Culture & Creative Industries: Definitions and Economic Development in Europe

Since the beginning of the 80s, the culture & creative industries based on value added and employment developed to one of the most dynamic sectors of the world economy. In Europe, she has contributed some 277 billion euros (2.4 percent) to gross domestic product (GDP) of the European Union (2009). Their contribution to total economic output (gross value added) in Germany in 2010 was estimated to be around 63 billion euros (2.6 percent). Since the middle of the first decade of 2000s, increasingly, their volatility is evident. Despite these economic fluctuations the cultural and creative economy grew at a comparable size to the economic sectors automotive, mechanical engineering and chemical industries.
Workshop presentation, German Working Group on Culture Statistics
Cologne, 25 September 2012.