Media and Information Industries

Getting Started | Market Research Reports | Hints and Tips for Searching Effectively
Focusing on Industries | Focusing on Companies | Research Using Trade Magazines & News Sources
Sources for Statistics/Data | Consumer Demographics | Additional Reference Sources

Getting Started

Some major industries are well documented, and you may find yourself inundated with information. Most industries, however, are more narrowly defined, and you will have to consult a number of sources to piece together a comprehensive overview. In this case, a useful strategy may be to study particular companies within an industry.

A variety of sources are included: web sites, print sources available in the University Libraries, and news databases provided by the University Libraries. If you need help locating a specific type of information or media source either on the Internet or in the library, please ask for additional help in the News and Microforms Library (Ground Floor, Pattee, West) or the Social Sciences Library (2nd Floor Paterno Library). The staff and librarians in both libraries will be able to provide additional recommendations to help you with your specific assignment.

Please note: Selected Internet resources in this guide will only be accessible to Pennsylvania State University students and researchers with a Penn State Access Account. This guide is recommended for use by students in:

• COMM 489W: Media and Information Industries

For additional help with any of these resources or to schedule an appointment, please contact Debora Cheney, Foster Communications Librarian and Head, News & Microforms Library, 814-863-1345.

Hints & Tips:

Keywords: How industries are identified can vary greatly from source to source. The video game industry is a relatively new industry that falls into and between many related industries. Is it a game industry? Is it a computer programming industry? Is it a software industry? Or, are you also interested in the computer equipment/hardware industry? As you search you will need to think of a wide variety of terms and use them within each database until you determine which term produces the results most relevant to your search in each database. Some possible keywords: toys and games; electronics; consumer electronics; computer games; video games; computer software; information technology; computer software.

"Back door" search strategy: use a company or product name in many sources and determine with which "industry group" it has been identified.

Market Research Reports

Market research firms publish reports that cover many factors relating to the market environment for a specific product or service. These reports are very labor intensive to produce and keep up-to-date. Therefore, these market research reports can be very expensive and are usually not available in libraries. Students and small businesses usually opt to spend time finding the many pieces of information themselves.

Focusing On Industries

See also Media Industry: Broadcasting, Cable, and Entertainment [Business Library]

• Mintel Reports (Requires user to create a user profile; follow website prompts.)
  • Market research reports for the U.S. and European consumer markets
  • Analysis of market drivers, trends, market forecasts, market segmentations, demographics, and consumer attitudes and purchasing behaviors
  • Over 600 reports published each year
• IBISWorld
  • more than 700 full-text industry reports
  • more than 700 U.S. industry rish ranking reports
  • information about more than 8000 publicly-traded companies
• Plunkett Research Online (Industry Information)
  • Industry sector analysis and research, Industry trends and statistics
  • Market research and trends
  • Company profiles
• Kagan's Media Trends
  • Describes and summarizes trends in media consumption including yearly growth of broadcast and cable stations, pay TV, box office results, revenue of digital cable, media mergers, internet usage, etc., and provides a wide range of supporting data
  • Covers all facets of digital media, including emerging technologies, and provides analysis for most data sets
  • Consumer confidence, consumer sentiment
• Communications Industry Forecast and Report
  • Reports spending projections for every major media market, including broadcast, cable, satellite television, entertainment media and consumer Internet
  • Includes ranking individual companies on the basis of spending and revenue
• Reuters Research On-Demand (formerly Multex )
  • Real-time full-text investment research reports
  • Over 750 contributing research firms
  • How to Use Tip: Use the "Search" box in the upper right of the screen and key in a company name or ticker symbol to find company-specific research. Another way to access industry information is to click on the "Properties" header and type in your keyword query (for example, video games), including date parameters and other limiting features to narrow your search. You can also key in a company name, or multiple names to generate information on those entities activities.
• Standard & Poor's NetAdvantage
  • Industry Surveys-provide current, historical, and forecasted information on 52 major U.S. industries
  • The surveys provide extensive information including detailed information on current conditions, industry trends, how the industry operates, and sources for more information. Statistics are provided for major companies within each industry, as well as for the industry overall
  • Company profiles and Corporation Records
  • How to Use Tip: Click on "Companies" in the upper tool bar. Search either by company name or its ticker. Here you can find company information, lists of competitors, industry information and industry news. Another useful search is the "Industries" search accessed by clicking "Industries" in the upper tool bar. Choose the kind of Industry Survey in which you're interested from the pull-down menu. To refine this search, use the additional pull-down menus under "Global Industry Surveys".

Many of the print sources below provide conversions between SIC and NAIC codes. All are located in the Schreyer Business Library Reference Collection, 3rd floor Paterno Library, unless noted otherwise. You might also review the Correspondence Tables from the U.S. Census Bureau for online conversions between SIC and NAIC codes.

• The Structure of American Industry> 1986, 1995, 2001, 2005
  This title offers industry overviews written by economists. The overviews explore how an industry is organized and structured, industry history, competition in the industry, economic performance of industries, and related public policy issues. Editions profile agriculture, airlines, automobiles, banking, beer, cigarettes, college sports, health care, music recording, petroleum, public accounting, and telecommunications
• Encyclopedia of Global Industries
  Chronicles the history, development and current status of approximately 115 of the world's most lucrative and high-profile industries. It provides comprehensive, international coverage organized by industry. Additional features include general, geographic, harmonized system/SIC conversion and industry indexes.
• Market Share Reporter
  One of the few easy ways to look for market share data. This annual publication includes brief market share information culled from other sources (usually trade periodicals). Entries are arranged by SIC code.
• World Market Share Reporter
  Reproduces market share reports in tabular and graphic formats from business journals and newspapers, and brokerage house reports. Over 4,00 companies and 2,300 products and services are covered. The book is divided into chapters based on 2-digit SIC code numbers. Within each chapter, entries are listed according to 4-digit SIC numbers. Entries are indexed by source, place name, product name, service, and company name.

Try also TableBase (see description in Sources for Statistics and Data) for additional and more recent market share data from a variety of trade publications.

Focusing on Companies

• Value Line
  Investment advisory publication (oriented to the investor) that includes reports, articles, and company highlights for 98 industries-each one-page analysis includes information on trends and company statistics.
• Mergent Online
  • Information on 11,000 U.S. public companies and 17,000 non-U.S. Public companies
  • Detailed, standardized financial statements
  • Searchable by company name, industry codes, revenue levels, and other characteristics
  • Comparative analysis among companies
  • Access to SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) reports
• Hoover's Online
  • Limited information on a limited number of private companies
  • Includes SIC and NAICS codes
• International Directory of Company Histories
• Encyclopedia of American Business History
  Includes articles on industries and companies, business concepts and trends, biographical entries, and laws on some specifically American institutions. Each entry is preceded by an introduction and followed by a brief biography and references to related articles.

Research Using Trade Magazines & News Sources

• ABI/INFORM
  • Multipurpose database which can be used to find scholarly articles, general business articles, and articles on specific companies or industries. Its excellent search interface can save time in finding relevant materials
  • Indexes over 1000 business periodicals
  • Most articles are full-text
  • How to Use Tip:
    • To find market share or rankings data published in business periodicals or trade journals, use the advanced search function with keywords for your industry, product, company, or brand in combination with the terms "market shares" or "rankings" in the subject field
    • Combine your industry keywords (for example, video game) with one of the following subject terms: Forecasts, Industry-wide conditions, Market segments, Market shares, Statistical data, or Trends
• LexisNexis Academic
  • News: full-text regional, national and international newspapers, magazines and trade journals
  • Business Resources: full-text business news, company and industry information, SEC filings, and accounting literature
  • Legal Resources: full-text federal and state case opinions, law reviews, legal news, European Union legislation, tax law, and patents
• Google for business research
  • Access to unrestricted web sites
  • News, stock values, company contacts and other information
  • Search by keyword
  • How to Use Tip: Be aware that some unrestricted web information is incomplete, unreliable, and non-permanent

Sources for Statistics and Data

• TableBase
  • Tabular/statistical data
  • Companies, industries, products, and demographics
  • Market share, company and brand rankings, industry and product forecasts, imports and exports, production and consumption statistics, number of users, and trends
  • International in scope
  • Provides rankings, market share data, and other statistics
• Kagan's Media Trends (See earlier description)
• Communications Industry Forecast and Report (See earlier description)

Consumer Demographics

Note: The print sources below are all located in the Schreyer Business Library Reference Collection, 3rd floor Paterno Library, unless noted otherwise.

• Best Customers
  • Information on the Entertainment and Communications industries
  • Best customers and customer trends data
• Consumer Europe
• Consumer Dimensions
  • What are consumers buying?
  • Who (demographic profile) is buying what?
  • Chapters on Entertainment, Communications, and Retail trends
• Consumer International
  • Sales for consumer electronics and telecommunication sectors compared by country
• Household Spending
  • Spending by household on a wide range of home entertainment and electronic media

Additional Reference Sources

For additional resources see these Business Library Web pages:

• Resources on Company Research
• Resources on Industry Research
• Media Industry : Broadcasting, Cable, & Entertainment