Digital Platforms for Craft in the UK and China

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The Creative Economies are key growth drivers and economic sectors for both the UK and China. Digital platforms such as social networks, search engines, online marketplaces, and content distribution help to generate new products and services both online and offline. For those concerned with physical objects especially in the craft and visual arts sectors, digital platforms provide opportunities through the 4th industrial revolution where there is a blurring between physical and digital production. For example, digital platforms provide opportunities for innovation through using new materials and production techniques, they facilitate greater and closer access to markets and customers, and provide opportunities to include customers more in the design process. Digital platforms are therefore key to enabling growth in the Creative Economies in the UK and China. This is despite the fact that the UK and China have unique cultural heritages and traditions, different economic, social, and political profiles, and divergent digital infrastructure and regulations.Digital platforms are inevitably implemented, used, and leveraged differently the UK and China. Firstly, there are deep rooted differences in culture and heritage between the UK and China which would affect conventions and methods of production and consumption in Creative Economies which would make different use of digital platforms to support them. Secondly, there are significant differences between countries' internet infrastructure and policies of use. For example, social media such as Twitter and Facebook are ubiquitous in the UK in contrast to Chinese social media platforms such as QQ and WeChat. Similarly, popular craft marketplaces such as those on taobao in China contrast with craft marketplaces such as NotOnTheHighStreet and etsy.com which are prevalent the UK. Thirdly, there are differences in different cultures' use of digital platforms such as social media which may be reflected in the use of digital platforms in the Creative Economy. Finally, there are differences in digital inclusion between urban and rural areas which are different in the UK and China and which would have an impact of the possible uses and uptake of digital platforms.Whilst digital platforms are used across Creative Economy sectors there has to date been a concentration of research interest in those sectors which produce or consume digital content. For example, games, music, and media production sectors, which have included comparisons between the UK and Chinese sectors. However, the use of digital platforms in cultural domains which involve physical object production, consumption, and archival are not well researched despite the importance of craft as a driver of innovation in the Creative Economy and wider industries. The project will directly address this lack of research in the use and potential of digital platforms for craft sectors in the UK and China.