Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Analytical Table of Contents
- List of Tables
- List of Case Studies
- List of Figures
- Acknowledgements
- Dedication
- Introduction: Problems of Definition and the Discourse of American Independent Cinema
- Part I American Independent Cinema in the Studio Years (mid-1920s–late 1940s)
- Part II The Transitional Years (late 1940s–late 1960s)
- Part III Contemporary American Independent Cinema (late 1960s–present)
- 5 The New Hollywood and the Independent Hollywood
- 6 American Independent Cinema in the Age of the Conglomerates
- 7 Mini-majors and Major Independents
- 8 The Institutionalisation of American Independent Cinema
- Epilogue: From Independent to ‘Specialty’ Cinema
- Bibliography
- Index
7 - Mini-majors and Major Independents
from Part III - Contemporary American Independent Cinema (late 1960s–present)
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Analytical Table of Contents
- List of Tables
- List of Case Studies
- List of Figures
- Acknowledgements
- Dedication
- Introduction: Problems of Definition and the Discourse of American Independent Cinema
- Part I American Independent Cinema in the Studio Years (mid-1920s–late 1940s)
- Part II The Transitional Years (late 1940s–late 1960s)
- Part III Contemporary American Independent Cinema (late 1960s–present)
- 5 The New Hollywood and the Independent Hollywood
- 6 American Independent Cinema in the Age of the Conglomerates
- 7 Mini-majors and Major Independents
- 8 The Institutionalisation of American Independent Cinema
- Epilogue: From Independent to ‘Specialty’ Cinema
- Bibliography
- Index
Summary
INTRODUCTION
As the conglomeration of the film industry was in full swing in the late 1970s, the development of new technologies such as cable and pay-cable television, home video and (during the 1980s) satellite television created new lucrative markets for the exploitation of the feature film. Gradually, the theatrical run became only one – though still extremely important – avenue for the commercial exploitation of a film, before it found its way to the other ancillary markets. With the commodity already produced, the only expenses involved would include new marketing campaigns tailor-made to the particular demographics the new exhibition technologies served, and the cost of the transfer to the new format (such as the production of video cassettes). Realising that the ancillary markets could increase the potentially large profits from film production exponentially, the conglomerate owners of the majors moved swiftly to control all those markets.
This move became particularly evident in the early and mid-1980s when the conglomerates started downsizing their interests in other areas, concentrating instead on expanding their holdings in the entertainment and leisure areas. The result of this process was that the conglomerates evolved gradually into fully diversified entertainment corporations. This evolution was characterised by a wave of mergers and takeovers in which the parent companies of the majors acquired or established a large number of entertainment divisions to accompany their film-producing and -distributing subsidiaries.
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- American Independent CinemaAn Introduction, pp. 222 - 245Publisher: Edinburgh University PressPrint publication year: 2006