Cultural and Creative Industries

Abstract

The aim of this chapter is to describe the basic theoretical aspects of cultural and creative industries and to present the remaining ten chapters which comprise this book. As essential characteristics of these industries, this book highlights their diversity and symbolic nature. With regards to their diversity, they range from companies or activities which are founded on arts or handicrafts to companies founded on technology; they may be capital-intensive or knowledge-intensive organizations, where the symbolic nature of their products is what undoubtedly characterizes these industries as cultural in all cases. A final issue to be highlighted is the way in which, based on intangible ideas and emotions, the tangible aspect of the products is sought in the cultural companies or on the contrary, the way in which inputs and tangible technology are used to search for the intangible aspect of the symbolic and cultural nature of the product.