Global Television and Film is the first non-specialist introduction to the economics of the contemporary film and television business. The industry is highly significant, economically and culturally and the political economy of its trade is an extremely sensitive issue. Are cultural goods merely entertainment goods? Why does the US dominate? This book provides a systematic and structured economic explanation of how the global markets for television and films operate, and the implications for public policy and business strategy. By explaining the economic and cultural characteristics relevant to trade, the reader is provided with the tools necessary to evaluate international communication issues. The book stresses the uniqueness of cultural products and develops the argument that the economic and cultural development approaches to cultural issues can be largely reconciled. The authors point out that the mainstream economics approach has been under-represented in communications and explains to a very great extent the underlying reasons for the prevalence of American based media across the world.