Global Television

Media turning global isn't a linear development, instead we've come to realise how media has always been cross-cultural, and has now been given the name, globalisation.

Pros:
Cheaper hardware (televisions)
Ability to consume TV from elsewhere
Ability to compare own nations television with other TV
More choice?

Cons:
Erosion of national culture
Cultural dominance of the USA
Market forces funding
Less choice?

For companies like Sony, they compete in the global marketplace which means the price of technology reduces far more than it would if we had nationalised industries which could fix a price.
When protestors of Free Tibet disrupted the Beijing Games, access to images of the event were denied to the Chinese public. This is due to having a government which controls the flow of information.
Due to this the US culture has been said to be the norm across the world, and as a result cultural ways of life are threatened.

Hybrid Programming-

'A hybrid programme is one which is sold across cultural and national boundaries, with changes made to the original format to accommodate local cultural differences, either to avoid offence or to attract more viewers.' An example of this is Who Wants To Be a Millionaire? , being broadcast in different countries under different names. For example I Love Quiz Show in Korea, The Dictionary Of Happiness in China and in India as Kaun Benega Crorepathi. This programme is easy to export from one country and import into another as it requires little adaptation, which can be described as 'Culturally Transparent'. Aslong as the programme, especially in the context of Soap Operas, makes the audience comfortable with the verisimilitude, which is 'the believable sense of reality and authenticity constructed by the text'.
There is a distinguish between hybrid programmes where specific cultural adaptation is required, and those culturally transparent where the format stays in place, but the names and presenters change.