Conglomeration among the top American public relations agencies: A case study

Conglomerates have been increasing in size to also include different media industries. Public relations has not been immune from conglomerate mergers. However, the inter-related economic and structural dimensions of public relations within a conglomerate are often undermined in the relevant literature. The existing literature shows lack of studies on these dimensions. This research investigates the degree of conglomeration among the top American PR agencies and the characteristics of these conglomerated agencies. Using industrial organization theory as the theoretical framework, the findings revealed that 24% of the leading public relations agencies in the United States are part of conglomerates. These agencies tend to be located in large metropolitan areas, have a relatively small number of employees and have considerable net fees. The study also found strong and positive statistical correlations between conglomerated PR agencies when compared to un-conglomerated in variables such as agency's location, primary service and net fees.