This text is part of the special Hub Montréal notebook
In the digital age, events like Hub Montréal, which promotes local expertise on the international scene, contribute to the influence of Montréal and its talents. The benefits of the digital creativity industry are numerous, both from a financial point of view and in terms of notoriety.
In May 2022, Culture Montréal released the first major study carried out on the arts sector and digital creativity. It was the first time that the scale of the digital creativity sector in Quebec was quantified. The observation is unequivocal: this is a booming sector which brings together nearly 500 companies, generates $2.5 billion in revenue annually and accounts for nearly 24,000 jobs. In comparison, globally, the industry is worth almost US$200 billion.
At the time, Luc Rabouin, mayor of the Plateau-Mont-Royal borough, underlined that “the City of Montreal enthusiastically supported this approach of the digital art and creativity sector, an integral part of the niches of excellence that makes Montreal distinct and renowned. It occupies a unique place in our economic and cultural environment and constitutes a remarkable development lever. […] “.
The wind in the sails
For its part, Xn Québec confirmed through its 2018 study, carried out with the financial support of Export Québec, the City of Montreal and the Canada Media Fund, the strong growth of Quebec’s digital creativity industry, while the turnover of almost half of the companies surveyed was less than $500,000 in 2015, while three years later, more than a third of them had a turnover between $1 million and $5 million . This growth is supported, in part, by business links being created with foreign buyers, mainly in North America and Europe.
For Hub Montreal, their event has direct repercussions on the economic development of Montreal, “in particular because it highlights avant-garde and innovative sectors, therefore sectors that are competitive on international markets and which position Montreal like no other. […] At the intersection of these meetings, there are cross-cutting issues and themes that all these professionals have an interest in focusing on, but above all there is business development, between creative companies and independent creators, buyers content professionals, talent seekers, investors and decision-makers from abroad.
Expertise, notoriety and city life
Rachel Parent, director of programming at Hub Montréal, recalls that the concept of a market event is to invite international players to meet with local studios. From there new projects are born. During the 6e edition, last year, no less than 945 in-person meetings took place between a foreign guest and a Quebec studio. More than 13 million dollars were generated thanks to meetings between Montreal businesses and foreign buyers, organized during the event.
“The vast majority of revenues and contracts developed during Hub Montréal come from abroad through service revenues, the live performance sector, publishing, the exploitation of intellectual properties and new distribution networks digital. All this income will always end up here, where the Canadian creators participating in our missions are based,” says Hub Montreal.
But in addition to the business meetings, participants are invited to experience Montreal throughout the event. In addition to hotels and restaurants, the influence of Quebec businesses and the City of Montreal is also achieved through various visits organized during Hub Montreal. Among the places visited, Rachel Parent cites the Quartier des spectacles, the Phi Center, the McCord Museum, the NFB, Espace Rodier, the Montreal Science Center, Les 7 Fingers and of course, Oasis Immersion, where takes place the main event. This shows that digital technology is everywhere in the heart of the city.
This content was produced by the Special Publications team at Duty, relating to marketing. The writing of the Duty did not take part.