Production, distribution and circulation: the stages of the production process, distribution and marketing strategies, convergence and the impact of digital technology on how products reach audiences.

What this dot point is asking

AQA wants you to explain the stages by which a product is made and reaches audiences, and how digital technology and convergence have changed them. You should connect distribution and marketing to the profit motive, since the industries framework treats getting a product to its audience as just as important as making it.

The stages of production

A product moves through several stages. Production is the making of the product, from development and financing to creation. Distribution is the process of getting it to audiences, including the release strategy, the choice of platforms, marketing and exhibition. Circulation is how the product spreads and is consumed once released, including word of mouth, reviews, sharing and resale. Treating these as distinct stages matters because the industries framework asks you to analyse the whole chain, not just the creative act of production.

Distribution and marketing strategies

Because the cultural industries are risky, marketing is central. Companies use trailers, posters, social media campaigns, premieres, merchandising and synergy across products owned by the same conglomerate to build awareness and pre-sell the product. The release strategy (the timing, sequence of platforms and territories, and exclusivity windows) is designed to maximise audiences and revenue, for example a cinema window before streaming. Distribution is therefore where the profit motive is most visible: the goal is to reach the largest or most valuable audience as efficiently as possible.

Convergence and digital technology

Convergence is the coming together of media technologies, industries and content, so that one device or platform delivers many forms. Digital technology has reshaped all three stages. Production tools are cheaper and more accessible, lowering the barrier to creation. Distribution is increasingly online and global, through streaming and download, bypassing traditional gatekeepers. Circulation now includes user sharing, so audiences help products spread and can produce content themselves (sometimes called prosumers). The net effect is that products are made, marketed and consumed across many platforms at once, and the one-way model of distribution has given way to a more participatory one.