Creative industries: a new direction?

Abstract

This paper looks at the work of the ARC Centre for Creative Industries and Innovation at Queensland University of Technology. They have attempted to deal with some of the definitional and policy ambiguities surrounding the DCMS’s re‐branding of ‘cultural industries’ as ‘creative industries’. The paper focuses on three central claims. First, that Art falls outside the creative industries; second, that the creative industries moves beyond a cultural policy paradigm towards that of innovation systems; third, that the notion of ‘social network markets’ represents the central defining characteristic of the creative industries. The paper suggests that the attempt to separate out art and culture from the creative industries is misplaced and represents a significant shift away from a longer trajectory of ‘cultural industries’ policies with some damaging consequences for cultural policy and creative businesses.

Keywords:

• cultural industries
• creative industries
• cultural policy

Notes

1. The Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Creative Industries and Innovation includes a wide range of excellent researchers and research projects. These can be found on the CCI website: http://cci.edu.au/. Those involved in the different research projects are not bound by any central line. I discuss the published works of those wishing to create a conceptual framework for the creative industries agenda, namely Stuart Cunningham (Director), John Hartley (Research Director) and Jason Potts – though others have co‐authored papers.

2. In a way, I would suggest, profoundly ignorant of both (see O’Connor 2007).

3. This connection between social scepticism and the free market is identified by Keat (2000, chap. 2).