Growth for the Creative Industries
Our objectives for the 2024–2027 government term
The objectives of Teosto, the Society of Finnish Composers, the Finnish Music Creators’ Association and the Finnish Music Publishers Association for the 2023–2027 government term
We strive for a Finland where music has even greater value for individuals, businesses and society as a whole!
Music is a force that generates significant growth and well-being. It spreads rapidly across borders and fuels the emergence of new innovations, employment and the international competitiveness of the entire country. Music strengthens the resilience, identity and human creativity of our entire society – and is also an important industry in the fight against deprivation and marginalisation.
In Finland, culture’s share of the state budget is among the bottom five in the EU. Increasing the funding for the cultural sector is an investment that improves the economy and people’s well-being. Our objective is to increase the creative industries’ share of the GDP to the level of the European average (4.4%). This would mean increasing the value added to the national economy by the cultural industries from the current EUR 6.5 billion to up to EUR 9 billion.
For creative workers, fragmented income streams cause too many problems. When it comes to the social security reform, special attention must be paid to the position of artists and other creative workers. Music is a real job, and professional music authors must be guaranteed the opportunity to practise their profession.
The creative industries, and especially the music industry, suffered from the COVID-19 pandemic in an unprecedented way. However, they have a huge potential for growth, employment and exports, which must be fully unlocked in cooperation between the various ministries.
Music brings financial benefits to countless players. As technology evolves, the focus will be on fair rules and equal bargaining positions for creative content creators. Although the majority of content is distributed agilely on digital platforms, the content is property that cannot be used without appropriate licences and compensation.
Read more about our objectives
Funding for art and culture must be increased in the government budget to 1% of all budget expenditure by 2027. At the same time, the continuity and predictability of funding must be ensured. No industry can grow and evolve if it has to constantly fight for its basic funding.
When it comes to adding more resources, special attention must be paid to the independent and freelance sector. In order to accelerate the recovery of the music industry and ensure diversity, resources must be channelled directly to the grassroots level, including through the Finnish Music Foundation.
The compensation for private copying must be overhauled and set to a minimum of EUR 11 million. This is compensation paid to authors for the fact that each citizen is allowed to copy works for their own private use. It is also an integral part of the Finnish support system for culture, the income generation of artists and diverse cultural production.
Social security must be better able to respond to the combination of different streams of income and the transitions between them. Freelancers in the cultural industries are in a particulary difficult position. They are somewhere between an employee and an entrepreneur, where the drawing of boundaries often causes difficulties.
Combining wage labour, entrepreneurship and other ways of income generation must be made easier. Social security and YEL reforms must take into account the diversity of the music industry and listen to the players in the industry. Artists working as entrepreneurs or employees or whose work is funded by grants are currently insured under several pension laws, which means that their social security and pension cover remain fragmented. It must be made possible to combine insurance policies and insure all artistic work under one system.
Unemployment security for artists needs clarity and consistency. In the event of unemployment, the assessment of labour policy conditions must be carried out in a consistent and predictable way. The application guidelines of TE Offices must be harmonised and the Offices’ knowledge of the music industry must be improved.
The Government must submit a cultural policy report to the Finnish Parliament, which takes into account issues that broadly concern the creative industries. It is crucial for the development of the sector that there is a shared view of both the current situation and future directions, and that the entire sector is included in the process.
In order to accelerate the growth of the cultural industries, a growth programme must be implemented. This means stimulus measures, concrete pilot projects and new kinds of funding models. The growth agreement for the creative industries should also be extended to the music industry, which would establish a continuous dialogue between the public sector and the music industry. The industries’ financial instruments and financial support systems must be developed in such a way that they better reflect the specific characteristics of business activities in the creative industries and create favourable conditions for content production.
Creative industries must be recognised as part of the national economy. The statistical and knowledge base for the arts and culture sector and the research on its impact must be increased. In order to identify the growth potential of the creative industries, it is necessary to monitor the development and growth of the creative industries alongside other industries.
The protection of the authors’ property must be ensured both in Finland and at the EU level. Legislation must support a system based on strong copyright and agreements. The fundamental principles of copyright must be adhered to: the author must be able to control the use of their works and also receive appropriate compensation for the use.
Uniform rules for the European content market. Cultural content and their creation and consumption do not respect international borders. Consequently, there is a need to strive for consistency in the related regulations in the EU and especially in the Nordic countries. This applies to copyright laws as well as the maximum penalties for copyright violations, for example.
Tax solutions for copyright income must also be made
competitive. This is the only way we can guarantee equal opportunities for Finnish creative workers in an increasingly international and technological operating environment.
Contact us for more information
- Iiris Suomela, Head of Policy and Public Affairs, tel. 050 524 4778, iiris.suomela@teosto.fi
- Vappu Aura, Director, Communications, Marketing and Public Relations, Teosto, tel. 050 560 4450, vappu.aura@teosto.fi
- Vappu Verronen, Executive Director, Suomen Säveltäjät, tel. 040 500 5905, vappu.verronen@composers.fi
- Pauliina Lerche, Chair, Suomen Musiikintekijät, tel. 040 736 3529, pauliina.lerche@musiikintekijat.fi
- Jari Muikku, Executive Director, Suomen Musiikkikustantajat, tel. 040 719 7480, jari.muikku@musiikkikustantajat.fi