Review of the economic fundamentals of the NSW creative industry

The Innovation Unit in the Department of State and Regional Development (DSRD) in New South Wales sought a review of the economic fundamentals of the creative industry in the state.

As part of the Nous review, an authoritative evidence base of the creative industry was developed that covered the entire industry and its 11 sectors (advertising, architecture, design, electronic games, film, music, performing arts, publishing, radio, television and visual arts). Evidence included data from Australian Bureau of Statistics publications and other sources, and data for each sector on employment and income, revenue, exports and business formation and size. In addition to this evidence base, the project examined the present role of the NSW Government in the creative industry and considered what role the government could play to further stimulate innovation in the industry. Nous facilitated a series of workshops with industry participants, leading to the development of key recommendations. A series of roundtables were attended by over 100 industry participants and further insights were gained from over 30 interviews.

Recommendations were developed and presented to the Innovation Council. A key finding was that contrary to some public perception, NSW dominates the creative industry in Australia and largely maintained its dominance from the mid 1990s to the mid 2000s.