Evaluation - Question Three

"What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?"

A media institution is a company that deals with media texts. They can be in charge of production, marketing, distrubuting or regulating, or a combination of media texts. Institutions work in a business style structure, with the employees working towards a common goal that the institution has set. There are several media instutuions in the United Kingdom such as:

The institution that I feel would distribute my media product would be Development Hell. I think this institution would because it is a small independent institution, with its portfolio only covering two other magazines which both are monthly music magazines; The Word and Mixmag. I feel this is the institution that would distribute my magazine over others due to the fact that it is a small company; my magazine is based at teenagers/young adults who are serious about music, which makes my magazine quite a niche product. I feel a smaller company would be best to distribute it over companies such as IPC Media who have a large portfolio of magazines, which have a large consumer base. I feel a company like this, who deal with music magazines such as NME which is a very popular magazine, wouldn't be able to market my magazine well, or be satisfied with having a niche product which may not produce a profit as high as NME. I think the internal compition with popular magazines - not only music magazines, but several others - would tamper with the success of my magazine.

Development Hell is a small institution based in London, which has also provided consultancy services for publishers and employs respected names within British magazines. According to http://www.abc.org.uk/ the average circulation per issue in 2010 for Development Hell's magazine The Word was 25,048 and in 2009 the average circulation per issue for Mixmag was 26,116. In comparision with figures for NME (238,850) the numbers seem quite small, which supports my decision to use Development Hell to distribute my magazine.

There are both advantages and disadvantages of using Development Hell as the institution to distribute my product, but I feel the advantages weigh out more than the disadvantages. As Development Hell deals with only music magazines this could be a benefit, as the company understands how to market a music magazine, and understands the codes and coventions needed to be followed, and how to create successful music magazines, it offers the best chance to make my product successful. In addition to this, my music magazine is of a different genre of the magazines it currently distributes so therefore it would be an advantage for Development Hell to distribute my music magazine as it would bring a new consumer base to the company and focus on a different demographic group than the ones already targeted which would stop internal competition. However, Development Hell may not want to distribute another music magazine, and want to move into different areas in order to bring a wider demographic audience into the current ones, and want to widen their portfolio.

I feel that although my magazine is of a similar purpose to the magazines already distributed by Development Hell, this would be the institution that might distribute it due to the different audience it focuses on combined with the fact it would not be a widely consumed magazine, much like the ones currently in distribution and the fact that Development Hell is institution that specialises in music magazines.