Creative industries as a driver of innovations and competitiveness : global and national overview

The COVID-19 pandemic hit creative industries severely - more than 10 million people engaged in creative industries globally lost their jobs during the first pandemic year. However, the impact across the industries varied significantly. The IT sector benefited while in-person events and attractions suffered both from travel restrictions and social distancing measures. The pandemic has led to a surge in online activity while, at the same time, accelerating the process of digital transformation. From 2016 to 2021, the number of hours watched on Netflix per minute increased 7.4 times, whereas Facebook logins per minute almost doubled, as did Google searches and YouTube views. A new trend also emerged – the digital transformation of production, distribution and access to creative content. To respond to the inflated demand for goods and services with creative content, music, museums, film and performing arts have been offered online, while festivals created hybrid alternatives for the world to enjoy the culture. Considering the importance of creative industries in today's globalized environment as a driving force of innovation and transformation, the paper aims to provide deeper insights into the current state and perspectives of the sector with a focus on its digital transformation. To obtain the paper's objective, the standard desk research method and secondary data analysis have been performed. The analysis has been conducted on three levels – global, regional and national. Bearing in mind the sector's role and potential, especially in the emerging market context, the conclusions and recommendations obtained in this paper are primarily intended for the policymakers and expert public in the Republic of Serbia