ABSTRACT
Whereas academic studies of media have traditionally been dominated by sociology or other non-economic disciplines, the perspectives and frameworks offered by economics are now properly recognized as central to our understanding of the organization and behavior of media industries. Therefore, media economics – the subject area that concerns itself with the economics of making and supplying media – is flourishing. In media economics, the focus is on applying economic theories and concepts to activities such as film-making, news production, print and online publishing, video-on-demand streaming services, and television and radio broadcasting, and on developing models and paradigms for the advancement of economic studies of all aspects of media. As more and more economists have turned their attention to media firms and industries, media economics has developed as a rich and diverse field in its own right. This chapter sets out to give a sense of some of the main themes and concerns that mark this out as a distinctive and lively area of study. It examines some of the key purposes and aims that have inspired work in media economics and outlines a number of topics, such as the effects of technological and market changes, monopolization and competition, audiences and advertising, that continue to engage the interest of researchers interested in economic aspects of media organizations, markets and industries.
