The Big Six

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Tell the FCC: Stop Big Media

The U.S. media landscape is dominated by massive corporations that, through a history of mergers and acquisitions, have concentrated their control over what we see, hear and read. In many cases, these giant companies are vertically intergrated, controlling everything from initial production to final distribution. Here is information about the largest U.S. media firms.

Click here to learn more about our campaign to Stop Big Media and to support local ownership, diverse voices, and truly competitive media markets that serve the public interest.

Select a chart:  The Big Six   Cable   TV   Print   Telecom   Radio  


TV
Film
Publishing
Online holdings
Other
2007 revenues: $173 billion
General Electric media-related holdings include television networks NBC and Telemundo, Universal Pictures, Focus Features, 26 television stations in the United States, and cable networks MSNBC, Bravo and the Sci Fi Channel.

Visit the General Electric homepage »


TV
Internet
Film
Publishing
Other
Partnerships
2007 revenues: $46.5 billion
Time Warner is the largest media conglomerate in the world, with holdings including: CNN, the CW (a joint venture with CBS), HBO, Cinemax, Cartoon Network, TBS, TNT, America Online, MapQuest, Moviefone, Netscape, Warner Bros. Pictures, Castle Rock, and New Line Cinema, over 150 magazines such as Time, Cooking Light, Marie Claire and People.

Time Warner services 17.9% of all cable subscribers, gaining 3.5 million subscribers from its joint aquisition of Adelphia with Comcast. Time Warner now has 14.4 million cable customers (plus 1.5 million held in partnership with Comcast).

Visit the Time Warner homepage »


TV
Radio
Publishing
Film
Online Holdings
Other
2007 revenues: $35.5 billion
The Walt Disney Company owns the ABC Television Network, cable networks including ESPN, the Disney Channel, SOAPnet, A&E and Lifetime, 227 radio stations, music and book publishing companies, production companies Touchstone, Miramax and Walt Disney Pictures, Pixar Animation Studios, the cellular service Disney Mobile, and theme parks around the world.

Visit the Walt Disney Company homepage »


TV
Publishing
Film
Radio
Online Holdings
Other
2007 revenues: $28.6 billion
News Corporation’s media holdings include: the Fox Broadcasting Company, television and cable networks such as Fox, Fox Business Channel, National Geographic and FX, 35 television stations, print publications including the Wall Street Journal, the New York Post, TVGuide, the magazines Barron’s and SmartMoney, book publisher HarperCollins, film production companies 20th Century Fox, Fox Searchlight Pictures and Blue Sky Studios, numerous Web sites including MarketWatch.com, and non-media holdings including the National Rugby League.

Visit the News Corporation homepage »


TV
Radio
Publishing
Online holdings
Other
2007 revenues: $14.1 billion
CBS Corporation owns the CBS Television Network, CBS Television Distribution Group, the CW (a joint venture with Time Warner), Showtime, book publisher Simon & Schuster, 27 television stations, and CBS Radio, Inc, which has 140 stations. CBS is now the leading supplier of video to Google’s new Video Marketplace.

Visit the CBS Corporation homepage »


TV
Radio
Publishing
Film
Online Holdings
Other
2007 revenues: $13.4 billion
Viacom holdings include: Music Television, Nickelodeon, VH1, BET, Comedy Central, Paramount Pictures, Paramount Home Entertainment, Atom Entertainment, publishing company Famous Music and music game developer Harmonix. Viacom 18 is a joint venture with the Indian media company Global Broadcast news.

Visit the Viacom homepage »

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