IT’S tempting to see Media CityUK as a threat to Merseyside’s creative industry – but now is not the time to be defeatist.
The massive development in Salford Quays will house six BBC departments, an ITV hub and a chunk of the University of Salford.
The complex is already filling up and is rapidly becoming the centre of the creative industries in the North West.
If it keeps growing as developer Peel expects, then it will in no time become the creative capital of the North.
It is disappointing that MediaCity was not built in Liverpool. As a city with a long and proud reputation for creativity, this would surely have made an ideal home for the BBC.
MediaCity, however, went to Salford. So what does that mean for Merseyside’s creative firms?
It would be easy for them to resent the investment that has been made in Greater Manchester. But, at a time of economic gloom, when firms should be hunting for business wherever they can, they could look at it in a different way. Why shouldn’t Merseyside firms cash in on that investment themselves?
The BBC’s move to Salford means commissioning editors and senior managers will now be just a few miles away, rather than hidden away in London. That should make it easier for Mersey firms to pitch for work.
Sean Marley, managing director of Hollyoaks producer Lime Pictures, has long argued that MediaCity will make it easier for Liverpool firms like his to get access to the BBC’s top brass.
“It’s going to bring more people to our doorstep,” he told me last month.
The CBI’s North West director, Damian Waters, says today – see Page 3 – that Merseyside firms should be hammering on the doors of those managers in Salford, selling their skills and their services. He said: “It would be a shame if people thought parochially and said ‘It’s Salford, there’s nothing for us there’.”
This message isn’t just coming from local business leaders. BBC director-general Mark Thompson, speaking at last week’s CBI North West annual dinner, said the Corporation’s decision to move most of its research and development arm to Salford showed it was looking to tap into the creativity and innovation of North West firms.
And he said the BBC would “involve independent producers not just from the North West, but from the whole North”.
THERE are many great digital and creative companies in Merseyside, from designers to software specialists.
In the video games sector, for example, many small firms have sprung up following the demise of Bizarre Creations, while many former Bizarre and Sony staff ply their trade as freelancers.
If any MediaCity tenants want gaming expertise, they may well look to Liverpool – and so those companies and individuals will be able to win work there while keeping their businesses, their homes, and – crucially – their spending here in Liverpool.
After all, we in Merseyside may like to think of Manchester as though it’s another planet, but it’s just down the road. There is also a challenge here for Merseyside’s inward investment agencies.
MediaCity will undeniably be a magnet for other creative and digital firms looking to set up North West operations. But they will not necessarily need to be in MediaCity itself – and could, if the offer is right, be persuaded to move to Merseyside.
Let’s heed Mark Thompson’s rallying cry and see MediaCity as an opportunity, not a threat.
