Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 13 December 2017
274. Deputy Niamh Smyth asked the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht the expenditure of the €0.4 million allocated to the development and promotion of www.ireland.ie and www.creativeireland.gov.ie; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [53305/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe development of the two informative and high quality websites - www.creativeireland.gov.ie and www.Ireland.ie - is essential to the long-term successful promotion and aims of the Creative Ireland Programme, including Pillar 5 which aims to unify Ireland's global reputation abroad. This is particularly relevant now in the context of Brexit
A sum of €0.4m was originally allocated for the development, maintenance and promotion of these two websites. However, this sum was subsequently increased to €0.6m to account for the specially curated and extensive range of digital content commissioned to populate both websites and associated social media platforms (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram). This content has been used in particular to enhance the Ireland.ie website which aims to present a broad, compelling and inspiring image of Ireland.
The breakdown of expenditure to date in respect of the above websites is as follows:
- Website Development (layout, content production and graphic design) - €192,000
- Digital Content Creation and promotion - €391,000
The creation and dissemination of this content has proved very successful in meeting the aims of the Creative Ireland programme to provide information to citizens and to engage with as broad an audience as possible. For example some of the most viewed videos on the Creative Ireland Facebook page (not including Twitter) include Cruinniú na Cásca (67k views), Oireachtas na Samhna (45k views), Electric Picnic (88k views), Local Authority Workshops (63k views), St Patrick's Festival (107k views). The "This is Ireland" video has attracted over 2m views on Facebook and Twitter in Ireland and abroad.
