The aim of this paper is to critically assess the notion of the creative cluster, and to consider whether it is an appropriate tool for the governance of the creative industries, or even a suitable point from which to begin an analysis of the creative industries. The paper argues that creative clusters are formally a subset of business clusters. A critique of the business clusters literature highlights its shortcomings: a focus on individual firm preferences and a lack of attention to non-economic, situated temporal and spatial variables; a lack of attention to the specificity of particular industries and their associated regulatory peculiarities; and finally, information issues associated with the operationalisation of the cluster model. The paper concludes with a discussion of an alternative approach, looking at a creative industries production system that would better meet the concerns of those seeking to govern the creative industries and creative clusters.
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