Course 2018-2019 a.y.

The course is conceptually divided in two parts:

1. In the first part, we examine and discuss what drives the competition within and among these industries in the wake of digital and cultural convergence, the emergence of global cultural markets and the principles guiding firm-level strategies in this increasingly complex arena. More specifically, we ponder on value shifts along and among industries’ value chains, new sources of competitive advantage, new business models and sustainability challenges.
2. In the second part, working on selected case studies, we discuss critical issues related to the role of such industries in building, putting in place and fostering imaginaries and representations of the world we live in.

• Identify strategic principles that drive the industries of imaginaries in the global setting.
• Understand what we mean when we talk about global cultural markets.
• Understand the way digital technologies are reshaping these industries.
• Build a nuanced understanding of how global coexist with local, mainstream with niche, dominant culture with subcultures.
• Analyse the role of these industries in creating and shaping social imaginaries.

• Analyse conditions of sustainability of firms operating in content industries.
• Apply entrepreneurial attitude and ability to read contemporaneity.
• Demonstrate ability in information selection and elaboration in complex settings.
• Demonstrate organizational and teamwork abilities as well as presentation and communication skills.

• Face-to-face lectures
• Guest speaker's talks (in class or in distance)
• Case studies /Incidents (traditional, online)
• Individual assignments
• Group assignments

• This course includes diverse teaching methods and learning styles. Frontal lectures are coupled with guest speakers as well as intense class participation, discussion and debates (both group and individual based), in class exercises and impromptu Q&A. This allow students to better work through difficult concepts and theories and to develop their skills in tackling real issues and situations by applying theoretical constructs.
• Media screenings and analyisis (tv, film, documentaries, music videos, advertising, etc), occupy the second part of the course.
• Being a workshop, it is firmly believed that class participation is the crucial element for a successful learning: students are an integral part of the good outcomes and enjoyability of the course. That is why dialogue and frequent interactions are encouraged: instructores are available and happy to listen to you during class or in office hours.

Attending students participate to class activity, and prepare all required tests (as detailed below). The status of attending students is valid until June session of exams. Students not completing all requirements automatically become non-attending students.

Groupwork (35% + 5% peer evaluation).

• The group work requires students to deepen the understanding of a proposed socio-cultural phenomenon that is tightly connected to the creative realm of the city and contributes to the formation of the imaginaries of/in Milan.
• Projects are designed to enhance the acquisition of practical experience on the course core issues, granting the students the chance to immerse themselves in the complex scenarios of urban scenes and analysing the intersection of production and consumption of cultural and symbolic goods.
• Projects test students’ ability to analyse the environment, select critical information, make hypotheses, organize evidence. At the same time, capacity to demonstrate a nuanced sensibility and understating towards the symbolic dimension of the phenomena observed are a plus in evaluating the works.

Individual essay (50%)

• You are asked to write a mini essay in which, discussing a new case (not discussed in class) of your choice, you build your personal elaboration of the broader issues discussed in class. More instructions are available on the first day of class.
• Ideally, the mini essay should be structured as follows:
  • Topic definition (what is it about, why is it relevant, which are the key aspects to take into consideration).
  • Case/s (it can be a case or more than one, treated as showing us the same issue or in opposition).
  • Implications/evidences we can derive from it.
  • Conclusions.
  • Bibliography.
• Assessment Criteria for essays:
  • Level of analysis (information selection, fact-based opinions/figures-supported reasoning, reference to theory).
  • Level of elaboration (information presentation, originality of point of view, internal consistency).
  • Quality of writing (arguments organization, thoughtful structure, discourse fluency).
• Grade descriptors are further detailed in the syllabus of the course.

Class participation (10%)

• Participation to class activity, contributions to in class-discussions, proactivity and hands-on attitude are taken into consideration to complete the evaluation. In order to encourage participation, attending students are asked to prepare for specific sessions on several cases, and work on instant assignments during class.

Non-attending students are either students who participate to class activities but opt for final written exam only, or students who do not complete all requirements needed to be considered attending.

Final written exam:

The final exam is administered at the end of the course (scheduled sessions on You@B agenda).

• ONLY NON-attending students are asked to sustain the final.
• It is based on the materials assigned to non-attending students, and consists in a written test with three theoretical open questions regarding the compulsory readings.

Course material is made available via:

• Course reserve (Bocconi Library).
• Lecturers’ slides and other relevant material are uploaded  on Bocconi e-learning platform, Bboard.
• Attending students are tested on the provided slides and multimedia materials available via Bboard, on the Case Studies discussed in class and upon a selection of book chapters, acedemic papers and articles (the detailed list is provided in the syllbus of the course).

Course material is made available via:

• Course reserve (Bocconi Library).
• Copyrighted material are uploaded  on Bocconi e-learning platform, Bboard.

Non attending students are tested on a selection of book chapters, acedemic papers and articles (the detailed list is provided in the syllbus of the course).