In the past few years China has joined the international rush towards the creative industries. As the country’s political, economic and cultural center, Beijing plays a key role in the ascendancy of this sector, which serves as the preferred policy model for cities in China seeking to address problems of unemployment and urban regeneration in a post-industrial knowledge economy.

A Brand New Force in Beijing

The creative industry, as a concept, is a relatively new idea in China. It is a term that was first used in the United Kingdom in 1997 and now used all over the world. It is related to business sectors whose origins are found in individual creativity, skill and talent, which have the potential to create wealth and jobs via the generation and exploitation of intellectual property. This includes advertising, architecture, art and antiques, crafts, design, fashion, film, music, performing arts, publishing, software and computer games, television and radio.

The creative industry has been identified as a key to economic transformation, and cities and nations around the globe have been considering the futures of their own creative industries in response.

The creative industry also enables innovation and improved productivity across other sectors within a given economy. Its production includes niche manufacturing, media, live arts, design, visual arts, heritage, scientific discovery and entrepreneurship.

Beijing is facing a looming creativity challenge as its established industries face new sources of competition. Tapping into Beijing's creativity will be essential for its continued economic development. The promotion of the creative industry, a dynamic new sector of advanced economies, could be conducive to Beijing's efforts to recast its own image. In addition to its world-class capability, the creative industry, as a knowledge-based sector, can leverage Beijing's culture and has the potential to generate wealth on a sustained basis, while repositioning Beijing as a city of new ideas and new thinking. The creative industry will generate untold opportunities for medium and small businesses, a prime source of new jobs in the developed world.