Companies in the entertainment industry span various fields, including telecommunications, broadcasting, recording, publishing, gaming, and performing arts. Although other smaller companies are operating within the media sector, the industry is dominated by huge media conglomerates. Despite the wide spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, online video game and film streaming businesses have done exceptionally well. Meanwhile, theme park and event promotion businesses have taken a major hit.
The following list ranks the top 10 entertainment corporations based on their trailing twelve-month (TTM) revenue for the three years ending with the most recent fiscal year. Companies on this list can only be purchased through regular stock trading or ADRs in the United States or Canada. The interval between reports may be longer for overseas corporations that only report every other year. YCharts provides all data as of September 8, 2020, except market cap figures, which are current as of September 9.
1. Walt Disney Co
Often abbreviated to "Disney," The Walt Disney Company is an American global entertainment and media business based in the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California.
Disney has been establishing and acquiring new business units since the 1980s to promote more adult-oriented content than that associated with its primary family-friendly brands.
Walt Disney Pictures, Pixar, Walt Disney Animation Studios, 20th Century Fox, Marvel Studios, Lucasfilm, 20th Century Fox Animation, and Searchlight Pictures are all part of the company's film studio division, The Walt Disney Studios.
Disney also has significant stakes in the broadcasting, television, streaming media, consumer products, theme park resorts, publishing, and overseas operations industries.
2. Netflix
American streaming service and production firm Netflix, Inc., Inaugurated on August 29, 1997, provides subscribers with access to a collection of movies and TV shows obtained through distribution arrangements or Netflix Originals, the company's original content.
Over 221.8 million people were Netflix subscribers as of December 31, 2021. It included 75.2% of the population in the United States and Canada, 7.4% of the population in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, 3.9% in Latin America, and 3.2% in Asia and the Pacific.
By market cap, Netflix ranks as the world's second-largest entertainment provider.
3. Comcast Corp
Comcast Corporation is third on our ranking of the top 10 largest entertainment firms in the world. Founded in the 1960s as American Cable Systems, Comcast Corporation is now an international telecommunications company with headquarters in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
It is the largest pay-TV provider, cable TV provider, home Internet service provider in the United States, and third-largest home telephone service provider in the country.
It serves customers in 40 US states plus DC at home and in business.
4. Charter Communications Inc.
Spectrum is a brand owned by Charter Communications, Inc., a telecommunications and media conglomerate based in the United States. It serves more than 26 million customers across 41 states, putting it behind just Comcast as the largest cable provider in the United States and behind only AT&T and Comcast as the largest pay-TV provider. If you look at the total number of home telephone lines, Charter ranks seventh.
When it comes to entertainment companies, Charter is among the top 10 worldwide.
5. Nintendo Co. Ltd.
Established in 1889, Nintendo Co., Ltd. is a Japanese multinational video game corporation headquartered in Kyoto. It creates software for computers and game consoles. Currently, Nintendo is among the world's top 10 largest corporations.
Fusajiro Yamauchi, a skilled craftsman, established Nintendo in 1889 under the name Nintendo Karuta to create traditional hanafuda playing cards.
After dabbling in several industries throughout the 1960s and eventually becoming a publicly traded corporation, Nintendo released the Color TV-Game console in 1977.
Donkey Kong's 1981 debut, followed by the Nintendo Entertainment System in 1985 and Super Mario Bros. the following year, catapulted Nintendo into global prominence.
Since then, Nintendo has created some of the most beloved gaming consoles, including the Game Boy, Super Nintendo Entertainment System, Nintendo DS, Wii, and Switch.
6. Vivendi SA (VIVHY)
French media giant Vivendi produces and distributes content and services for various consumer electronics, computer, and mobile devices. The business offers a wide range of products and services, including digital and pay television, creating and distributing interactive entertainment, and telecommunications. Universal Music Group is one of the largest divisions of Vivendi and is home to dozens of record labels.
7. Fox Corp. (FOXA)
Located at 1211 Avenue of the Americas in New York City, Fox Corporation (stylized as FOX Corporation) is an American mass media conglomerate owned by media entrepreneur Rupert Murdoch.
After The Walt Disney Company acquired 21st Century Fox in 2019, the remaining assets were spun off into a new company called Fox Corp., which was incorporated in Delaware and began trading on January 1, 2019. Through a family trust, the Murdochs own 39.6 per cent of the corporation.
FOX CORP is one of the world's top 10 largest entertainment corporations.
8. ViacomCBS Inc. (VIAC)
The American media and entertainment giant Paramount Global is a transnational corporation.
The company, now known as ViacomCBS, is headquartered in the One Astor Plaza building in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, United States, and was formed on December 4, 2019, by the merger of the second iteration of CBS Corporation and the second iteration of Viacom (both of which had been split from the original iteration of Viacom in 2006).
More than 170 networks are under the company's control, with over 700 million users in about 180 countries.
9. DISH Network Corp. (DISH)
Direct Broadcast Satellite (DBS) provider Dish Network and over-the-top Internet Protocol Television (OTT IPTV) service Sling TV are both owned by DISH Network Corporation (DISH, an acronym for Digital Sky Highway), an American television provider.
Dish furthermore provides a mobile wireless service called Dish Wireless. Dish plans to expand into the postpaid market after acquiring prepaid provider Boost Mobile on July 1, 2020. The Englewood, Colorado-based firm employs around 16,000 people.
10. Bolloré SA (BOIVF)
As a French holding company, Bolloré SA has holdings in a wide range of businesses, including those related to media and advertising. The French media behemoth Vivendi, in which Bolloré holds a significant share, is also listed here. Bolloré is a conglomerate that operates primarily in the paper, transportation, and logistics sectors. However, it is also involved in energy distribution and manufacturing rubber and palm oil.
