Public’s perception of phone, internet and broadcasting services
A survey by the Malta Communications Authority released in 2014 provided an insight into the public’s perception of phone, internet and broadcasting services, including quality and tariff levels. Of most significance was the exceptional growth in Internet access via mobile technology. The number of mobile subscribers owning a smart phone allowing them access to the Internet more than doubled to 37%, from 16% registered in 2011. The survey showed that 80% of households have internet access, a considerable development when compared to the 68% of households having internet access in 2011. According to the survey results, 46% of Maltese households have at least two TV sets, with 57% of Maltese Households today having at least one HD TV set at home, a stark increase compared to 28% in 2011. 26% of households viewed TV via the Internet, a marked increase from 19% in 2011. 51% of these households always/often consider Internet TV as a good substitute to traditional TV.
Culture related Consumption
Specific surveys regarding private culture expenditure do not exist. However, data drawn from the 2008 Household Budgetary survey suggests that Maltese households’ expenditure on goods and services produced by the Culture and Creative Industries in Malta represents on average around 3.4% of total expenditure. The table below gives an indication of the average distribution of such expenditure amongst the different cultural and creative sectors. However this is only an average percentage indication, as information on the distribution of expenditure by household consumption is not available. Median expenditure would be higher or lower than this figure, particularly for the individual expenditure components making up these goods and services. For instance, though based on the given percentages, a household spending EUR 20 000 yearly would roughly be spending EUR 40 yearly on Music related goods and services, while many such households may not really be spending anything related to Music. Therefore it is likely that those households that do spend on goods and services in this category actually spend much more than EUR 40 per annum. Therefore, the information below should be considered carefully and in aggregate terms.
Table 17: Average cultural expenditure in Malta 2008, in %
| % | Euro | |
|---|---|---|
| total household exp: | 100% | 2 776 801 900 |
| average cultural exp: | 3.43% | 95 335 940 |
Source: 2008 Household Budgetary survey.
Table 18: Household expenditure in Cultural Domains
| Items (Field/Domain) | % distribution of cultural expenditure /th> | % of total household expenditure /th> | Household expenditure for culture in EUR |
|---|---|---|---|
| Crafts (Traditional Foods) | 18.6 | 0.63 | 17 732 485 |
| Crafts (Glass and Ceramics) | 6.9 | 0.23 | 6 578 180 |
| Crafts (Jewellery) | 14.3 | 0.49 | 13 633 039 |
| Cultural Sites (Museums and Gallaries) | 0.3 | 0.01 | 286 008 |
| Visual Arts (Painting and Sculpture) | 9.9 | 0.34 | 9 438 258 |
| Music (incl Opera, private tuition and musical instruments) | 5.9 | 0.20 | 5 624 820 |
| Performing Arts (incl. Theatre and Dance Schools) | 5.4 | 0.18 | 5 148 141 |
| Printing and Publishing (incl. Books, Newspaper and Magazines) | 28.3 | 0.96 | 26 980 071 |
| Audiovisual (Radio, Motion pictures and Video) | 4.7 | 0.16 | 4 480 789 |
| Design (Interior Design) | 2.2 | 0.07 | 2 097 391 |
| Software Services | 2.9 | 0.10 | 2 764 742 |
| Creative Services | 0.6 | 0.02 | 572 016 |
| TOTAL | 100% | 3.40% | 95 335 940 |
Source: 2008 Household Budgetary Survey.
The above figures indicate that the most popular component of Maltese household expenditure on goods and services produced by the CCIs are books, newspapers and magazines, accounting for more than 28%. Adding to this the share spent on audiovisual services, the share of expenditure on media services amounts to around 33%. This does not include expenditure on goods such as TV sets, Hi-Fi equipment and similar equipment. On the other hand, there is a low average expenditure share on museums and galleries, at 0.3%. More than 21% is spent on the arts, namely 10% on visual arts, 6% on music and 5% on performing arts. Around 6% spent on creative business services, including expenditure on software services, interior design and creative services.
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