Creative industries confronting transformation and innovation amid the COVID-19 pandemic in their business strategies
In a groundbreaking report published by the Creative Industries Policy and Evidence Centre in September 2020, Claudia Burger, Policy Insights Manager, explores the impact of COVID-19 on the creative industries, focusing on business model disruption and innovation. The paper, titled "Business model disruption and innovation during COVID-19 in the creative content industries", can be referenced as Burger (2020*).
The pandemic caused widespread disruptions across various creative sectors, leading to event cancellations, halted productions, and closures of physical venues. However, the crisis also served as a catalyst for innovation, prompting many creative businesses to rapidly adapt and shift to digital platforms.
Many organizations pivoted to digital and remote delivery, offering virtual concerts, online film festivals, digital publishing, and streaming content. This shift accelerated pre-existing trends toward digitalization, hybrid models, and direct-to-consumer approaches, pushing businesses to rethink revenue models and engagement strategies.
Organizations experimented with new monetization tactics, such as pay-what-you-can offers, crowdfunding, subscription services, and virtual experiences, reflecting greater flexibility and creativity in revenue generation. However, the shift to digital also exposed inequalities in access to technology and platforms, disproportionately affecting smaller firms and creators with fewer resources or digital skills.
The paper emphasizes the critical role of government and institutional support in helping the sector weather the crisis, particularly through emergency funding, innovation grants, and initiatives aimed at digital capacity building. The crisis may lead to lasting changes in how creative content is produced, distributed, and monetized, with hybrid physical-digital models emerging as a new norm.
A virtual industry panel was held in June 2020, with participants from film and TV, visual effects, museums, galleries, theatre, music, and dance, to discuss the implications of these experiences for the medium and long term. The discussion was led by Industry Champions, who are trusted and respected practitioners from various content industries across the UK.
While the paper does not provide information about related policy briefs, it sets out areas for possible policy action, as proposed by researchers at CREATe, and examines international trade in the UK's creative industries, among other topics. The brief titled "Three ways to support growth in the creative industries" suggests three ways to support growth in the creative industries, while "Television production, international trade and pressures to consolidate" discusses the UK television production sector as one of Britain's leading creative export sectors.
The brief titled "Audiences and Workforce in Arts, Culture and Heritage" uses census data to provide a comprehensive analysis of audiences and workforce in the arts, culture, and heritage sector, and the policy brief titled "Authors' Earnings in the UK" sets out areas for possible policy action.
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Burger, C. (2020). Business model disruption and innovation during COVID-19 in the creative content industries. Creative Industries Policy and Evidence Centre.
Available at: https://our website/policy-briefings/business-model-disruption-and-innovation-during-covid-19-in-the-creative-content-industries
- The Creative Industries Policy and Evidence Centre published a report in September 2020, titled "Business model disruption and innovation during COVID-19 in the creative content industries", exploring the impact of COVID-19 on the creative industries.
- The report, authored by Claudia Burger, focuses on business model disruption and innovation in the creative industries, particularly in the context of the pandemic.
- Creative businesses across various sectors had to adapt and shift to digital platforms due to event cancellations, production halts, and closures of physical venues, a move accelerated by the crisis.
- To generate revenue, these businesses experimented with new monetization tactics such as pay-what-you-can offers, crowdfunding, subscription services, and virtual experiences.
- The shift to digital exposed inequalities in access to technology and platforms, disproportionately affecting smaller firms and creators with fewer resources or digital skills.
- Government and institutional support through emergency funding, innovation grants, and digital capacity building initiatives are critical to help the sector weather the crisis, according to the report.
- A hybrid physical-digital model may emerge as a new norm for creative content production, distribution, and monetization post-pandemic.
- A virtual industry panel discussion was held in June 2020, involving Industry Champions from film and TV, visual effects, museums, galleries, theatre, music, and dance.
- Further policy briefs related to the creative industries, such as "Three ways to support growth in the creative industries" and "Authors' Earnings in the UK", examine areas for possible policy action and provide an analysis of audiences and workforce in the arts, culture, and heritage sector.
