Twitter – and increasingly live blogs of breaking news events - consistently beat 24-hour TV channels. And on those defining moments that bring the nation together the multichannel broadcasters will, and regularly do, clear their main mass-audience channels.

So that makes a news channel perfect for those quite big, but not really big, stories for people who want information quite fast – but not immediately. By anyone's judgment, that's a small (and slightly weird) segment. Beyond that, it's great for people stranded in hotel rooms, office foyers or trading floors. But even that doesn't provide a huge audience – and probably not one in need of an entire network.

"Did we beat CNN?" is a phrase often heard in a newsroom. But in the digital age social media will always win the race to be first (if not always the race to be right). And who, other than the inhabitants of newsrooms, is watching enough news channels simultaneously to know who was first anyway? Those 30 seconds might be important for commodity traders – but for news audiences?

Most of the rash of global news channels that have been launched in the past 10 years are in some way state-backed and – although this is frequently denied – are there to reflect a particular set of values to the world.

These channels seldom if ever make money – they are not commercial propositions. It's about "soft power" – which at least is a purpose. China has invested more than $7bn in international broadcasting and talks of laying "cornerstones to underpin a de-Americanised world"

Exposing the world to our political and social values may be the strongest justification for global news channels. But in the meantime much of the audience, including in developing countries, are looking at their mobile phones and posting to Facebook. Those are the new arenas for global influence. 

Elsewhere there are fewer signs of experimenting with continuous TV news. ITV, unhindered by a news channel, reconfigured their website into a live stream that is both innovative and regularly beats the competition. The BBC's director of news, James Harding, has acknowledged the need for more R&D by creating a "Newslabs" team looking at data and visual journalism.

Satellite news channels have played a hugely important role in the development of 24-hour news and information over the last 30 years. But technology, and consumers, have moved on.

1. To what extent is your chosen area dominated by a small number of big institutions?
film - worldwide - Disney/WB/paramount
tv - different for countries - BBC/ ITV - FOX/NBC

2. To what extent do these institutions use new/digital media to communicate with their audience?
streaming over buying hard copies

3. Are there concerns about how these institutions are regulated?
Films of a variety of ratings are available for any user on the account, although there are settings which restrict content for children, such as Netflix's KID mode or the BBC, ITV, CH4 and CH5's tick box to confirm your age. However these barriers can easily be bypassed.

4. Does your area have lots of media products that are similar and mass produced?
sitcoms/reality tv/ soaps

5. Does everyone have access to your chosen area or does it vary from audience to audience?
Netflix contents varies depending on which region of the world you are in, this is due to the broadcasting rights bought from the companies who made the films/shows.

6.  Does your area promote the idea of consumerism or making a profit?
adverts/ merchandise/ product placement