Creating Prosperity: the role of higher education in ... - Universities UK

Creating Prosperity: the role of higher educationin driving the UK’s creative economy32.0The contextDefining the creative economy2.1 The term creative economy is increasingly used as a way of encapsulating a range of activities relatedto the central concept of the creative industries. The creative economy is broader than creativeindustries and might include, for example, culture and cultural tourism, the idea of creative cities,the creative class and even creativity itself.2.2 In line with the study’s terms of reference, the primary focus of the research was on the creativeindustries as the heart of the creative economy. However, the relationships between the creativeindustries and the wider economy remain an important consideration.2.3 The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) defined the creative industries as:‘those activities which have their origin in individual creativity, skill and talent and which have apotential for wealth and job creation through the generation and exploitation of intellectual property.’(DMCS, 1998)2.4 This definition was taken to include 13 sub-sectors (the DMCS 13), a classification that has provedremarkably durable and which is increasingly used as an international benchmark. The 13 subsectorsare:advertising; architecture; the art and antique market; crafts; design; designer fashion; film;interactive leisure software; music; the performing arts; publishing; software; and televisionand radio.2.5 One of the most debated issues is the extent to which these 13 sub-sectors represent a truly coherentset of industries, or are, in fact, more different than they are similar. The DMCS 13 operate as subsectorsin quite different ways within often distinct and, in some cases well-established, supply chainsand markets. While business models may share some common ground in content and copyright, thereare other differences that highlight specific industry conditions. For example, the primary revenuesource for commercial broadcasting is advertising, while in computer games it is product sales(and, increasingly, online subscriptions). Large parts of the design industries (for example graphics)operate more like professional services, while arts organisations typically exist within a mixedeconomy of public and commercial income.2.6 It is also important to note that the creative industries do not sit in isolation from the rest of theeconomy. Many creative sub-sectors such as advertising, architecture, design and software areprimarily involved in business-to-business transactions, and the outputs of creative sectors findapplication across the economy. In fact, 55 per cent of creative products are purchased by othersectors (Work Foundation, 2007).2.7 The point here is that the creative industries are complex and it is important to bear in mind therichness of their diversity. This presents both opportunities and challenges for the UK economyand for the role of higher education in supporting the sector.2.0 The context