Labour Party Conference: Cultural value - creative industries in a digital world

Date: 26.09.2011 17:30 - 19:00

Location: Hospitality suite, TATE Liverpool, Albert Dock, Liverpool, L3 4BB

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Our discussion on the cultural value of creative industries at Labour party conference was well attended by industry representatives and delegates alike. They came to hear the views of John Newbigin, Chair of Creative England, Anthony Lilley, Chief Executive of Magic Lantern and Ivan Lewis, Shadow Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport. Head of STV and NESTA Board member Rob Woodward chaired the session.

Rob Woodward opened the session by outlining the UK's global position in the creative industries sector but cautioned that there is much work to be done in order for that position to be retained. He particularly highlighted that the UK's track record for creating large businesses in the creative sector is not as good as it should be.  Rob also commented that the creative industries were a disparate group that often lacked a common voice.

Anthony Lilley's first comment was directed at the culture within the UK towards the creative industries and highlighted that there is a gap between the creative and technical, and the traditional arts. Approaches to closing this gap and progressing the industries form part of the big questions that need to be addressed.

Anthony outlined where power has traditionally been held in the creative industries (at the point of distribution) and observed that this power has weakened over the years as a direct result of the emergence of new technologies and access to high speed broadband. The organisations that re-harness the scarcity of distribution and lock their 'audiences' into a specific platform (e.g. Apple with iTunes) can secure their business model and continue to grow viable businesses from the creative businesses.

Whilst acknowledging the value of new technologies, Anthony pointed out that it is difficult to quantify the creative industries in terms of value or reach via new technologies. Network models are becoming increasingly important and policy formulation hasn't adapted to take account of that.

How we integrate cultural and commercial value is crucial and highlights the importance of looking internationally and planning for the longer term; if we don't we risk losing our market leading position completely. John Newbigin highlighted that we are competing with other countries that have massive long-term government investment planned to secure sustained growth.

John agreed with Anthony's position on examining the cultural infrastructure of society as a whole in order to ensure that the cultural industries are supported in the long term. He was particularly keen to stress that education could not be 'the hand maiden of industry' because it is the combination of technical expertise and creatives mingling with historians and classicists that brings about the blend of skills, expertise and background required to create video games.

John's last point concerned public procurement and the part it could play in helping smaller businesses to grow if they were able to participate. John was keen to stress that small businesses rarely see a slice of the multiple high value contracts let by the government every year. Networking has always been important in the creative industries where silos rarely exist. If that mentality could spill over into policy making, the creative industries could greatly benefit.

Ivan Lewis has found his engagement with the creative industries extremely valuable. He praised John Newbigin and Chris Smith for developing and defining concepts of the creative industries. He highlighted that 20 years of success was being put at risk by not acknowledging and planning to meet the challenges presented internationally.

Ivan gave us a view of the activity he would be undertaking were the Labour party in power. Pursuing an 'active, smart, intelligent industrial policy' that came from an 'enterprising and entrepreneurial' government would be key. To feed this, accurate data to inform the policy is required as it is essential to making informed decisions including those on education and skills. He would be drilling down into the creative industries to identify means of support for micro-business to scale up. He wants to see the UK harnessing the resources of the FCO and UKTI in order to maintain our competitive edge in the creative industries.  Pulling together the business skills and acumen required to develop and grow and enterprise together with the creativity and technical expertise of the creative industries is the best way to boost success and access private finance.

Ivan identified a gap in understanding about the importance of intellectual property amongst the general public claiming that the industry is endlessly involved in discussions about IP but that it has little or no meaning to the average person. He was clear that breaches of IP are industrial theft on a grand scale.

Chair: Rob Woodward, Chief Executive STV

Speakers:

• Ivan Lewis MP, Shadow Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
• John Newbigin, Chair, Creative England
• Anthony Lilley, Chief Creative Officer and CEO, Magic Lantern
• Rob Woodward, CEO of STV Group