Vertical and horizontal integration

 Thakur , Madhuri. Horizontal Integration vs Vertical Integration. 2022. 

March 15, 2023

Vertical Integration is a business practice that involves a company overseeing the planning and creation of a product, through to the marketing, advertising and distribution and then on to the retail of the product to the public. A vertically integrated company has control over all stages of the product's life. In the case of media for example, the company would have control over the production, exhibition, and distribution. An example of this integration is how 20th Century Fox owns not only the studios in Hollywood, but also cinemas, Tv channels, and DVD rental shops. The audience of a vertically integrated operation consists of a large group of people who share the same uses and gratifications. Horizontal integration however is when a company achieves ownership of several different forms of media once the studios become multi-media conglomerates and notice that different forms of media could work together to increase profits. The audience of a horizontally integrated company however consists of a large and diverse group of people who experience different uses and gratifications according to the media format. A definitive example of this integration would be the acquisition of Instagram by Facebook for a reported $1 billion. Both Instagram and Facebook share similar photo sharing services as well as posting opportunities for those who have downloaded. In my film, my partners and I may use instances of synergy to promote other films with a similar plot line such as The Dark Knight or Bonnie and Clyde. A film that uses this kind of synergy is Resident Evil (2001). This film has sold soundtrack albums as well as promoted the band Slipknot throughout its trilogy of movies.