Very few economic sectors have revealed as much economic potential in China and the EU as the cultural and creative industries (CCIs) have over the past few years. China is leading Asia in the development of a creative economy. Its cultural sector records € 50.32 billion of value added, contributes to 2.45% of Chinese GDP, registering growth 6.4% higher than growth of the general economy. European CCIs are worth 2.6% of the EU’s GDP and generate a turnover of more than € 654 billion (2003), much more than that generated by the car manufacturing industry (€ 271 billion in 2001) and by ICT manufacturers (€ 541 billion in 2003).

The insufficient enforcement of IPR, the lack of IP understanding as a tool to foster trade transactions, together with the size of the cultural operators – SMEs with little access to foreign markets – as well as the lack of political awareness on the economic importance of the creative industries, are the main structural reasons for insufficient trade relationships between Europe and China in the cultural and creative sectors.

Nevertheless CCIs are important drivers of innovation in other industries and societies. They contribute to tourism and the development of the ICT sector, which is hungry for content. Culture also contributes to social cohesion. The development of cultural industries and creativity is intrinsically linked with brand strategies. Today, competitiveness rests on the ability to create emotional ties with consumers that go beyond the price or the functionality of products. Aesthetic, meaning, social significance are key aspects of the experience economy. Culture, creative industries and intellectual property are key drivers of this intangible economy.

This ‘Working Paper Mapping the Cultural and Creative Sectors in the EU and China’ is developed in the framework of the ‘EU-China Project on the Protection of Intellectual Property Rights’ (IPR2), which aims at improving IPR protection in China. To reach this aim, it is proposed to set the conditions for improving opportunities that lead to IP licensing between economic operators, in particular SMEs.

The mapping exercise – which provides an overview of the cultural and creative sectors in both China and Europe together with a key stakeholders’ database – is a first step in a process aimed at increasing transactions in IP rights as a main tool for commercial exchanges in the CCIs sectors.