Creative Economy: A Feasible Development Option

27Cocq (2006).28Rao (2006).29Sunario.30Presentation by Mohammed Bin Daud, Deputy Secretary General, Ministry of Culture, Arts and Heritage, Malaysia.31More information is available from http://singaporebiennale.org/.India: The country has a remarkable cultural diversityand strategies focus on the services-oriented and technologyintensivecreative industries such as digital and software servicesand audiovisual services, in particular the film industry.Apparently, the concept of the creative economy is not yet wellintegrated into national strategies. India is the world’s largestfilm producer, and the film industry provides employment tosome 5 million people. India’s support to the film industryrests on the action of three institutes at the federal level, andsome states have also developed support measures with anemphasis on training in film directing. 27 Moreover, theNational Film Development Corporation supports smallbudgetproductions as well as loans for the construction ofcinemas. However, fiscal measures are the main mechanism ofstate intervention, while tax exemptions to lower productioncosts, cuts in customs duties on film equipment, and an exportincentive system are the main instruments of public policies.Bollywood, the colloquial term for Hindi movies madein Mumbai, dominates the Indian national market, butregional film-producing states have their own growing markets.The film industry is fragmented but has been restructuring.Filmmaking, distribution and exhibition are now increasinglycontrolled by a smaller number of companies mergingto form bigger companies. 28 Traditionally, Indian films havebeen produced mainly for domestic markets national filmscomprise 90 per cent of the Indian market. Thanks to theIndian diaspora, Indian films are gaining greater penetrationin world markets, particularly as video-films for home andTV audiences in developing countries, especially in Africa.For the Indian film industry, 2008 was a difficult year due torising production costs resulting from higher pay packages forthe films’ stars, and lower revenues from box offices.Indonesia: The creative industries contributed 4.7 percent of the national GDP in 2006 and grew by 7.3 per cent in2008, able to absorb 3.7 million workers, equal to 4.7 per centof the total workforce, despite the fact that these industries arestill not yet properly mapped out. The focus on creative industrieswas spurred by the President, who instructed the TradeMinistry to boost the creative industries. Indonesia’s fashionindustry has grown by 30 per cent, handicrafts by 23 per centand advertising by 18 per cent. Music is also a growing industry,until now limited to the domestic market, but in the nearfuture will become the basis for exports. The Trade Ministryis in the process of mapping these creative industries and hasalready has complete data on furniture and handicrafts. 29Malaysia: The contribution of the creative industry tothe national economy is still low compared to other industrieslike the tourism and other services. However the Governmentof Malaysia is embarking in creative industries strategiesthrough five main areas: the provision of infrastructure facilities,minimizing bureaucracy, developing the creative industrythrough the Ministry of Culture, Art and Heritage, supportinglocal producers in order to expand TV and radio production,and efforts to reduce tax rates, ensure copyrights of theirproducers and combat piracy. 30Republic of Korea: The creative industries have beenperforming well, particularly those in technology-orientedareas such as audiovisuals and new media (mainly films, animationand video games). Public policies on audiovisuals havebeen instrumental not only in enhancing the creative sectordomestically but also in guiding international trade policies inthe context of World Trade Organization negotiations. TheKorean Broadcasting Commission plays an important role instrengthening domestic production of works for television. Inaddition, domestic demand is stimulated by the country’shigher-than-average rate of ownership of audiovisual appliancessuch as videocassette recorders and DVDs.Singapore: Singapore has been putting much effortinto strengthening the intellectual property right laws and educatingconsumers. Besides updating the laws and enforcementmechanisms, efforts have been made in the area of publicawareness. The HIP Alliance (HIP stands for Honour IP) isa collaborative effort between government and industry thatencourages consumers to respect creativity and creation bypersonally saying no to piracy. In 2006, it organized theSingapore Biennale, the largest international contemporaryvisual arts exhibition, which has served to promote Singaporeas an international centre for contemporary visual arts.Following the success of the second exhibition in 2008,which attracted over 500,000 visitors, the National ArtsCouncil has appointed the Singapore Art Museum to organizethe third one in March 2011. 31 49CREATIVE ECONOMY REPORT 20102The development dimension