|
The Dominance of the American Market
Why is the American market so dominant within the force of globalization? The United States can be seen to play such a prominent role in cultural globalization for a number of reasons:
- The size of the U.S. market. With nearly 300 million consumers, the United States is one of the largest markets in the world. When a company has access to the U.S. market and these 300 million people, it can take advantage of economies of scale.
- The wealth of the U.S. economy. Although the United States contains only four percent of the world's population, it accounts for nearly 25 percent of global economic output. The combined effects of being one of the richest countries in the world and one of the largest in terms of population put the U.S. market in a dominant position. Only the European Union now exceeds the U.S. market in size and wealth.
The EU achieved unity of currency in 2002. Currently, the Euro has been adopted by fifteen member states of the European Union and is shared by 320 million citizens, making it one of the world’s most important currencies and one of the EU’s greatest achievements. (http://ec.europa.eu/euro/index_en.html). 
On December 27, 2007 the Euro was announced as the strongest currency of the day, rising against the US dollar, British pound, and Japanese Yen.
On July 16, 2008 the New York Times noted: “The dollar fell to a record low against the euro on worries that the American government had taken on an enormous share of the nation’s financial risks. The dollar rebounded slightly during the day, and the euro settled at $1.5878.”
- A comparatively homogenous culture. When measured in terms of the numbers of languages and ethnicities present, the United States ranks as one of the most diverse countries in the world. However, when measured by the size of minority ethnic, linguistic, or cultural groups, it can be considered relatively homogenous. Consider that 97 percent of the U.S. population is considered fluent in the English language, and that the U.S. Census Bureau classifies 71 percent of the population within one major ethnic group (Caucasian, non-Hispanic). This contrasts dramatically with countries such as Nigeria or India, where no language is spoken as a mother tongue by any segment that accounts for more than 30 percent of the population. The ability to speak English grants one access to almost the entire U.S. population, as well as hundreds of millions of other people around the world.
|
The U.S. Market versus the World
- GDP per capita vs. Population: In 2008, the United States had the world’s tenth largest GDP per capita, with a per capita GDP of $47,000, superseded by various nations including Lichtenstein, Qatar, Luxembourg, Bermuda, Kuwait, Jersey, Norway, Brunei, and Singapore.
- Population vs. GDP per capita: The United States was the world's second-largest country by population in 2008. Of the world's 10 most populous nations, only three other countries, Japan, Russia, and Brazil had a GDP per capita above $10,000.
- Language: Linguists estimate that more than half a billion people around the world speak English as a primary or secondary language, and that nearly 1 billion people understand some English. Only Mandarin Chinese has more primary and secondary speakers. It is important to note, however, that Mandarin Chinese is limited to South-East Asia, while English has virtually reached a global spread.
|
Consequently, producers of goods and services that can reach the entire U.S. market tend to find themselves in dominant positions. Think, for instance, about the movie industry. A Hollywood producer from a major film studio can relatively easily invest $100 million into the production of a film, ensuring that it has the biggest stars, the best special effects, and the widest marketing and distribution. Because the U.S. market is so large and so affluent, a movie producer can be relatively confident that its investment will be recouped (depending on the quality of the movie, of course). Having produced a movie for the U.S. market, a successful film can then be "exported," or viewed worldwide, for very little extra cost.
Few other nations are in a position to invest so much money in a movie production. Movies produced in French or Hindi, whatever merits they have as films, will rarely reach the same mass global audience as an English language film. The producers are not likely to collect anywhere near the global box office receipts of an English language film, so producers rarely invest the same amounts of money in production or distribution.
These combined factors of market size and wealth have therefore given U.S. producers of films, television programs, and magazines an enormous advantage over foreign competitors. Consequently, American movies dominate movie theater screens around the world, and many American-made movies now collect more than half their box office receipts from foreign audiences.
|
