1 Creative Industries, ‘Conspicuous Production’, and the Social Life of Markets
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Scott Brook
Abstract
The Social Network Market (SNM) model of the Creative Industries (CIs) focuses on the coordinating role of signals at the boundary of market and non-market contexts. This model, developed in the early days of Web 2.0, drew on microeconomics and evolutionary economics to propose a supra-industrial definition of the CIs as a form of ‘industrial entrepreneurship’ that acts on the economy as an innovation system. This chapter revitalises the SNM model of the CIs by articulating it with an adjacent body of recent research on the digital gift economy. As with the theory of Social Network Markets, gift exchange theory has enabled researchers to overcome the ontological separation of ‘the social’ and ‘the economic’ by academic disciplines to enable thick descriptions of value-producing activity, as well as foreground the primary role of exchange in the creation of economic value through signalling – an insight at the heart of the SNM thesis. We argue that the dynamics of emergent digital creative industries are well described by gift theory, and, citing the case of celebrity YouTubeYouTuber ‘MrBeast’, focus on how instances of gift exchange can be articulated to meso-level accounts of SNMs. In this account, social signalling, statusstatus and ‘the person’, appear as the soft infrastructure of value creation.
Abstract
The Social Network Market (SNM) model of the Creative Industries (CIs) focuses on the coordinating role of signals at the boundary of market and non-market contexts. This model, developed in the early days of Web 2.0, drew on microeconomics and evolutionary economics to propose a supra-industrial definition of the CIs as a form of ‘industrial entrepreneurship’ that acts on the economy as an innovation system. This chapter revitalises the SNM model of the CIs by articulating it with an adjacent body of recent research on the digital gift economy. As with the theory of Social Network Markets, gift exchange theory has enabled researchers to overcome the ontological separation of ‘the social’ and ‘the economic’ by academic disciplines to enable thick descriptions of value-producing activity, as well as foreground the primary role of exchange in the creation of economic value through signalling – an insight at the heart of the SNM thesis. We argue that the dynamics of emergent digital creative industries are well described by gift theory, and, citing the case of celebrity YouTubeYouTuber ‘MrBeast’, focus on how instances of gift exchange can be articulated to meso-level accounts of SNMs. In this account, social signalling, statusstatus and ‘the person’, appear as the soft infrastructure of value creation.
Kapitel in diesem Buch
- Frontmatter I
- De Gruyter Handbooks in Business, Economics and Finance V
- Foreword VII
- Contents IX
- Editors and Contributors XIII
- A Quarter-Century of Creative Industries: Promises, Disillusions, and Hopes 1
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Part A: Work in the Creative Industries
- 1 Creative Industries, ‘Conspicuous Production’, and the Social Life of Markets 9
- 2 From Creation to Monetization: Value Capture in the Digital Creator Economy 27
- 3 Creating Digital Value: The Role of Independent Creators as Multi-platform Users 41
- 4 Platformization of Performing Arts and Streaming Culture in China 55
- 5 Fair Practice and Creative Industries: Evidence from Cultural Policy Lens 69
- 6 Broadcasting Eating: North Korean Women in Digital Creative Industries 81
- 7 Identity Tensions Among Artists and Creative Workers 93
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Part B: Spatial Dynamics in the Creative Industries
- 8 Unpacking Creative Ecosystems: A Place-Based Perspective 107
- 9 Theme Parks as Creative Industries: From Entertainment Venues to Creative Clusters 123
- 10 The European Creative City: Contextualising Urban Policies and Strategies for Creative Industries 135
- 11 Middleground Hubs in Entrepreneurial Ecosystems of Innovation: The Case of GameBCN 151
- 12 Music Scenes and Music Zones: Cultivating the Independent Venue Ecosystem as a Talent Catalyst 167
- 13 The Regeneration of a Creative Hub: Critical Episodes of Organizationality 181
- 14 Researching Creative Ecosystems: Reflections on Applying an Ecological Approach 197
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Part C: Current Issues in the Creative Industries
- 15 The Precarity of Diversity Services in the Creative Industries 213
- 16 Strategic Sustainability Communication in the Branding Strategy of Cultural Institutions 229
- 17 Doing Sustainability Begins with Being Sustainable: Five Learning Principles for Inclusive Gamification 243
- 18 Stronger Together? The Resilience Challenge of Meta-Organizations in CCIs 257
- 19 Tourism and Creative Industries: Insights from France and Italy 269
- 20 Openness, Trust, and Sharing in the Creative Industries: Lessons from the Finnish Video Game Industry 283
- 21 Structuring the Social Impact of an Extreme Music Festival through Its Boundaries: Lessons from Hellfest’s Strategic Trajectory 295
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Part D: Emerging Outlooks in the Creative Industries
- 22 Mapping and “Futuring” Strategic Competencies for the Creative Workforce: A European Outlook 309
- 23 The Impact Challenge: Moving from Output to Impact 323
- 24 Blockchain and NFTs: Shaping the Futures of the Music Industry 335
- 25 Artificial Intelligence and the Creative Industries 351
- 26 Randomly Uniform: Horkheimer and Adorno’s Critique of Culture and Creative Industry 365
- 27 A Performative Genealogy of the Creative Industries and Policy Implications 377
- Index 393
Kapitel in diesem Buch
- Frontmatter I
- De Gruyter Handbooks in Business, Economics and Finance V
- Foreword VII
- Contents IX
- Editors and Contributors XIII
- A Quarter-Century of Creative Industries: Promises, Disillusions, and Hopes 1
-
Part A: Work in the Creative Industries
- 1 Creative Industries, ‘Conspicuous Production’, and the Social Life of Markets 9
- 2 From Creation to Monetization: Value Capture in the Digital Creator Economy 27
- 3 Creating Digital Value: The Role of Independent Creators as Multi-platform Users 41
- 4 Platformization of Performing Arts and Streaming Culture in China 55
- 5 Fair Practice and Creative Industries: Evidence from Cultural Policy Lens 69
- 6 Broadcasting Eating: North Korean Women in Digital Creative Industries 81
- 7 Identity Tensions Among Artists and Creative Workers 93
-
Part B: Spatial Dynamics in the Creative Industries
- 8 Unpacking Creative Ecosystems: A Place-Based Perspective 107
- 9 Theme Parks as Creative Industries: From Entertainment Venues to Creative Clusters 123
- 10 The European Creative City: Contextualising Urban Policies and Strategies for Creative Industries 135
- 11 Middleground Hubs in Entrepreneurial Ecosystems of Innovation: The Case of GameBCN 151
- 12 Music Scenes and Music Zones: Cultivating the Independent Venue Ecosystem as a Talent Catalyst 167
- 13 The Regeneration of a Creative Hub: Critical Episodes of Organizationality 181
- 14 Researching Creative Ecosystems: Reflections on Applying an Ecological Approach 197
-
Part C: Current Issues in the Creative Industries
- 15 The Precarity of Diversity Services in the Creative Industries 213
- 16 Strategic Sustainability Communication in the Branding Strategy of Cultural Institutions 229
- 17 Doing Sustainability Begins with Being Sustainable: Five Learning Principles for Inclusive Gamification 243
- 18 Stronger Together? The Resilience Challenge of Meta-Organizations in CCIs 257
- 19 Tourism and Creative Industries: Insights from France and Italy 269
- 20 Openness, Trust, and Sharing in the Creative Industries: Lessons from the Finnish Video Game Industry 283
- 21 Structuring the Social Impact of an Extreme Music Festival through Its Boundaries: Lessons from Hellfest’s Strategic Trajectory 295
-
Part D: Emerging Outlooks in the Creative Industries
- 22 Mapping and “Futuring” Strategic Competencies for the Creative Workforce: A European Outlook 309
- 23 The Impact Challenge: Moving from Output to Impact 323
- 24 Blockchain and NFTs: Shaping the Futures of the Music Industry 335
- 25 Artificial Intelligence and the Creative Industries 351
- 26 Randomly Uniform: Horkheimer and Adorno’s Critique of Culture and Creative Industry 365
- 27 A Performative Genealogy of the Creative Industries and Policy Implications 377
- Index 393