Monday, June 09, 2008

Indonesia Masih Dicap Negara Pembajak, Pemerintah Tak Bisa Melindungi

Source: Kompas
Minggu, 4/5/2008 | 00:12 WIB

MUSI, seperti pernah dikatakan Menteri Perdagangan RI Marie Elka Pangestu, merupakan industri kreatif Indonesia yang sangat potensial. Sayangnya, hingga kini musik sebagai kegiatan kreatif masih dihantui pembajakan yang makin marak.

Departemen Perdagangan RI mendefinisikan industri kreatif berasal dari pemanfaatan kreatifitas, ketrampilan, serta bakat individu untuk menciptakan kesejahteraan serta lapangan pekerjaan dengan menghasilkan dan mengeksploitasi daya kreasi dan daya cipta individu tersebut.

Musik menjadi salah satu industri kreatif karena berkaitan dengan proses penciptaan, produksi, distribusi dan ritel rekaman suara, hak cipta rekaman, promosi musik, penulis lirik, pencipta lagu atau musik, pertunjukan musik, penyanyi, dan komposisi musik. Ironisnya, seiring dengan tumbuh suburnya industri musik Tanah Air, pembajakan makin marak dan semakin terang-terangan dilakukan oknum tak bertanggung jawab.

"Negara kita masih ada di deretan negara pembajak, bahkan stigma publik internasional terhadap Indonesia sebagai negara pembajak masih melekat sampai sekarang walaupun tidak sepenuhnya benar. Pembajak itu hanya sebagian kecil oknum yang tidak bertanggung jawab," kata James F Sundah, selaku Ketua Bidang Teknologi Informasi, Persatuan Artis Penyanyi, Pencipta Lagu, dan Penata Musik Rekaman Indonesia (PAPPRI).

Pencipta lagu Lilin-lilin Kecil itu mengatakan Indonesia sudah hampir kalah oleh pembajakan. Stigma internasional tentang pembajakan itu merugikan para pemusik yang menjadi potensi kreatif indonesia.

"Akhirnya kita kena imbas embargo di tingkat internasional. Di Asia Tenggara, kita cuma jadi bahan pembalasan karena karya musisi negeri mereka dibajak di Indonesia, maka karya kita juga dibajak," ujar James yang tak lelah menyuarakan perang terhadap pembajakan.

Penyanyi jebolan grup band Dewa 19, Ari Lasso mengaku gerah dengan pembajakan dan produknya dijajakan secara terang-terangan. "Ibarat jamur, aksi pembajakan sudah menyebar kemana-mana. Bahkan di depan kantor polisi produk bajakan dijual begitu saja, harapan saya hukum harus ditegakkan," katanya.

Sementara itu Ketua Umum PAPPRI, Dharma Oratmangun mengatakan pembajakan kaset dan cakram padat makin parah. Perbandingannya 10:90, artinya 10 persen orisinil dan sisanya barang bajakan. Berdasarkan hasil survei PAPPRI, pada dua tahun lalu jumlah barang bajakan sebesar 80 persen dari total produksi rekaman musik yang beredar di pasar.

PAPPRI, lanjutnya, sudah bekerja sejak UU No.19/2002 tentang Hak atas Kekayaan Intelektual (HAKI) masih dibahas materinya sampai perangkat hukum itu diundangkan tahun 2002. Namun demikian, sampai saat ini belum ada Peraturan Pemerintah sebagai pelaksanaannya

Peran Pemerintah
Selanjutnya James F Sundah mengatakan perang terhadap pembajakan tidak bisa dilakukan kalangan musisi saja. Pemerintah juga punya peran besar dalam upaya memerangi pembajakan dengan menggunakan perangkat hukum yang ada.

"Kalau pemerintah menggolongkan musik sebagai industri kreatif maka dibenahi dulu dong masalah yang ada," kata pria kelahiran Semarang, 1 Desember 1955 ini. Di negara lain, lanjutnya, pekerja seni dihargai dan dilindungi dengan hak cipta, sedangkan di Indonesia yang memiliki perangkat hukum ternyata perlindungan belum dilaksanakan sepenuhnya.

James yang April lalu diundang ke Bali dalam forum internasional tentang HAKI oleh salah satu lembaga bentukan PBB, mendapat berbagai tanggapan dari sejumlah negara peserta tentang maraknya pembajakan di Indonesia.

"Vietnam dan beberapa negara Amerika Latin yang diundang waktu itu menyatakan kebingungan karena Indonesia memiliki perangkat hukum yang bagus tapi tidak bisa melindungi industri kreatif dari pembajakan. Di negara mereka saja belum ada Undang-undang HAKI," ujarnya menjelaskan.

Dalam simposium yang diikuti 35 negara itu, James menyampaikan salah satu rekomendasinya agar stigma dunia internasional tentang pembajakan dihapuskan. "Karena sebenarnya yang membajak bukan orang Indonesia seluruhnya kan, pelakunya hanya segelintir oknum dan pemerintah tidak sanggup menanganinya," tuturnya.

James mengungkapkan Indonesia memiliki potensi di bidang musik yang sangat luar biasa. Ribuan jenis musik etnik tersebar di berbagai daerah namun lama-lama diakui sebagai milik bangsa lain karena ketidakberdayaan pemerintah dalam melindunginya.

"Kita punya ribuan akar musik etnik yang tidak dimiliki negara lain, namun perlahan karena stigma sebagai negara membajak terlanjur melekat dan negara ini tidak bisa mengurusi, akhirnya banyak negara lain mengklaim musik itu sebagai miliknya," ujar pria berdarah Manado ini.

Sebenarnya, kata james, di tingkat internasional banyak musik Indoensia digunakan sebagai musik ilustrasi film, ilustrasi iklan, dan menjadi inspirasi untuk menciptakan lagu-lagu asing. Ia mencontohkan lagu My Heart Will Go On yang dinyanyikan Celine Dion dalam film Titanic.

"Sebenarnya kalau mau menyimak dengan seksama, lagu itu mengandung unsur lagu keroncong. Tapi sayangnya banyak pihak tidak mau menyatakan itu diambil dari musik Indonesia. Kebanyakan di labelnya dituliskan ’Asian Music’, padahal maksudnya ya Indonesia," katanya.

Demikian halnya dengan musik angklung yang menginspirasi banyak musikus dunia menciptakan karya. Para musisi itu, menurut James, hanya mencantumkan bamboo music saja tanpa menyebutkan bahwa musik bambu yang dimaksud adalah angklung dari Indonesia.

Kebangkitan
"Kita tidak pesimis, meski pembajakan menggila dan pemerintah belum menunjukkan perannya memerangi pembajakan. Tahun ini merupakan 100 tahun kebangkitan nasional dan masih ada celah yang bisa digunakan para musisi Indonesia untuk bangkit melawan pembajakan," katanya.

Teknologi digital disebut James sebagai jawaban dari keresahan dan keprihatinan para musisi dan penyanyi terhadap pembajakan. "Ini pencerahan, sebuah cahaya baru yang muncul dari teknologi digital, misalnya melalui Youtube, dan cara lainnya," ujar James.

Melalui teknologi digital, lanjutnya, dunia bisa melihat karya-karya musisi dan penyanyi Indonesia. Meskipun pembajakan membuat Indonesia terjebak ibarat "katak dalam tempurung", kini musisi bisa menawarkan musiknya hingga ke tingkat internasional dengan memanfaatkan kecanggihan teknologi. "Kalau kita kuasai teknologi, maka upaya untuk bisa bangkit dengan karya-karya terbaik akan bisa terwujud," tambahnya.

Upaya memerangi pembajakan juga dilakukan PAPPRI lewat sikap proaktif menangkap para pembajak. Caranya, menyampaikan pada pihak berwenang tentang titik-titik di mana pembajak memproduksi ataupun menjual.

"Tetapi sayangnya, saat digrebek tahu-tahu sudah keburu hilang. Pembajakan di Indonesia memang sudah mengakar cuma kita harus optimis. Sekarang suasana memang sudah gelap, tapi kita masih harus tetap optimis," katanya.

Adanya perlindungan HAKI dalam musik Indonesia, katanya, akan memberi dampak yang besar, selain dapat meminimalkan pelanggaran hak cipta, juga akan terjadi perimbangan yang adil terhadap akses-akses ekonomi. (ANT)

iGotcha installs first interactive display in Canada

igotcha digital signage

iGotcha media has installed an interactive window display at Garage’s flagshop Montreal store, located at the corner of Peel and St-Catherine Street. (I actually noticed it last week but they only officially announced it today). Window shoppers can interact with a touch screen interface, access the Garage website, product info, and participate to forums. The screen is in high-definition and has a viewing angle of 180 degrees.

This is the first interactive digital signage in Canada, and I found it very innovative. It’s much better (as in environment-friendly) than printing endlessly brochures on latest store sales and discounts. It is also faster on broadcasting information, as store managers can show videos through an easy-to-use interface or highlight real-time product information.

iGotcha media says Garage was the ideal spot as teenagers and young women are “incredibly active online” and that interactive displays are more captivating than “traditional” signage. But just wait until they install one at Futureshop’s store in St-Catherine.

Saturday, June 07, 2008

T-Shirts and Suits: A Guide to the Business of Creativity

... bringing together creative people (the T-Shirts) with smart business thinking (the Suits).

Successful creative enterprises integrate creativity and business. This site offers an approach which brings together both creative passion and the best business practice.

In this website, you'll find articles, information and examples about marketing, intellectual property, leadership, change, and business development - all relevant to creative entreprenuers and the creative industries.

* Blog --- Read about cool business ideas for creative enterprises and organisations: http://www.t-shirtsandsuits.com
* Free e-Book --- Download the full version of 'T-Shirts and Suits: A Guide to the Business of Creativity': http://snurl.com/23oxo
* Facebook --- Join the T-Shirts and Suits group of 1,000+ creative people in business: http://snipurl.com/28bow
* Twitter --- Follow T-Shirts and Suits on Twitter: http://twitter.com/TShirtsAndSuits
* Videos --- Watch David Parrish on the T-Shirts and Suits channel: http://tinyurl.com/5kz35h

Monterey County’s Arts and Culture

Source: Monterey County Weekly

The ripple of a new idea can create a sea of change. Decades ago, John Naisbitt’s Megatrends took a deep look at business and social systems worldwide in a simple, evocative book that had a tsunami of impact on government policies, corporate boardrooms and management schools. Its influence surged all the way down to the water-cooler middle managers who talked about the Japanese business model and a “high tech, high touch” marketing approach.

Such a new wave of thinking is behind “Creative Monterey County: An Action Plan,” the county’s first-ever arts and culture plan, which will be launched Friday, Sept. 14.

Based on international data and local research, the plan is the outcome of months of discussion and analysis by almost 100 representatives from all sectors of the community. The Arts Council for Monterey County and the Community Foundation for Monterey County led the process, which was funded by the James Irvine Foundation.

The plan recognizes that this county, more than most, has a wealth of individual artists, arts organizations and institutions. This abundance creates a stimulating environment and an undisputed enhancement to our quality of life: Artists and arts institutions are good for their own sake.

It also looks at this rich artistic resource as part of what worldwide economists, policymakers and academicians are recognizing as the fastest-growing sector of the world economy, the “creative economy.” In this newly-defined environment, the arts are important for a whole new set of reasons.

At the cusp of the century, Business Week declared the 21st century the “creative era.” Shortly after, policymakers in Britain adopted a new economic development definition: “creative clusters,” which became the mantra for attracting relatively high paying, low-impact design and development industries to replace lost manufacturing jobs in urban, suburban and rural counties. Using a similar term, Bill Gates opened the World Economic Forum of 2006 (themed “The Creative Imperative”) by talking about how Microsoft targets its products to support “the creative economy.”

Later this year Fairfax County, Va., hosts the first international Creative Economy conference in the United States, convening economists, planners, artists, policymakers and academicians from four continents to discuss “creative industries” which, the plan explains, “rely on intellectual property, individual skills and creative talents.”

“Creativity is increasingly at the heart of ‘competitive advantage’ in all sectors of our economy,” says Paulette Lynch, executive director of the Arts Council. “Whatever the product or service may be, for any business to be successful it needs creative people in all aspects of design, development and management. Creativity in the workplace is not limited to design, although that is increasingly important, but means the ability to see things differently, to see new opportunities and to solve problems that seem intractable.”

A large part of the plan aims to strengthen and build the county’s creative industries as a whole. Much of that strength will come from collaborations. “In fact,” Lynch says, “during the process many ideas like cooperative marketing made such sense that they’re already being implemented.”

Some figures cited in the plan are familiar: nearly 100 nonprofit arts organizations, thousands of individual artists and arts businesses and the extended systems that support them exist here, along with dozens of historic sites and cultural institutions.

Other figures are more surprising. According to the feds, the creative industries in Monterey County account for 9,743 jobs – more than 4 percent of county employment or “twice the number… of jobs as in hotels and motels, more than residential, commercial and industrial construction combined.”

The Action Plan seeks to strengthen these creative industries by identifying them officially as one of Monterey County’s economic development clusters, a responsibility of the Monterey County Business Council. This official designation would lead to research, networking and incubation support. As a “new” economic development engine, creative economies – including the fine arts – would benefit from modified land use policies like zoning modifications that encourage development of live/work housing and establish creative districts such as Arts Habitat currently underway on the former Fort Ord.

“Our existing creative industries provide a strong base which can be helped to grow,” says Kira Corser, the Community Foundation’s arts project manager. “We need to strengthen and support the arts and other creative industries already here, reinvest in our existing assets and programs, protect and promote them, then identify and fill in the gaps in order to move forward.”

Tourism is another local industry that stands to benefit economically from a strong arts and cultural presence. The plan points to the opportunity “for arts and culture groups to partner with the hospitality industry” to attract the cultural tourist – who spends more and stays longer than other tourists. It calls for a new cultural tourism image or brand that would be marketed by the Convention and Visitors Bureau and the Monterey County Business Council.

The plan also considers how arts and culture can help address powerful demographic changes. For instance, Salinas Valley now houses 35 percent of the county’s residents. Many residents are monolingual Spanish, but most local cultural programs are English-only. Monterey County’s population is less educated than most statewide; local industries pay less, and homes cost more than in other California counties. To address these inequities, the plan proposes “to make effective use of arts, culture and creative opportunities to promote vibrant and healthy communities, including education and workforce development.”

Nowadays there is plentiful research to prove that arts are important in education; they help kids learn every other subject by stimulating problem-solving skills. In therapy and in mediation arts provide safe places for self-expression. Arts are regularly used as a venue for cross-cultural understanding and for bringing communities together.

Arts can be a great workhorse for community improvement. Yet arts have been considered dispensable in public education, and have long held second-tier status in civic funding priorities.

The plan advocates support for the arts by embedding the traditional fine and creative arts within the context of a needed industry, showing its role in the economic, cultural and social life of the county. It’s a perspective that doesn’t cheapen or distract from the value of art as a pure expressive force but that attracts a new level of support for artists and arts organizations.

Rep. Sam Farr participated directly in the development of the plan. He’s also quoted in the document. “The arts and culture of our region are unparalleled,” he says. “We just have to come together as never before to celebrate and promote that.”

Friday, June 06, 2008

Creative Community Singapore

Source: Creative Community Singapore

Vision

“Creative and Connected Community where arts, culture, business and technology converge to empower and engage individuals.”

Launched by the Ministry of Information, Communications and the Arts (MICA) in July 2005, the Creative Community Singapore initiative aims to provide opportunities for Singaporeans from all walks of life to express their creativity and deploy their creative energy for community benefits. CCS hopes to evolve a creative and connected community where arts, culture, business and technology converge to empower and engage individuals. CCS will provide various levels of support - including project facilitation, co-branding, marketing and co-funding - to implement creative ideas.

CCS is steered by a Creative Community Singapore Partnership (CCSP), comprising members from the public, private and people sectors. The Partnership's key roles are to provide strategic vision and direction, as well as evaluate ideas and facilitate project implementation and review. The strong representation from the 3-P sectors on the Partnership allows CCS projects to benefit from the feedback and support of a wide spectrum of resources and experience.

By supporting the realisation of creative ideas for the community, CCS aims to touch more than 50,000 Singaporeans over the project period of 3 years. CCS will support the growth of Creative Industries by recognizing and enhancing the creative capabilities and skills of at least 5,000 Singaporeans. It will also support the creation of jobs and business startups.
wannaknow_img02.jpg

More importantly, CCS will instill confidence in Singaporeans to test out their creative ideas. We want to show through CCS that anyone - a 16-year old student, a retiree seeking to jazz up his life, a professional considering a career switch, or a group of youth activists - can have the opportunity to initiate and start projects which benefit the community. CCS aims to inspire the community by encouraging entrepreneurship and showcasing how creativity can be beneficial and applicable to all. In addition, projects drawing inspiration from our homegrown creative capability, our culture and heritage will strengthen community bonding, national pride and also our sense of identity.

Social Networking in Plain English

Thursday, June 05, 2008

Strengthening Local Creative Industries and Developing Cultural Capacity for Povery Alleviation

Source: INCD


Roadmap for the INCD

This Roadmap is based on a Study commissioned by the INCD and undertaken by Burama K. Sagnia. Both of these works are intended to inform the discussions at the 6th Annual Meeting of the INCD taking place in Dakar, Senegal from 17-20 November 2005. This Roadmap both summarises the Study and outlines a course of action for INCD to pursue its objectives in this field.

INTRODUCTION

Since its formation in 1998 and its founding meeting in 2000, the focus of INCD’s advocacy has been on building support for the Convention on the protection and the promotion of the diversity of cultural expressions. Also from the beginning, INCD has recognised that achieving greater cultural diversity requires the development of cultural capacity and creative industries in many countries and achieving more balance in the global exchange of cultural goods and services. With the adoption of the Convention by the UNESCO General Conference in October 2005, the activities of the INCD will shift to other priorities that support the realisation of the goals of the Convention and the objectives of INCD and its members.

The Study investigates and analyses three areas where INCD can make a contribution, through clearly-defined interventions.

  1. The development of creative industries to promote job creation, income generation and poverty alleviation.
  2. Campaigning to increase resources for cultural projects allocated by development agencies.
  3. Integrating Cultural Impact Assessment into development frameworks and processes of development agencies.

While the Study addresses these themes sequentially, the findings and recommendations have been regrouped into the following areas for purposes of this Roadmap:

  1. Stimulating and Strengthening Local Creative Industries.
  2. Developing Cultural Capacity and Strengthening Local Institutions.
  3. Advocacy Programme.

STIMULATING AND STRENGTHENING LOCAL CREATIVE INDUSTRIES

Principal Issues
Creative industries are today considered to be one of the fastest growing sectors in the global economy, outperforming traditional economic sectors such as agriculture and manufacturing. To start, it is necessary to define creative industries and to understand why the sector is becoming an important sector in the global economy. Creative industries can be seen as:

Those industries that have their origin in individual creativity, skill and talent with a potential for wealth and job creation through the generation and exploitation of intellectual property.

(Adapted from the 1988 definition used by the United Kingdom Creative Industries Task Force, during the first national mapping exercise on creative industries.)

Drawing from this definition and others adopted by meetings and bodies such as the International Forum on Creative Industries and the UNCTAD High-Level Panel on Creative Industries and Development (Brazil, 2004), creative industries are understood to include the following sub-sectors:

The recording industry, music, performing arts, film and video, publishing, software and computer services, photography, art and antiquities, radio, television and broadcasting industries, advertising, crafts, architecture, design, designer fashion, interactive leisure software, cultural heritage and tourism.

Globalisation and the increasing interdependence of national economies have opened up new opportunities in the creative industries for developing countries and countries in transition; at the same time, these factors are potential threats to cultural diversity and creativity. Because creative industries draw from the creative expressions of communities based on the wealth of their historical and contemporary values and symbols, support for the industries should be seen as an integral part of the preservation, protection and promotion of cultural diversity. Moreover, as such diversity is a global public good, it needs to be fully supported by the international community and this is explicitly acknowledged in the new UNESCO Convention.

Creativity is a ubiquitous asset available in all countries. Its effective nurturing and exploitation could contribute to job creation, income generation and poverty alleviation. These opportunities have been unrealised in many developing countries and countries in transition for many reasons, including the expanding technological frontiers of the information society.

Creative industries are one of the fastest growing sectors of the global economy, and contribute significantly to the GDP of many developed countries. It is estimated that the global market value of creative industries will increase to US $1.3 trillion in 2005, up from US $831 billion in 2000, an annual compound growth rate over 7 percent. Globally, the industries now account for over 7 percent of the world’s gross domestic product and are forecast to grow in coming years y 10 percent per annum (UNCTAD, 2004). These industries are already a leading economic sector in OECD countries, with annual growth rates between 5 and 20 percent (E.U., 2003).

However, most developing and transition economies continue to be marginal players, regardless of their rich cultural heritage. Nonetheless, the potential for them to reap the benefits from the creative economy is enormous, given the examples of the Indian and Nigerian Film Industries, as well as the examples of successful craft industries in Senegal, South Africa, India and Brazil. Effective national policies and carefully-designed intervention strategies and programmes for creative industries could make a difference.

But developing dynamic competitiveness in creative industries in developing countries and countries in transition will require that major challenges and obstacles be identified and addressed. Most of the sectors classified under these industries are small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and operate largely within the informal economy. In 2004 UNCTAD reported that the following challenges need to be addressed to enhance the competitiveness of creative industries in developing countries:

  • Regulatory environment
    A simple, transparent, stable and enforceable regulatory environment is the basis upon which a dynamic enterprise can develop.

  • Public-private sector partnership
    A favourable investment framework cannot be provided exclusively by the market, the firm or the state acting independently, but requires a partnership between all stakeholders.

  • Access to finance
    Creative industries in developing countries traditionally have difficulty in obtaining credit or equity, because they are regarded by creditors and investors as high risk.

  • Access to technology

  • Development of entrepreneurial skills

  • Intellectual property rights
    Weak copyright legislation and ineffective enforcement regimes can jeopardise growth.

  • Concentration of media ownership

The Study provides examples of successful case studies and innovative experiences of small scale creative enterprises in Senegal, South Africa, India and Brazil. Lessons can be learned from these experiences to inform the INCD in its future interventions in these areas.

DEVELOPING CULTURAL CAPACITY AND STRENGTHENING LOCAL INSTITUTIONS

Principal Issues
Building dynamic competitiveness in the creative industries in developing countries requires the strengthening of domestic producers and supply capacities, which can have the most positive economic effect if they are integrated into global markets. All of this requires the development of local capacity and competence among artists and cultural entrepreneurs, the strengthening of local institutions and infrastructure, the development of networks, the building of new creative partnerships, enhancement of the domestic policy framework and the development of a favourable incentive structure.

The experiences of countries as diverse as the United Kingdom, Brazil, Nigeria, Senegal, South Africa, Thailand and India which have successfully nurtured and developed their domestic creative industries attest to the fact that these sectors can contribute to skill-intensive and high value-added activities that generate linkages with ancillary sectors throughout the economy, including information and communication technologies and design capacities.

An agency’s approach to capacity building reflects its philosophy of development, as well as how it interprets its role. It requires an agency to work with its existing and potential counterparts in a way that responds coherently to a shared reading of the context, compatible criteria for evaluating results, and a mutual understanding of their respective mission and goals.

There are several models of capacity building:

  • Working through intermediaries
    This is often in the form of working through local NGOs or community-based organizations and providing grants for specified purposes.
  • Generating synergies
    In this case, the external agency works with a combination of counterparts on specified capacity building activities.
  • Promoting representative organisations
    This form of capacity building facilitates the emergence of unions, federations, alliances or national associations.
  • Generating new independent organisations
  • Governmental and non-governmental structures in parallel
    Sometimes, it may be appropriate to work predominantly through the state, usually through the Ministry of Culture or relevant national agencies responsible for specific cultural domains. This can be a channel for influencing the national cultural policy.

Specific capacity building activities can include:

  • Training
    This represents an investment in people and can include training about rights, awareness training, or vocational and skills training.

  • Institutional strengthening
    This is an investment in organisations. Organisations can take various shapes, including:
    - traditional organisations, mobilised around religion, ethnicity, gender, social class, village or kinship.
    - membership organisations, involving people with shared professional interests such as the musicians’ unions, etc.
    - organisations established by external agencies
    - development NGOs.

  • Partnership and cooperation
    This is investment in networks. This can be done through linking, exchange visits, workshops, seminars, conferences, electronic communication, etc.

DEVELOPING AN INCD ADVOCACY PROGRAMME

The Study looks at four areas around which INCD will develop a broad-based advocacy programme. Advocacy starts with the research and writing of the necessary materials. While the Study is a good beginning and contains much information that will be useful for the campaign, there is need for additional secondary research and data in all areas.

After the necessary materials are prepared, the advocacy campaign can be launched, either on a regional or global basis, depending on the priorities that emerge from the additional research and the resources available to the INCD. The advocacy campaign can take many forms, from letter writing, meetings, media relations and conferences, to public demonstrations. The following areas are recommended for the advocacy programme.

1. Culture’s Relationship to Development
The Study observed that one critical area requiring the attention of the INCD is how to establish common ground with the development agencies on the importance of culture to the development process and the importance of cultural development.

The cultural community strives to project a perspective of culture as a “structural functional” vision of human society. This perspective advocates that the criteria and indicators for development must be broadened to include not only economic development, but also cultural growth and development. This also acknowledges the dual function of culture: its far-reaching instrumental function to promote economic development; and its intrinsic value that warrants it to grow and develop in its own right, to enable it to be effectively of service to development and other basic human objectives.

Examples of projects that can stimulate and strengthen local creative industries, and develop cultural capacity and local institutions are essential to this work and will form a key part of the support materials.

2. Increase Cultural Support by Development Agencies
The Study looks at the cultural budgets of several development agencies, both public and private. INCD will work to increase the commitment of development agencies to support:

  • the development of creative industries, including financing for start-ups and acquisition of technology, and for programmes dealing with market access, intellectual property rights and other matters;

  • the development of cultural capacity, including investments in the development of technical and professional creative skills, and managerial and organizational skills;

  • programmes to strengthen local cultural institutions, organisations and networks.

INCD will launch a consultation process to work with individual development agencies to seek a commitment from each to work on a particular issue (for example, developing the craft industry) for a given period of time (five-to-ten years).

Integrate Cultural Impact Assessment into Development Frameworks and Processes
The INCD executed a project on the development of a framework for Cultural Impact Assessment. It intends now to push ahead with a campaign to ensure that development agencies integrate the principles of CIA into their development frameworks and processes. In this regard, the INCD will create a web portal to document successful case studies of CIA practice, launch a targeted campaign on individual funding agencies to ensure that the CIA process is accommodated in project delivery, and engage in a dialogue with development agencies generally to promote CIA.

Raise Awareness of the Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressio
As part of its response to the new UNESCO Convention, INCD will embark on a campaign to encourage ratification. After ratification, it will work to ensure it is effective as possible and will work to sensitize governments and civil society about the potential of the Convention.

Shanghai International CIW opening up scope for innovation

Source: China Economic

By Shen Zejin

The 2007 Shanghai International Creative Industry Week was held at 1933 Old Millfun, Shanghai from November 15 to November 21. Transformed from the largest slaughterhouse in the Far East in the 1930s into a brand new creative industry park in Shanghai, 1933 Old Millfun has become an "irresistible temptation" where renowned creative industry talents from all over the world get together.

Built in 1933, the set of buildings were designed by Balfours, a famous British architect, and constructed by the then well-known Yu Hong Ji Construction Company. Four buildings in the east, the west, the south and the north respectively, which form a square factory area, are connected to the main building at the central part taking the shape of a polygonal structure with 24 sides by staircases. Thus, there forms a unique layout, which is square when seen from outside but round when seen inside with various and interesting heights and circulating corridors, labyrinthic yet orderly, and an artistic space. Along the passages inside the slaughterhouse, people can easily reach the 4th floor without mounting the staircases.

Having conducted extensive studies, experts from relevant aspects in Shanghai decided to maintain the original structure and style of those buildings and make efforts to construct the circumjacent environment, and develop a new model of creative park construction, namely to boost the linkage development of forms including commerce, culture, tourism .etc in the circumjacent areas through doing the best in constructing the "1933 Old Millfun" and interact with the communities with an area of 11 square kilometer as guided by the government and boosted by the market by virtue of the agglomerative effect and the spinoff effect. Residents can spontaneously take part in creative transformation and construction, thus making it possible to gradually make build such an area into an original urban museum of old Shanghai folk culture getting integrated lifestyle experiencing communities, creative studios, art galleries, creative leisure and culture.

The reason for the 2007 Shanghai Creative Industry Week to have chosen "1933 Old Millfun" as its venue is to expose it to the world under spotlights. Unsurprisingly, this year's Creative Industry Week is much bigger than the previous two in scale, attracting not only famous creative individuals from more than 30 countries including the UK, the USA, the Netherlands, Australia, Germany, and Italy but also domestic representatives from more than 500 creative enterprises in over 20 cities; many people came specifically for "1933 Old Millfun".

The opening ceremony of the Shanghai International Creative Industry Week was held in the Old Millfun on the evening of November 15. Underneath the red carpet, there laid a newly paved road surface made up of pebbles and cube stones that can be rarely found in urban areas. The crowd applauded and cheered when the 100 creative masters walked across the red carpet, signed on the crystal signature bricks with a pattern of the 1933 Old Millfun that is carefully prepared by the organizing committee, and built up a "wall of creativity" with "bricks of creativity". Among the crowd, residents in the neighborhood could be found and certain changes would appear in their life from the night on.

On the following day, many visitors came to "1933 Old Millfun" in spirits. They roamed about such an exhibition hall that extends in all directions, taking a look at creative furniture from the Netherlands, the release of new wines from Australia, German architecture designs, British sustainable designs, book publication in the USA, and "Retrospect of Hong Kong's creative industry During the Past 10 years" organized by The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, the People's Republic of China.

To the excitement of visitors, there would always be something new to offer even though they pay visit to the venue every day. Instead of a single form of exhibitions, 6 creative days were held during this year's Creative Industry Week with attempts to extensively and fully display the development status of creative industry in developed countries and those cities joining in the exhibition at various levels. For example, November 16 was the Holland Day, on which a series of activities concerning Dutch creative industry were carried out, including accomplishment exhibition, lectures and on-the-spot trainings, building design and planning in urban areas, and real estate project development, product promotion, and fashion shows. Visitors can not only learn about how Holland became ranked as the No. 8 most creative country in the latest global ranking by linking creativity with the market but also have the chance to communicate face to face with masters of creativity and famous branded enterprises from Holland.

On the "Yangtze River Delta Day", more than a score of creative parks and certain creative enterprises from the Yangtze River Delta cities, such as Nanjing, Hangzhou, and Changzhou, made match of projects with creative parks and creative enterprises in Shanghai and Hong Kong. The Hong Kong delegation organized by Hong Kong Trade Development Center was composed of dozens of enterprises from a variety of fields in the creative industry like architecture design, comic and animation, film and television. Matchmaking and communications provide the creative industry and creative enterprises on the delta with experiences, open up more space for the development of the creative industry in Shanghai and Hong Kong, and conduct rewarding exploration into the healthy development mode of resource sharing and mutual benefits for the linkage development of the creative industry in such regions and cities.

The creative industry has been developing rapidly in Shanghai in the past few years. By the end of 2006, there had already been 75 creative industry parks like "1933 Old Millfun" while another 10 were under construction. However, the Shanghai Municipal Government had made it clear that in 2007, it would not authorize any new parks; instead, licenses would be withdrawn from those parks that are not clearly oriented or badly managed so as to keep the number of creative parks in Shanghai unchanged while their quality would get improved due to the introduction of a competition mechanism.

Wednesday, June 04, 2008

Why Develop the Creative Industries?

Source: MICA

For over four decades, Singapore has prospered through an investment-led economic strategy focused on traditional manufacturing and services industries. As we transit into an innovation-fuelled economy, the driving force in the next phase of our development will be the imaginative and creative capacity of our people. The new architects of the global economic landscape are those who apply their imagination, creativity and knowledge to generate new ideas and create new value. Multi-dimensional creativity - artistic creativity, business entrepreneurship and technological innovation - will be the new currency of success.

Worldwide, the creative cluster (arts and culture, design and media) has been observed to be among the fastest growing sectors of developed economies such as the UK and the US. Creative industries not only contribute towards the economy directly, they also have a powerful, indirect impact on the rest of the economy - by adding style, aesthetics and freshness to differentiate our products and services. To succeed and thrive, Singapore must tap on the creative cluster (arts and culture, design, media) and recognise them as one of the vanguards of economic growth.
How the Creative Cluster can benefit Singapore
Direct GDP contribution, exports and job creation
Differentiating products and services across all economic sectors
Enhance Singapore's creative buzz and international profile
Augment the creative capacity of our people

MICA will spearhead the Creative Industries Development Strategy to contribute towards the Economic Review Committee's (ERC) vision of a diversified, entrepreneurial and globalised economy for Singapore. ERC has identified the creative industries as one of the three new and promising service areas to promote, besides education and healthcare.

Creative Industries Development Strategy

Vision:
A vibrant and self-sustaining creative cluster to propel Singapore's Creative Economy.

"The Chicago-based Mr Lucaci, who holds a degree in industrial design, predicts that the Republic is just five years away from becoming a key industrial design centre in the region. "
- Streats, 10 March, 2003. Mr Iulius Lucaci is one of the Motorola designer behind V70 cellphone.
He has won BusinessWeek and Industrial Design Society of America gold awards and
Hanover Industry Forum awards.


MICA will spearhead a national collaborative approach involving all relevant government agencies, industry players and stakeholders to develop this new and promising industry sector.

Creative Industries Singapore has been formed within MICA HQ to coordinate policies and programmes for the creative industries. The group can be reached at Email: mica_cisg@mica.gov.sg or Fax: (65) 6837 9493.

Industry-specific blueprints have been formulated:
Renaissance City 2.0: build on the original Renaissance City blueprint to develop Singapore into a highly innovative and multi-talented global city for arts and culture. This blueprint is a follow-up on the Renaissance City Report in 2000.
Design Singapore: establish Singapore as Asia's leading hub for design excellence, where its design cluster is fully developed into a key driver of national competitiveness and creativity.
Media 21: develop a thriving media ecosystem rooted in Singapore with strong international extensions.

Cross sectoral initiatives have been launched:

Creative Community Singapore (CCS) : Positioned as the community outreach component of the Creative Industries Development Strategy as recommended by ERC, this key initiative was officially launched by MICA on Sunday, 24 July 2005. CCS aims to empower individuals, teams and organisations to initiate and pilot cutting edge projects that will unleash individual and community creativity, nurture creative ideas and build demand and capabilities for the Creative Industries. It is a unique people-private-public collaborative platform providing various forms of support, including facilitation, co-branding, marketing and co-funding. For more information on CCS, please visit www.creativecommunity.sg.

Crea©tive – Reinvent Your Future: A cluster of high profile creative events held in Singapore in November 2005, this marks an inaugural effort by MICA to present an international platform that celebrates and promotes the Creative Industries. Crea©tive provides opportunities for cross participation and cross fertilisation of ideas across the Arts, Media and Design Sectors. The key events in 2005 were Beyond 2005: The Global Summit for Creative Industries, Singapore Design Festival, Asia Media Festival and Creative Youth Xchange @ Gallery Hotel. These events have raised Singapore 's profile as a creative hub as well as provided a showcasing platform for local creative talents and enterprises. Building on the success of Crea©tive 2005, the umbrella platform will be deployed again in future years to put the spotlight on the Creative Industries

Resources:
Read ERC's Subcommittee Report on Creative Industries.

Download our Creative Industries Development Strategy brochure and Ministry of Trade and Industry's paper, Economic Contributions of Singapore's Creative Industries.

You can also read about Design Singapore in DesignSingapore's website and Media 21 in MDA's website.

Tuesday, June 03, 2008

Vektorjunkie – for those who love vektor art

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Creative Cluster

Source: WIPO


The term "Creative Cluster" refers to the geographic concentration of a creative industry (craft, film, music, publishing, interactive software, design, etc.) that pools together its resources in order to optimize the creation, production, dissemination and exploitation of creative works. Such clustering activity eventually leads to the formation of a network and the establishment of partnerships.

However, due to the nature of these industries, the formation of creative clusters tends to not follow the conventional process of "cluster formation", which generally speaking, tend to be attracted to an area by its market potential (enhanced cluster-based competitiveness) or to the existence of a technology institution or university. In the case of the creative industries, enterprise clustering occurs organically, given that many creative projects are done on a collaborative and project-based basis.

Case studies:

  1. Quatier21 (Austria): Museum
  2. Maniago (Italy): Consorzio Coltellinai Maniago (Cutlers of Maniago)
  3. Moradabad UP (India)
  4. Lahti (Finland): Wood Processing (see p. 13) [PDF]
  5. Smaland (Sweden)
  6. Southwestern Montana (United States): Artists and Writers [PDF]


Links on creative clusters:

  1. What are Creative Clusters? (UNESCO)
  2. Dynamic Cities and Creative Clusters (by Weiping Wu) [PDF]
  3. Knowledge, Technology and Cluster-Based Growth in Africa: Findings from Eleven Case Studies of Enterprise Clusters in Africa (by Douglas Zhihua Zeng) [PDF]
  4. Creative Clusters: Towards the governance of the creative industries production system? (Andy C. Pratt) [PDF]
  5. Creative Clusters (Simon Evans)
  6. Tourist quality labels: An incentive for the sustainable development of creative clusters as a tourist attractions?
  7. The Economics of Cultural Districts: Value, Impact, Policy and Sustainability (Santagata,W and Trimarchi, M) [PDF]
  8. Montana Creative Enterprises Cluster
  9. Scottish Creative Enterprises Cluster [PDF]
  10. New England Creative Cluster [PDF]

Creative clusters play a vital role in the social and economic development of a region and nation. As a result many countries consciously embark on implementing policies to create an encouraging environment for the prosperity of the creative industries. Such policies include those related to the strengthening of national intellectual property regimes.

Monday, June 02, 2008

Asian markets on a roll for licensed goods

Source: HKTDC Website

17 Jul 2007
report from Licensing 2007 International, New York
Photo
Asian opportunities from Viz Media.

Asia, with South America, provides the fastest growing opportunities for licensed goods sales, according to buyers and licensors attending the Licensing 2007 International show held over three days at the Javits Center in New York.

Properties and preferences in Asia vary widely, while licensing has become increasingly developed throughout the region. Established, trusted brands still seem to carry the day, although new Asian properties, including those from the Chinese mainland and Hong Kong carry increasing influence.

"There seems to be a marked increase in interest in long-term, perennial properties," said Gail Mitchell, vice president of HPG, Hasbro's licensing arm for the Asia Pacific.

"We have experienced increased interest in companies wanting to represent our brands as agents," Mitchell said. "Perhaps most importantly, we have just employed a business development manager who will be based in Hong Kong and will be responsible for building comprehensive merchandise ranges and securing high-profile promotional properties in Asia."

Photo
Hasbro Transformer laptop.

Hasbro's Transformers, already a major brand globally, is seeing still more action coming off the live-action DreamWorks/Paramount movie. More than 230 deals in over 70 countries cross every category, the company reported.

My Little Pony, Littlest Pet Shop, Tonka, and The Game of Life are other long-term Hasbro properties with appeal in Asia.

As for Monopoly - "our crown jewel," Mitchell called it: "we've been working with licensees on apparel promotions, a collectible gift line for adults, in food and beverage promotions, and in digital gaming, to name just a few."

Licensing activity is strong in Japan, which has a mature licensing market that is something of a trendsetter for Asia. Taiwan and South Korea had large pavilions at the show.

Photo
Long-term appeal in Asia.
Photo
Littlest Pet Shop ArtsNCrafts.

The Chinese mainland, Hong Kong and India have less-developed licensing markets, but are growing them rapidly, buyers said. Disney, MTV, Nickleodeon, and the Cartoon Network are in the Indian market, as they are in China.

New York-based licensing organisation, International Licensing Industry Merchandisers' Association (LIMA), has some 60 members under its China affiliate, starting from zero just a few years ago, said Sherry Rao, managing director. Entertainment, sports, art, corporate brands, food and local Chinese celebrities all have strong potential. It's important to invest in the brand, Rao said.

Photo
Tonka 12 Bike.

"Licensing is definitely growing in India," said Rajesh Rodriguez, general manager of Toonz Animation and an attendee from India. "It's not huge, but there is potential."

Toonz represents several Asian properties on the subcontinent, including Indian folklore characters Tenali and the monkey god, Hanuman. The company has nearly completed arrangements to represent consumer products for a large American license.

"We're looking to represent properties in India," Rodriguez said. "You need to start the licensing programme when the programmes are on the air."

Anime, manga, Hong Kong originals and Mainland favourites

"Anime and manga are becoming more mainstream in the US and abroad," said Jane Lui, public relations manager for Viz Media, master licensor for these properties. The category is growing fast in bookstores.

Photo
Manga from Viz Media: "in the mainstream".
Photo
Naruto anime series.

Viz Media's Naruto anime series, from Japan, tops weekly sales, Lui said. Retail tie-ins for Naruto and other Viz-managed properties include T-shirts and DVDs.

Hong Kong-based Intelli-Media Group has developed a strong market on the Chinese mainland for its original cartoons and animations. "We're here discussing opportunities for the US and other markets," said licensing director, Shelley Leung.

The company has 500 episodes of its "Pleasant Goat and the Big Bad Wolf" ready to go, along with a merchandise line that includes apparel, comics, plush, backpacks, candies, stationary, and kids' furniture. The appeal is to both boys and girls.

"Asia is a very diverse market," said Bianca Lee, Warner Bros Consumer Properties managing director for China, Southeast Asia and India. "The industry is growing, and the number of players in the market is increasing tremendously."

Photo
Highlight at the show: Space Chimps.*
Photo
Licensing promotion for The Dark Knight.*

"We're starting to see some Chinese [mainland] local properties emerging, but the major interest is in Western and Korean brands, said Lee.

Warner's Tom and Jerry cartoons are a major property in China and India. Looney Tunes and DC Comics are also popular in the traditional categories.

Retail is a key strategy. In products, Lee said: "the biggest category for us is apparel and then fashion accessories and toys. We tie up with as many strong retailers as we can in every market we're in."

In apparel, Warner licensees are building their own retail programmes, often with consignment areas in department stores.

"[On the Chinese mainland], licensing is emerging so fast that it's hard to keep up with developments," said Ciaran Coyle, managing director at New York's The Beanstalk Group.

The 2008 Beijing Olympics will be a significant publicity opportunity for Chinese brands, said Coyle.

Land Rover is an emerging brand on the Mainland. There was a freestanding store selling diecast cars and other merchandise, and products will eventually be in car dealerships.

The major diecast manufacturers are in Hong Kong, Coyle noted.

Footwear and apparel are other categories, with health and beauty a possibility.

Photo
Footwear from Transformers.
Photo
T-shirts for all occasions.

"China has a huge appetite for brands, especially high-end luxury brands," Coyle said. There is particular interest in British brands.

"Asia-Pacific and Latin America are two key markets we're looking to grow," said Lynne-Mei Lee, head of publicity for FremantleMedia. The Idols format is a major focus for the company, which owns rights for and handles American Idol, along with a wide range of other entertainment properties.

Larger show with bigger international element

More broadly, the US$180 billion global licensing industry is poised for more growth as it expands its international reach, buyers said at the Licensing 2007 International show ending 21st June.

"International" was the right word as 525 exhibitors from 19 countries showed more than 6,000 properties. In addition to the US and Europe, exhibitors came from the Middle East and the Asia Pacific.

Photo
In the mood: licensing show expands.*
Photo
Entertainment and character licensing dominant.*

The 23,000-plus attendees were from 82 countries.

US licensing royalties were US$6 billion in 2006, up 1.5% over 2005, according to LIMA.

Entertainment/Character licensing is the dominant category, holding 44% of the market. It grew by 2%, with an increase of US$54 million to US$2.6 billion. Trademarks/Brands (18% share) and fashion and sports (14% each) are the next biggest.

Photo
Toy and bag option on display.

Apparel (17% revenue share), and toys and games (15%) top the product category. Royalties tend to be in the 8% to 12% range for apparel and 5% to 12% for toys and games. Home decor had an 11% revenue share.

Brands ranged from newer, less familiar, and smaller properties to giant global names including the major toy companies and movie studios.

Classic brands and older names are a key focus as trademark licensing becomes more important. Names ranged from foods and household cleaning products to favourite toys, characters from literature, and old movie classics and stars.

Reflecting current issues, licensing is moving into environmental causes and health concerns. In property types, revenues for non-profits (museums and charitable organisations) grew by 4.8%.

Major deals at the show

Major deals announced at the show reflected geographic and property growth and Asia's role in that growth.

Photo
Speed Racer a new licence.
Photo
The Dark Knight film spin off.
  • Photo
    Harry Potter movie deal.
    Warner Bros Consumer Products named Mattel as global toy licensee for the anime-inspired Speed Racer, and for the new Batman film, The Dark Knight.
  • Current movie property deals included video game releases for Warner's new Harry Potter movie and for the Disney/Pixar Ratatouille.
  • Paramount's "Reel Rides" is a direct-to-retail program developed for Wal-Mart, with Malibu Toys supplying limited edition die-cast vehicles from films.
  • Brand extensions for the Hollywood Walk of Fame, handled by Global Icons, and for MGM and its lion, handled by Brand Sense Partners.
  • Viz Media named Bandai America as toy licensee for its new anime series Blue Dragon, based on the Xbox game.
  • The Beanstalk Group and the World Wildlife Fund will center their efforts on furthering the conservation group's programs in sustainability and green living.
  • McDonald's teamed with DreamWorks Animation on a Shrek 3 promotion to encourage kids to make healthy eating choices like salads and white meat chicken.
Photo
Monopoly in with McDonald's.

Licensing executives, including those from movie studios, commented that familiar names and established brands have more long-term staying power than most current "hot" movie properties.

"Movies have peaks and valleys," said US-based Global Icons CEO Jeff Lotman. Familiar names have "dependability and reliability," he said.

Mobility and digital portals are the future. "The next wave of the Internet will be on your phone," Lotman said. Global Icons' Hollywood Walk of Fame launches through a digital portal. "It's an icon that contains the entire industry," he said.

Global Icons signed Honda just before the show, and will be handling motorcycles, Honda cars, and Acura. Lifestyle products will be a good fit, Lotman said.

Asia's tie-ins

American Idol's portfolio includes over 40 licensees in apparel, role-play, toys and games, food, and other categories. "We're looking for ways for people to interact with the brand," said Lee of FremantleMedia. "We look at each brand on an individual basis, for logical brand extensions."

Vietnam Idol tie-ins include board and electronic games, and musical instruments.

Asia will be a major focus for MGM and its lion, to be managed by Brand Sense in a partnership announced at the show. "It's a high-end lifestyle play on the MGM brand itself," said Brand Sense business development director, Austin Katz.

Product plans include fragrances, furniture inspired by old MGM movies, and apparel. Quality and luxury will be central as Brand Sense talks with potential suppliers.

Photo
Cultural mingling: Transformers as sunglasses.

"It's wonderful to see your property translate to another culture," said Anthony Kosiewska, director of international licensing for the educational company Scholastic Media, a relatively new player internationally. Part of that is recognising the different appeal brands can have in different markets.

Scholastic's Clifford the Big Red Dog, mainly a pre-school property in the US, reaches across age groups in other countries. "It's a way of adapting to other cultures," Kosiewska said.

Scholastic has been working with Mindworks and with Japanese licensee Densu to create Clifford products targeting teens and young adults in Japan. There are 12 licenses already in Japan, covering apparel, change purses, bedding and curtains, and novelty plush.

Clifford has been the "spokesdog" for the Tokyo metro, using his reputation for cooperative, sharing behaviour to encourage safety on the trains. Plans call for going into China.

from special correspondent Lisa Harbatkin, New York

(*Images by Cory Doviak)

Contact:
Company
Tel/Web

The Beanstalk Group

Tel: (1) 212-303-1122 (US),
(44) 20-7030-7979 (UK)
Web: http://www.beanstalk.com

Brand Sense Partners, LLC

Tel: (1) 310-867-7322
Web: http://www.bsp.com

FremantleMedia Tel: (44) 7691-6782
Web: http://www.fremantlemedia.com
Global Icons

Tel: (1) 310-820-5300
Web: http://www.globalicons.com

Hasbro Properties Group Tel: (1) 401-727-5634
Web: http://www.hasbro.com
Intell-Media Group (Holdings) Limited Tel: (852) 3426-9898
Web: http://www.intelli-mgh.com
Scholastic Media Tel: (1) 212-343-6849
Web: http://www.scholastic.com
Toonz Animation Tel: (91) 471-2700954
Web: http://www.toonzanimationindia.com
Viz Media, LLC Tel: (1) 415-546-7073
Warner Bros (FE) Inc Tel: (852) 3128-1898
Warner Bros Consumer Products

Tel: (1) 818-954-7980
Web: http://www.warnerbros.com