Abstract

During the 12th collective study of the political bureau of the CPC central committee, gresident Xi jinping stressed that it has become an urgent task for us to promote the integrated development of media and build all media.

The media is still important, but the industry attributes have been changed quietly. We ought to update and re-define media with new economy theories: with the diversification of channels for users to access information, the fragmentation of time, the reduction of the“traffic realization”business model, media form is not the only criterion for judging the advanced nature of the media. Media organizations have been projected and virtualized, and media men in this“personal activation age”have given up their job and started their own businesses. The new media technology is flourishing. Based on the factual judgment of the attention economy, we have argued that in this Internet economy, shall the media industry lead the development of society like decades ago.

Two core concepts of this essay are“evolutionary economics”and“media ecology”, in view of the weak theoretical basis of China’s media economy and the complex situation of the cultural reality of the media,The paper based on the background of structural adjustment of the evolutionary economy. After the global financial crisis, evolutionary economics has a stronger explanatory power to the real economic process than neo-liberal economics, which is still in the mainstream, and even economists predict that evolutionary economics will likely replace the mainstream status of neoliberalism in the future. Also, originated in Darwin’s organic theory of evolutionary economics, media ecology has a consistent theoretical hypothesis. Transformation of the traditional media, Along with the development of economy study, media economy study is calling for re-structural, as “structure- process” research model.

One of the key word: evolutionary economics, is the research framework. In chapter 2, compared with Western mainstream economy theories: competition is done by innovation not price, and resource is lead by creation not allocation, and product is meant for production but exchange. Evolutionary economics is superior to media economics in research aim, field—the consumption upgrade, from the complex demand for industry, business and individual, to put forward the need to re-sort out the relationship between media economics and economics, re-define the essence of the media industry, and constantly open up the media to realize the business path, the courage to explore the media and the new relationship between the organization and other issues.

Other key word—“media ecology”—is the top topic in media economics. Compared with the previous research on single media, it has become difficult to follow the fast changing media form and grasp the law of media development. Media ecology refers to the interaction between media elements, media, media and external environment in a certain social environment, and achieves a relatively balanced and harmonious state of structure. It concerns not only the internal factors, but also the relationship between human and media, media and media, media and society. These interactions lead to the exchange and sharing of information, energy and resources. However, the current media ecology studies equate this concept with the new media environment, lacking real theoretical and in-depth analysis. Therefore, the use of evolutionary economics framework to reconstruct the media ecology has become a new topic.

The main part of the thesis consists of third to fifth chapters. The research framework of“structure-process”mainly refers to evolutionary economics, the structure of media ecology is divided into macroscopic, meso and micro levels to analyze, each dimension specific application process“practice-Search-select”analysis method.

First one is the industry part on the macro level. In the framework of evolutionary economics, media industry is a complex economic system consisting of a series of interrelated enterprise groups, characterized by developing stage and non-equilibrium. Technological change is the basic force of the evolution of media industry, and every technological revolution from the big bang to the spread of industrial maturity and the whole process of social absorption will cause huge waves of development. Technology has changed the media form, the relationship between the media and social relations. Throughout the history of media industry development, content is king, channel wins, advertising realized, these three practices have helped them to be brilliant, and also become the bottleneck restricting the development of the moment. After a long high investment buy copyright, the media industry, through the self production of short videos, using the live technology such as compressed production costs, through the fight broadcast alone to reduce procurement risk, through the split change full payment of operating pressure; on the expansion of channels, channels, bring excess distraction of the predicament, appeared the media broadcast, the rise of the market choice aggregation platform; commercial realization way in the use of attention resources gradually after the failure of the media industry, there has been a shift away from brand advertising to advertising effect, change from customer service to service users, from transaction marketing to symbiotic marketing model innovation continuously. At present, the reconstruction of the media industry structure with the evolution of IP and terminal poles has come into being.

Secondly, the meso level part of the enterprise. Evolutionary economics holds that enterprise practices determine the heterogeneity of enterprises, while enterprise heterogeneity is the root of competitive advantages. In this chapter, I had selected the world’s largest entertainment media company Disney as the research object, using the empirical research of public data reports, 36 samples of the company 2009-2016 year each quarter to build the regression model of convention and market performance. Research on the relation between Disney and the income of successful business were done by descriptive statistical analysis, correlation analysis and regression analysis which draw the conclusion on “maximizing brand image as a goal, merger and acquisitions as a means, operating skill as measurement”, using the specific application of the income structure. When encountered development bottleneck, active exploration of the media network, theme parks and consumer interactive entertainment business, and constantly adjust strategies, replication, mutation and selection of the original practice even. A new process of precipitation, practice, eventually formed by IP promote the whole industry chain profit model-round revenue model, has become a process of eco enterprises success in the global entertainment empire. Disney is just a case of meso enterprise, and more and more enterprises are transforming to ecotype.

Second one is the enterprise part on the meso level. Evolutionary economics argues that business practices determine the heterogeneity of firms, and corporate heterogeneity is the source of competitive advantage. This chapter chose the world’s largest entertainment media company Disney as the research object. It has conducted the empirical research based on its financial report from 2009 to 2016, including public data from 36 samples, and comb out that Disney has been strengthening its Media Networks and Studio Entertainment business segments through business practices like investing projects, enhancing brand value, and strengthening its management level. For its Parks and Resorts, as well as the interactive business, Disney has been searching the new model and conducting strategy adjustment. And ultimately formed the profit model called Round of Revenue model, in which the whole industry chain has been activated by IP, and it became a successful eco-enterprise case from the global entertainment empire.

Third one is the individual part on the micro level. In order to suit the classification of the realism, the traditional economics ignored the behavior of human personality, but regard people in static level on a“representative average behavior”, and evolutionary economics value the difference of every individual. This chapter analyzes the evolution mechanism based on the individual, and considers that knowledge and ability are the most important evolutionary directions of the individual in the media ecology. One is the method of learning. That is, by learning about routines and increasing the ability to accomplish tasks, this learning also promotes synergy and efficiency in organizational collaboration. While the media forms of the media ecology are in continuous innovation and iteration, which makes the original knowledge difficult to apply to the current environment. Whether it is to reduce the media“gatekeeper”theory, the production system is broken; or the cross screen interactive distraction, users need to be locked to cultivate, break through education news. Two is the evolution of ability. In the past, we used the word“organization”as a unit of individual production function, as a place for the production and storage of knowledge. Enterprises are seen as effective means for the use and accumulation of specific knowledge required for production activities. In other words, it is because of the existence of individual and team capabilities that is necessary for the existence of the boundary and entity structure of an enterprise. However, the existence of media ecology has broken the employment relationship between enterprises and individuals, but has transformed into the model of enterprise empowerment and the evolution process of completion capability.

In summary, this paper will evolve economics and introduce media economics to inject fresh blood for the discipline construction. On the research method, it has taken the “custom - variation - choice” process analysis framework to study macro-level industry, meso-level enterprise, and micro-level individual, which is also relatively rare domestically. The media has no longer taken the medium change as the division of standard and no longer being a follower of a single media form. On the contrary, media has been carrying out the overall observation of the media ecosystem, and promoting the media in the various elements of the rejuvenated, predict the future development trend of the media also have some reference.