By Hugho Deogratius

Introduction

The creative industries refer to a range of economic activities which are concerned with the generation or exploitation of knowledge and information.

Key role of creative industries

 Increasing role of cultural and creative industries

In this era of extraordinary change and globalization, many acknowledge that creativity and innovation are now driving the new economy. Organizations and even economic regions that embrace creativity generate significantly higher revenue and provide greater stability into the future.

Based on ideas rather than physical capital, the creative economy straddles economic,

Political, social, cultural and technological issues and is at the crossroads of the arts,

Business and technology it is unique in that it relies on an unlimited global resource human creativity. Growth strategies in the creative economy therefore focus on harnessing the development potential of an unlimited resource and not on optimizing limited resources (as in traditional manufacturing industries).

Many stakeholders are involved in this process: the public sector which includes cultural institutions, e.g. museums, public service broadcasting organizations, etc.; the private sector which covers a wide range of commercial operations in all fields of cultural production and distribution; the non-profit sector including many theatre and dance companies, festivals, orchestras, which may receive government subsidies; and non-governmental organizations such as advocacy agencies, actors and musicians’ unions.

Culture and creative industries have been increasingly integrated into the policy agenda of both developed and developing countries. In 2005, the United Kingdom’s

Commission for Africa reported that there was a ‘real danger that a lack of attention to culture in policy making will overwhelm many of the collective mechanisms.

Culture is increasingly finding a route to the market, which is leading to radical transformations in the way people create, consumes and enjoys cultural products.

Globalization and the convergence of multimedia and telecommunications technologies have transformed consumers from passive recipients of cultural messages into active co-creators of creative content. Digital distribution in industries such as design and music has transformed global markets and allowed new industries and consumers to emerge in developing regions such as Africa and Asia.

 It is estimated that licensed digital distribution of recorded music will rise from $653 million in 2005 to $4.9 billion in 2010, which represented a 49.5% compound annual increase.

The digital distribution of music is but one aspect of much larger economic phenomena, as will be discussed in this paper. Yet it is important to note that culture and creativity also have a tremendous impact on social cohesion and development. In Europe, the role of culture in development shows that ‘the arts enrich the social environment with stimulating or pleasing public amenities, by stimulating creativity.

 Culture should not only be considered as a means (or a barrier) to achieve economic growth but also as a factor of social cohesion and human development.

Before exploring the social and economic importance of culture any further, certain conceptual differences should be discussed. One choice of orientation, already highlighted in the very title of this session, is to differentiate between ‘cultural’ Industries and ‘creative’ industries.