. Editorial Losada Uruguay. S.A., Maldonado 1092, MONTEVIDEO. Libreria del Este, Av. Francisco de Miranda, 52. Edificio Galiphn, Apartado 60337 CARACAS; La Muralla Diatribuciones, S.A., 4a, Avenida entre ja. y 4a. transversal, ‘Quinta Irenalis’ Los Pal; Grandes, CARACAS 106. Jugdovenska Knjiga, Trg Republike 5/8, P.O. Box 36, I 1-001, BEOGFUD; Dnavna Zalozba Slovenije, Titova C. 25, P.O.B. 50-1, 61-000 LJUBLJANA. Librairie du CIDEP, B.P. 2307, KJMHASA; Commission nationale zaïroise pour L’Unesco, Commissariat d‘&rat chargé de l’éducation nationale, B.P. 32, KINSHASA. Textbook Sales (PVT) Ltd, 67 Union Avenue, SALISBURY.

1733

BOX 30004, s-10425 STOCKHOLM.

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[BI CC 82/XVII/92 A

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