Global Cultural Economy and Capital Involvement: A Case Study of the Production of the Television Series Game of Thrones
Abstrak
This article examines how global capital structures shape the production and worldwide circulation of Game of Thrones within the contemporary global cultural economy. Drawing on Arjun Appadurai’s framework, the study addresses a central problem in global media capitalism: structural inequality between core and peripheral actors in the distribution of economic benefits and symbolic power. Using a qualitative critical interpretive approach, the analysis explores how financial power coordinates media infrastructures, production technologies, creative labor mobility, and ideological circulation. The findings show that financial dominance constitutes the primary organizing force in the global production of Game of Thrones. Transnational capital controlled by HBO and WarnerMedia enables centralized control over production, digital distribution, and creative labor, positioning peripheral countries mainly as consumption markets rather than equal cultural producers. Furthermore, the global circulation of the series normalizes Eurocentrist narrative framing and symbolic representation. This article contributes to International Relations by demonstrating how popular culture functions as an instrument of soft power within global media capitalism and advances the political economy of culture by illustrating how financial dominance reproduces center– periphery inequality.
Artikel ini menganalisis bagaimana struktur kapital global membentuk proses produksi dan sirkulasi global serial televisi Game of Thrones dalam konteks ekonomi budaya global kontemporer. Dengan menggunakan kerangka pemikiran Arjun Appadurai, penelitian ini menyoroti persoalan utama dalam kapitalisme media global, yaitu ketimpangan struktural antara aktor pusat dan periferi dalam distribusi manfaat ekonomi serta kekuasaan simbolik. Melalui pendekatan kualitatif dengan analisis interpretatif kritis, kajian ini mengeksplorasi bagaimana kekuatan finansial mengoordinasikan infrastruktur media, teknologi produksi, mobilitas tenaga kerja kreatif, serta sirkulasi ideologis. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa dominasi finansial merupakan kekuatan pengorganisasi utama dalam produksi global Game of Thrones. Kapital transnasional yang dikendalikan oleh HBO dan WarnerMedia memungkinkan kontrol terpusat atas produksi, distribusi digital, dan tenaga kreatif, sehingga menempatkan negara-negara periferi terutama sebagai pasar konsumsi alih-alih sebagai produsen budaya yang setara. Lebih jauh, sirkulasi global serial ini menormalkan kerangka naratif dan representasi simbolik yang bersifat Eurosentris. Artikel ini berkontribusi pada kajian Hubungan Internasional dengan menunjukkan bagaimana budaya populer berfungsi sebagai instrumen soft power dalam kapitalisme media global, serta memperkaya ekonomi politik budaya melalui analisis tentang bagaimana dominasi finansial mereproduksi ketimpangan relasi pusat–periferi.
Kata Kunci
Teks Lengkap:
PDF (English)Referensi
Appadurai, A. (1996). Modernity at large: Cultural dimensions of globalization. University of Minnesota Press.
Baoill, A. Ó. (2008). Jenkins, H.(2006). Convergence Culture: Where Old and New Media Collide. New York: New York University Press. 336 pp. $29.95 (hardbound). Social Science Computer Review, 26(2), 252-254.
Bowyer, E. L. (2016). The Influence of the Use of World Heritage Sites and Heritage Sites as Filming Locations on Travellers’ Decisions to Visit Sites and their Perceptions of them. Case Study: Game of Thrones. Brandenburg Technical University.
Brotman, B. A. (2022). Game of Thrones and tourism impacts on Croatian housing prices. Tourism Analysis, 27(1), 113–118.
Clark, T. (2019, April 15). How much money the “Game of Thrones” stars are making for the final season. Business Insider. https://www.businessinsider.com/game-of-thrones-actors-salaries-emilia-clarke-sophie-turner-2019-4
Contu, G., & Pau, S. (2022). The impact of TV series on tourism performance: The case of Game of Thrones. Empirical Economics, 63(6), 3313–3341.
Dheviyani, D., & Manesah, D. (2024). Analisis Teknik Visualisasi Budaya Lokal Medan Dalam Film Sang Prawira (2019) Sutradara Ponti Gea. Misterius: Publikasi Ilmu Seni dan Desain Komunikasi Visual., 1(1), 42-59.
Dyson, S. B. (2015). Otherworldly politics: the international relations of Star Trek, Game of Thrones, and Battlestar Galactica. JHU Press.
Forcier, E. (2019). When the world ends: Study of# fakewesteros twitter fan community during the final season of game of thrones. Proceedings of the Association for Information Science and Technology, 56(1), 654-655.
Fox, H. L. (2019, May 23). Game of Thrones capitalises on British exports. GOV.UK. https://www.gov.uk/government/news/game-of-thrones-capitalises-on-british-exports
Gill, S. (2008). Power and resistance in the new world order. Springer.
Hardy, M. (2015). Game of tropes: The orientalist tradition in the works of G.R.R. Martin. International Journal of Arts & Sciences, 8(1), 409–420. https://www.universitypublications.net/ijas/0801/pdf/H5V583.pdf
Hardy, M. (2019). The east is least: The stereotypical imagining of Essos in Game of Thrones. Canadian Review of American Studies, 49(1), 26–45. https://doi.org/10.3138/cras.49.1.26
Harvey, D. (2007). A brief history of neoliberalism. Oxford University Press.
Hawkes, R. (2019, April 29). Game of Thrones and race: who are the non-white characters and where are they from in the books and show? The Telegraph. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/tv/0/game-thrones-race-non-white-characters-booksshow/#.
Hesmondhalgh, D. (2013). The cultural industries (3rd ed.). SAGE Publications.
Heyman, J. M., & Campbell, H. (2009). The anthropology of global flows: A critical reading of Appadurai’s ‘Disjuncture and Difference in the Global Cultural Economy’. Anthropological Theory, Vol. 9(2), 131-148.
Irwin, W. (2012). Game of Thrones and philosophy: Logic cuts deeper than swords. John Wiley & Sons.
Jones, E. (2019, April 6). 'There are no black people on Game of Thrones’: why is fantasy TV so white? The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/tv-andradio/2019/apr/06/there-are-no-black-people-on-game-of-thrones-why-is-fantasy-tv-sowhite.
Kesseh, K. M. (2023). Game of Thrones as a Prophecy for Global Politics. National Research University Higher School of Economics.
Lobato, R. (2019). Netflix nations: The geography of digital distribution. NYU Press.
Lovric, B., & Hernández, M. (2019). The House of Black and White: Identities of Color and Power Relations in the Game of Thrones. Revista: Cultura, Estetica, Linguagens, Vol. 04(No 02), 161-182.
Lundberg, C., Lexhagen, M., & Ziakas, V. (2024). Integrating popular culture tourism in local communities: a scoping review and ways forward. Scandinavian Journal of Hospitality and Tourism, 24(1), 4-26. https://www.tandfonline.com/action/showCitFormats?doi=10.1080/15022250.2024.2359410.
Mandić, A., Petrić, L., & Pivčević, S. (2017). Film as a creative industry constituent and its impacts on tourism development: Evidence from Croatia.
Mosco, V. (2009). The political economy of communication (2nd ed.). SAGE Publications.
Nye, J. S. (2004). Soft power: The means to success in world politics. Public Affairs.
Oke, A. (2025). Game of Thrones- A cult that transformed HBO into the one true 'Master of Coin'. Technology Transformation.
Parrot Analytics. (2020). Global demand for Game of Thrones. Parrot Analytics Reports.
Parrot Analytics. (2025). Game of Thrones global demand: Streaming and viewership data. https://www.parrotanalytics.com/insights/game-of-thrones-global-demand/
Peaslee, R. M., & Vasquez, R. (2021). Game of Thrones, Tourism, and the Ethics of Adaptation. Adaptation, 14(2), 221-242.
Piórecka, K. (2023). Game of Thrones fandom: Power and culture in fan communities. Media Business Culture, 1(14), 9–23. https://doi.org/10.2478/mbc-2023-0001
Post Magazine. (2017, August 1). VFX: Game of Thrones – Season 7. http://www.postmagazine.com/Publications/Post/2017/August-2017/VFX-Game-of-Thrones-Season-7.aspx
Radio Times Staff. (2016, June 29). This incredible visual effects breakdown reveals how the Battle of the Bastards was created. Radio Times. https://www.radiotimes.com/tv/sci-fi/game-of-thrones-battle-of-the-bastards-vfx-breakdown-newsupdate/
Ramsey, P., Baker, S., & Porter, R. (2019). Screen production on the ‘biggest set in the world’: Northern Ireland Screen and the case of Game of Thrones. Media, Culture & Society, 41(6), 845-862.
Rebane, G. (2019). ‘There is no word for thank you in Dothraki’: Language ideologies in Game of Thrones. Heruntergeladen von PubFactory, 169-196.
Riaz, A., Akbar, M., & Nawaz, R. (2021). Game of Thrones and International Politics in Realism Perspective. Global International Relations Review, IV(IV), 1-8.
Salim, A., & Sukendro, S. (2021). Representasi kritik sosial dalam film Parasite. Journal of Cultural Studies.
Salsabila, S. N. (2021). Netflix: Cultural diversity or cultural imperialism? https://d1wqtxts1xzle7.cloudfront.net/95176620/31097-libre.pdf?1670005348=
Schiller, H. I. (1998). Culture, Inc.: The corporate takeover of public expression. Oxford University Press.
Schlütz, D., & Jage-D’Aprile, F. (2021). Audience engagement with spreadable texts: How to measure fan involvement with Game of Thrones. Participations: Journal of Audience and Reception Studies, 18(2), 335-55.
Screen Rant. (2022, April 5). Game of Thrones: The staggering cost of producing the series. https://screenrant.com/game-of-thrones-production-cost/
Sensor Tower. (2018, October 18). Game of Thrones: Conquest generates $125 million in first year. https://sensortower.com/blog/game-of-thrones-conquest-revenue-125-million
Shashi, S. (2023). Game of Thrones and the Kingdom of Transmedia Storytelling: A Case Study. Medium.
Skywell Software. (2018, May 15). How visual effects in Game of Thrones are created. https://skywell.software/blog/how-visual-effects-in-game-of-thrones-are-created/
Srinivasan, J. (2025, October 13). How does HBO Max make money [Business & revenue model]. VPlayed. https://www.vplayed.com/blog/how-does-hbo-max-makes-money/
Stanford GSB. (2016). Game of Thrones and the politics of violence: A social media analysis. https://www.gsb.stanford.edu/insights/game-thrones-politics-violence
Statista. (2019). Consumer trends in Game of Thrones merchandise. Statista Reports.
Statista. (2019). Game of Thrones production costs per episode by season. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1089781/game-of-thrones-cost-per-episode/
Statista. (2019). Game of Thrones viewership statistics by season. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1091257/game-of-thrones-viewership/
Statista. (2019). Social media impact of Game of Thrones final season. Statista Reports.
Statista. (2022). Most expensive TV shows of all time as of 2019. https://www.statista.com/statistics/461829/most-expensive-tv-shows
Steger, M. B. (2013). Globalization: A very short introduction. Oxford University Press.
Steger, M. B. (2017). Globalization: A very short introduction (4th ed.). Oxford University Press.
Strange, S. (1996). The retreat of the state: The diffusion of power in the world economy. Cambridge University Press.
The Hollywood Reporter. (2018, June 12). Game of Thrones stars renegotiate for massive season 8 paydays. https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/game-of-thrones-stars-season-8-salaries-1118796/
Tkalec, M., Zilic, I., & Recher, V. (2017). The effect of film industry on tourism: Game of Thrones and Dubrovnik. International Journal of Tourism Research, 19(6), 705-714.
Tkalec, M., Zilic, I., & Recher, V. (2017). The effect of the film industry on tourism: Game of Thrones and Dubrovnik. International Journal of Tourism Research, 19(6), 705–714.
Variety. (2017, August 9). Game of Thrones cast salaries: How much do the stars make? https://variety.com/2017/tv/news/game-of-thrones-salaries-kit-harington-emilia-clarke-1202521123/
VFX Voice. (2017, August 8). Game of Thrones: Creating the visual effects for a global phenomenon. https://www.vfxvoice.com/game-of-thrones-creating-the-visual-effects-for-a-global-phenomenon/
Yin, R. K. (2015). Qualitative research from start to finish. Guilford Publications.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.24198/padjir.v8i1.68423
Padjadjaran Journal of International Relations Terindeks Di:
21.png)
