Abstract
The relevance of the research lies in the transformation of the media part of creative industries under the influence of digital technologies and large-scale socio-political upheavals (full-scale war, economic shocks), which radically changed the mechanisms of production, distribution and monetisation of media content. The aim of the study was to analyse the development trends of the media creative industries in Ukraine during 2022-2025, assess economic losses and recovery needs, identify key barriers, and propose targeted policies to strengthen the sector. The methods used in the research included a systematic analysis of national and international reports, content analysis of scientific publications, statistical data analysis and a comparative approach, content analysis of industry data, comparative analysis of subsectors (film, publishing, advertising, online media), as well as synthesis of findings from studies conducted by the Lviv Media Forum and UNESCO. The obtained results showed that the war caused significant losses: about 28% of media outlets suspended their activities, and the estimated potential losses of the sector amount to hundreds of millions of dollars. Despite the publishing industry demonstrating some resilience, advertising budgets have shifted toward digital platforms. As a result of the study, it was established that the Ukrainian media suffered significant losses in 2022-2025; at the same time, the digital segment has grown, the market share of online media has increased, and the level of media literacy among the population has improved. The practical value of the research lies in formation of recommendations for the sustainable growth of the creative industries in the media sector, particularly in the areas of digitalisation, investment attraction, and integration into the European cultural space. The practical value of the research also includes proposed measures such as proposals for a programmes to increase digital competence, tax incentives for media export projects, and modelling of hybrid financing for film and publishing – all of which can be used by the government, donors, and market participants
Keywords
communications; cultural industries; artificial intelligence; digital media; digitalisation; creative activity
References
- Abroad VRK. (n.d.). Advertising market in Ukraine. Retrieved from https://abroad.vrk.org.ua/en/countries/ukraine/advertising/.
- AIN. (2024). State and needs of business in wartime. Retrieved from https://ain.ua/2024/03/01/doslidzhennya-stanu-ta-potreb-biznesu-v-umovah-vijny/.
- Bakalchuk, V. (2023). The potential for resilience and recovery in the creative sector of the economy of Ukraine. Strategic Panorama, 1, 59-71. doi: 10.53679/2616-9460.1.2023.06.
- Bereziuk-Rybak, І.R., Ilchenko, N.V., & Hanzhala, I.V. (2023). The role of creative industries in the context of innovative development of Ukraine. Proceedings of Scientific Works of Cherkasy State Technological University Series Economic Sciences, 68, 102-111. doi: 10.24025/2306-4420.68.2023.284596.
- Bezuhla, L., & Lazakovych, I. (2024). Creative industries and creative economy: Experience of Ukraine during war. Economy and Society, 63. doi: 10.32782/2524-0072/2024-63-30.
- Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine. (2025). Strategy for the development of culture in Ukraine for 2025-2030. Retrieved from https://mcsc.gov.ua/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/strategiya_25.01.2025.pdf.
- Chytomo. (2024). Ukrainian Book Institute reports rising book prices, small print runs for Ukrainian authors, growing popularity of comic books. Retrieved from https://chytomo.com/en/ukrainian-book-institute-reports-rising-book-prices-small-print-runs-for-ukrainian-authors-growing-popularity-of-comic-books/.
- Creative economy report. (2010). Retrieved from https://unctad.org/fr/system/files/official-document/ditctab20103_en.pdf.
- Detector Media. (2024). Media Literacy Index of Ukrainians: 2020-2023 (fourth wave). Retrieved from https://en.detector.media/post/media-literacy-index-of-ukrainians-2020-2023-fourth-wave.
- Diia. Business. (n.d.) EU Creative Europe Programme 2021-2027. Retrieved from https://business.diia.gov.ua/finance/program/programa_es_kreativna_evropa_2021_2027.
- Dulska, I. (2024). The role of creative industries digitization in wartime and during postwar recovery of Ukraine. Economy of Ukraine, 67(7(752), 70-93. doi: 10.15407/economyukr.2024.07.070.
- European External Action Service. (2024). Ukraine joins the MEDIA strand of the Creative Europe programme. Retrieved from https://www.eeas.europa.eu/ukraine/european-union-and-ukraine_en?s=232.
- Galyuk, S. (2024). Creative industries as a component of modern culture. Bulletin of the National Academy of Managerial Staff of Culture and Arts, 1, 119-125. doi: 10.32461/2226-3209.1.2024.302043.
- Horbas, I., & Koshel, K. (2024). The essence and classification of creative industries: The polish context. Economy and Society, 60. doi: 10.32782/2524-0072/2024-60-17.
- IAB Polska. (2024). Internet Strategic Report 2023/2024. Retrieved from https://www.iab.org.pl/baza-wiedzy/typ-dokumentu/raport-strategiczny/raport-strategiczny-internet-2023-2024/.
- IMI. (2024). Ukrainian media and artificial intelligence. How do editors engage AI for content creation? Retrieved from https://imi.org.ua/monitorings/ukrayinski-media-ta-shtuchnyj-intelekt-yak-redaktsiyi-zaluchayut-shi-dlya-stvorennya-kontentu-i62217.
- Kemp, S. (2024). Digital 2024: Ukraine. Retrieved from https://datareportal.com/reports/digital-2024-ukraine.
- Kemp, S. (2025). Digital 2025: Poland. Retrieved from https://datareportal.com/reports/digital-2025-poland.
- Kucherenko, S., & Kostyk, Y. (2025). Publishing business VS the internet: How has the World Wide Web affected the economics and marketing of printing companies? University Economic Bulletin, 20(1), 40-48. doi: 10.69587/ueb/1.2025.40.
- Law of Ukraine No. 2458-VIII “On Amendments to the Law of Ukraine ‘On Culture’ Regarding the Definition of the Term ‘Creative Industries’”. (2018, June). Retrieved from https://zakon.rada.gov.ua/laws/show/2458-19#n6.
- Lviv Media Forum. (n.d.a). Damage, losses and needs of Ukrainian media up to July 2024. Retrieved from https://lvivmediaforum.com/en/page/damage-losses-and-needs-of-ukrainian-media-in-the-context-of-full-scale-war-research-results.
- Lviv Media Forum. (n.d.b). Under the pressure of war: Challenges and needs of media in Ukraine. Retrieved from https://lvivmediaforum.com/en/page/the-state-of-ukrainian-media-during-the-full-scale-war-research-results.
- Lyubchenko, O., & Lyubchenko, A. (2024). Structure and development trends of creative business in Ukraine. RFI Scientific Papers, 2, 80-86. doi: 10.33763/npndfi2024.02.080.
- Ministry of Culture of Ukraine. (2024). Creative industries: Their role and place in modern Ukrainian society. Retrieved from https://mcsc.gov.ua/news/kreatyvni-industriyi-yih-rol-ta-miscze-u-suchasnomu-ukrayinskomu-suspilstvi/.
- Nielsen. (n.d.). The advertising media spend report – H1 2024. Retrieved from https://www.nielsen.com/fr/insights/2024/advertising-media-spend-report-h1-2024/.
- Oliinyk, O. (2023). Creative industries in the epoch of artificial intelligence: Tendencies and challenges. Culture and Contemporaneity, 25(2), 3-9. doi: 10.32461/2226-0285.2.2023.293736.
- Pletsan, K. (2021). Theoretical and methodological principles of digitalisation of cultural space in the process of creative industry development in Ukraine. Culture and Arts in the Modern World, 22, 85-102. doi: 10.31866/2410-1915.22.2021.235897.
- Poland. Business Forward. (n.d.). Creative industries sector. GameDev. Retrieved from https://www.paih.gov.pl/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/The-Creative-Industries-Sector-GameDev-2023.pdf.
- Rubryka. (2023). AI-generated images and Ukraine: How emotional images affect the course of war. Retrieved from https://rubryka.com/en/article/zgenerovani-shtuchnym-intelektom/.
- Semenchuk, T.B., Pakhota, N.V., Boniar, S.M., Tarnovska, I.V., Osypova, Ye.L., Kharchuk, O.H., Karpenko, O.O., Koba, V.H., & Vlasova, V.P. (2024). Management of creative industries. Kyiv: DUIT.
- Shkodina, I., Kondratenko, N., & Shchukina, A. (2023). Creative industry 4.0: Trends and transformations in the era of digitalization. The Journal of V.N. Karazin Kharkiv National University. Series: International Relations. Economics. Country Studies. Tourism, 18, 22-30. doi: 10.26565/2310-9513-2023-18-03.
- Shtefan, A. (2024). Creative industries: Concept, features, and problems of legislative interpretation. Problems of Legality, 164, 39-55. doi: 10.21564/2414-990X.164.300752.
- Skavronska, I.V. (2017) Creative industries in Ukraine: Analysis and prospects of the development. Journal of Scientific Papers Economics & Sociology, 10(2). doi: 10.14254/2071-789X.2017/10-2/7.
- Statistics Poland. (2025). Cultural and creative industries in 2023. Retrieved from https://stat.gov.pl/files/gfx/portalinformacyjny/en/defaultaktualnosci/3310/14/7/1/cultural_and_creative_industries_in_2023_2.pdf.
- Stoliarchuk, N. (2024). Cultural analysis of the development of creative industries in Ukraine. Philosophy and Governance, (3-4), 46-52. doi: 10.70651/3041-248X/2024.3-4.06.
- Tomlins, R., Sukumar, A., Malynka, O., & Bartkiiv, N. (2021). Barriers to entrepreneurial internationalisation for Ukrainian Creative and Cultural Industries (CCI). In V. Jafari-Sadeghi, L.-P. Dana & H. Mahadiraji (Eds.), Empirical international entrepreneurship. Contributions to management science (1st ed., pp. 217-230). Cham: Springer. doi: 10.1007/978-3-030-68972-8_12.
- Trach, Y. (2024). Cultural and creative industries in the digital environment: Opportunities and prospects. Digital Platform: Information Technologies in Sociocultural Sphere, 7(1), 110-122. doi: 10.31866/2617-796X.7.1.2024.307013.
- UNESCO. (2025). First in-depth study of losses and needs of Ukraine’s media sector. Retrieved from https://www.unesco.org/uk/articles/pershe-vycherpne-doslidzhennya-vtrat-i-potreb-ukrayinskoho-mediasektoru.
- Zavadenko, O. (2025). Creative industries: Essence and classifications. Via Economica, 8, 25-28. doi: 10.32782/2786-8559/2025-8-4.
- Zaxid.net. (2018). The Verkhovna Rada has defined the concept of “creative industries”. Retrieved from https://zaxid.net/vr_viznachila_ponyattya_kreativni_industriyi_n1459540.