PREFACE
ABOUT THIS RELEASE
In Australia and internationally, there is strong interest in the role of 'cultural' and 'creative' activity in the economy, such as highlighted by Australia's National Cultural Policy Creative Australia. These terms are often used to describe activities connected with the arts, media, heritage, design, fashion and information technology.
This publication presents the first experimental satellite accounts measuring the economic contribution of cultural and creative activity in Australia. The satellite accounts provide information to assist stakeholders to fully understand these segments of the economy and develop and monitor their industry plans and policies.
The satellite accounts complement the range of other statistics produced by the ABS which highlight the important role of cultural and creative activities in the wellbeing and quality of life of the Australian community.
The satellite accounts measure the economic contribution of cultural and creative activity in four components:
1. activity in the industries which form supply chains for cultural and creative goods and services (the industries are listed in appendix 1);
2. activity in other industries performed by workers in cultural and creative occupations (the occupations are listed in appendix 2);
3. volunteer services to arts and heritage organisations; and
4. non-market output of market producers in the cultural and/or creative industries - this captures the value of goods and services supplied by non-profit institutions for free, or at prices that are not economically significant, because the production is supported by charitable contributions and other transfers.
The first and second components of the satellite accounts can be compared with Australian national accounts aggregates, such as Gross Domestic Product, as these activities fall within the national accounts production boundary and are measured on a consistent basis. These components are described as being on a 'national accounts basis'.
The third and fourth components of the satellite accounts are an extension beyond the national accounts production boundary and are therefore not directly comparable with national accounts aggregates. These extensions provide a more complete picture of the value of cultural and creative activity to society than is evident in the estimates on a national accounts basis. These extensions are also made in the ABS' Non-Profit Institutions Satellite Account (cat. no. 5256.0), which is based on the United Nations' Handbook on Non-Profit Institutions in the System of National Accounts. The estimates including these components are described as being on a 'satellite accounts basis'.
The scope of activities included in the satellite accounts and the methods of measuring them have been informed by:
- consultations with government, industry and academic stakeholders in Australia for whom the satellite accounts must be meaningful;
- cultural statistics frameworks published by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and the European Commission;
- cultural and creative satellite accounts and similar works published by government agencies of other nations (e.g. Canada, Finland, Spain, the United Kingdom and the United States of America); and
- the academic literature underpinning much of the international work in this field.
Since some stakeholders are primarily interested in 'cultural', while others focus on the emerging concept of 'creative', the publication presents separate accounts for each segment. The separate accounts are presented after the combined account for cultural and creative activity, which takes into account the overlaps between 'cultural' and 'creative' so they are not double counted.
Feedback and inquiries on the satellite accounts are welcome to:
Assistant Director
National Centre for Culture and Recreation Statistics
Australian Bureau of Statistics
GPO Box 2272
Adelaide SA 5001
E-mail: nccrs@abs.gov.au
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