The cultural economy of Paris

The cultural economy is defined in terms of a set of sectors ranging from certain traditional artisanal industries like clothing or jewelry on the one side, to newer media industries like sound recording or television program production on the other. This article provides an overview of the industrial dynamic of French society since the second world war and assesses its (inimical) effects on segments of the cultural economy. An empirical description of the cultural-products industries of Paris is offered, with special reference to their locational structure and their competitive advantages and disadvantages. The entire institutional and policy environment within which these industries operate is then subject to analysis, and I seek to show how many of them have become locked in to dysfunctional competitive strategies. I conclude by suggesting that despite their current difficulties, the cultural-products industries of Paris remain a potential focus of significant new growth and development.