The Business of Television

In this expanded and updated second edition, esteemed television executive and Harvard lecturer Ken Basin offers a comprehensive and readable overview of the business, financial, and legal structure of the U.S. television industry, as well as its deal-making norms.

The Business of Television explores the basic structure and recent history of the television and streaming business, rights and talent negotiations, intellectual property, backend deals, licensing, international production, and much more. This expanded and updated second edition also features an in-depth exploration of the evolution of the streaming business, offers valuable new insights about negotiation, reflects the historic impacts of the 2020 Covid-19 pandemic and 2023 WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes, addresses the intersection of artificial intelligence technology and intellectual property law, and provides a greater breadth and depth of technical material about a wide variety of common television deals. The book also includes breakdowns after each chapter summarizing major deal terms and points of negotiation, a significantly expanded glossary, an extensive list of referenced articles and cases, and a wealth of real-world examples to help readers put the material into context.

Written for a diverse audience of working or aspiring creative professionals, executives, agents, managers, lawyers, and students, The Business of Television is the definitive reference guide for the ever-changing television industry.