can take a significant share of the audience.
In the early 1990s, the government determined that the networks were not monopolies, a decision which allowed them to serve as producers for their own programs and to sell these programs as reruns to local stations as well as on the international market. There is some concern that increasing the ability of the networks to put their own programming on the air means that they will purchase fewer products from outside sources, such as studios, resulting in monopolistic behavior. However, given the amount of competition that the networks face, and the increasing number of outlets in the form of cable channels and independent stations that are available, this fear is probably unfounded.
One of the most important competitive factors is that of the Fox network, and specifically, of its leader, Rupert Murdoch. When Murdoch initially bid for the National Football League games, he paid what many considered a greatly inflated price for the rights to the games. Ho
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