Letter to the German Department of Commerce, Berlin

May 20^th, 2010

Dear Mrs. Smith,

with reference to my letter from May 5^th, I hereby would like to send you more detailed information on the sale of the domain “kultur-und-kreativwirtschaft.de”. I shall apologize for the delay with which I answer now on your inquiry. As an economist, I am committed to the thoroughness and diligence of a prudent German businessman and I want you to make an offer that can meet these standards. However, as domain trading, is not my daily business, I had to invest some time in studying the valuation economics of the domain market. I am indebted to you for your patience.

The artist, the employees of an advertising agency or the film director are part of the cultural and creative industries as well as the commercial trade with domains. As a professional for the cultural and creative industries I don’t tell you nothing new with that, but for the layman, this variety might become daunting and even to the expert it is at least extremely surprising from time to time. For this reason, it is even more gratifying, that the political discourse within Germany has agreed upon a unified and integrated discussion of these branches under the roof of the “initiative cultural and creative industries”. Therefore the acceptance and familiarity of the term within the German population can only grow during the following years.

From a scientific point of view the different branches of the cultural and creative industries can be unified and defined at the economy for ideas. All players in the various sub-areas of the cultural and creatives industries have in common that they make a living by either producing, distributing or marketing ideas and their licences. As was shown by numerous studies in Germany and internationally, too, the cultural and creative industries contribute a significant amount to the total value added of an economy and this evidence suggests that the cultural and creative industries are going to be the main value driver for growth in the 21^st century.

My personal opinion is that such sociological and economic arguments are very powerful when it comes to explanations but at the same time they are very general and lack an understand for historical context and developments. The cultural and creative industries are namely no new phenomenon of the 21^st century but have their roots in the enlightenment of the 18^th century. In addition to that, it is exactly Germany with its cultural landscape that has produced a historical unique universe of ideas whose economic impact has not been measured yet but is without any doubt enourmous. The fact that the Chinese tenor is practicing Wagners arias in the same way as the Colombian tenor is a proof for that as well as the fact that the philosophic texts of a Hegel or Heidegger have been keeping the minds of many translators busy for many decades. “Ideas made in Germany” counts for sustainable genuineness.

But it was also German cultural policy that had a devasting impact during the Third Reich period and that had to learn that the German ‘Geist’ is not as superior as some people would have liked it to be. Over the time the German cultural and creative industries are therefore shaped by a self-affected humility as well as by a almost phobic kind of cautiousness. This paradoxical restrainment of the German cultural and creative industries to their historic site creates what the American cultural theorist Homi Bhabha has called a hybrid “third space”. And exactly these spaces have the potential to be engine for new creative ideas that can influence the global world during the 21^st century significantly.

Therefore the name “kultur-und-kreativwirtschaft.de” has a symbolic significance that is almost unequaled so far. When determining a fair price for this domain I am accounting for these facts as well as for as the accepted norms for domain valuation within the domain market. Thus, I think a price that is considerably than the average domain price but moderate due to the complexity of the term “kultur-und-kreativwirtschaft.de” is appropriate for both sides. At this moment I would abstain a more precise valuation mechanism like an auction and can offer you the domain “www.kultur-und-kreativwirtschaft.de”

€ 83,150, -

for immediate purchase. In case you need any detailed about my valuation calculations I will be more than pleased to forward these to you.

Andreas Kohlmann, Dipl.-Kfm.