"Free 101"

1. Three Party Market:

The notion of the Three Party Market is generally used and or seen in today’s media. In order for it to be successful it must contain three separate parties, one of which pays for the other two parties interactions and “free” exchange. For example in media, the publisher pitches an idea or story line to the consumers which is then sponsored by a third party, the advertisers. Thus the consumers/ viewers are receiving “free” information from the publishers, that is paid for by the advertisers. Although the information is “free” to the viewers it is not free for the publishers. In addition, the consumers are not paying now but it is the hopes that they will be intrigued by the advertisement and purchases something in the near future. Thus, free is in quotations because it is non-existent. Regardless of when, someone will always have to pay.

Moving on, we get to watch channels like CBS, FOX, NBC, ABC and The CW for free because they are “free to air” but also because it allows more opportunity for companies to market the products which again will create more profit off the viewers.

As far as financing goes, I was knowledgeable on the fact that advertising agencies would pay for time slots to advertise. However I did not know that they actually fund the entire show/program. I also knew that the purpose for advertisements during our favorite programs was to create profit from the advertised products.

Lastly, who gets the better deal, the publisher, consumer, or the advertiser? In terms of money coming out of pocket I would say that the publisher gets the better deal because it seems as if they are not spending any money but are gaining profit through how well their programs fits the needs of the viewers. On the other hand the advertiser gets the better deal in the long run because once they market a product successfully it will become popular and very profitable. With that being said, the consumer/viewer gets shafted because they are continuing to spend money out of their pocket with out monetary profit. It is ironic but expected that the viewers have the worst deal, mainly because the media tries to appeal to our needs while making us spend our money.