MANCHESTER'S GROWING CREATIVE CLOUT

· Manchester is strong in creative media and digital industries, with the government spending 3.5 billion pounds ($5.6 billion) on building a global hub for creative industries.

· Manchester's MediaCityUK is the largest purpose-built media location in Europe.

· MediaCityUK is the new home for BBC departments including Future Media and Technology, ITV studios and a new set for the long-running TV series Coronation Street; University of Salford's teaching and research center; and more than 50 creative and digital companies.

· Manchester's talent pipeline includes 7,200 creative and media students in the city region and another 6,000 doing computer-related courses.

· Manchester is designated a "super-connected city" for next-generation broadband. It has the only international Internet exchange outside London and a host of providers offering high-speed voice and data networks.

· There are 3,000 businesses in Manchester creating 25,000 employment opportunities in the creative digital sector. Projected growth for the sector is 44 percent by 2020.

· In 2011 digital industries accounted for 45,776 jobs in Greater Manchester, and generated 2 billion pounds of economic output a year.

-Midas, the Manchester investment agency

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