Global Distribution and “National Mediations” of Ready-Made TV Shows in Foreign Markets

The increasing internationalisation of cultural industries, including television, is a salient topic within Media Studies. Substantial research efforts have been focused on the increasing volume of content circulating among different countries, on the economic and socio-cultural forces driving its distribution, and on global TV markets and format adaptations. In different contexts, the multichannel environment and global digital platforms can either reduce cultural diversity and flatten tastes or increase access to texts coming from marginal markets. In this context, not enough attention (and often only within the frameworks of Intercultural Studies and Translation Studies) has been devoted to what actually happens to the original audio-visual content once it is transferred to the receiving markets. In fact, a substantial number of subtle changes are carried out by national intermediaries, which affect the experience of these apparently ‘ready-made’ texts. A complex system of professionals deals with the transformation of the texts and the readjustment or recreation of the experiential context. Different goals and specific routines mediate the content, modify it, and reshape it around national cultures and viewing habits, to be more effectively delivered to national audiences. The majority of the contributions present some of the findings of a two-year research project called ‘Distribution, Adaptation, Circulation. An Industrial and Cultural Model for Anglophone Television in Italy’ (DAC), funded by the University of Bologna with an AlmaIdea grant (2018-20). The project aimed at shedding light on the processes of Italian ‘national mediation’ on English-language television shows and their national circulation paths in the contemporary market. It attempted to examine the supply chain, the players involved, the industrial rationale, the socio-cultural complexities, and their impact on both texts and audiences. To do so, it investigated global markets, acquisitions and license rights, dubbing and subtitling, scheduling, digital prominence, distribution windows, and promotion and marketing strategies. The special section is then enriched with the articles of other invited international scholars, to broaden the attention to other national and geocultural contexts (including the UK, Spain, Canada, Turkey, Czech Republic and Slovakia) and to engage in fruitful discussions.