Pink money

Pink money

Pink money describes the purchasing power of the gay community, often especially with respect to political donations. With the rise of the gay rights movement, pink money has gone from being a fringe or marginalized market to a thriving industry in many parts of the Western world such as the United States and United Kingdom.[1] Many businesses now specifically cater to homosexual customers, including nightclubs, shops, restaurants, and even taxicabs; the demand for these services stems from commonly perceived discrimination by traditional businesses. Worldwide, pink money is valued at £350 billion across a variety of sectors — especially entertainment and consumer goods.[2]

The economic power of pink money has been seen as a force positive for the gay community, creating a kind of "financial self-identification" which helps gay and lesbian individuals feel like part of a community which values them.[3] Indeed, upwards of 90% of homosexuals support businesses which target pink money, while actively shunning "anti-gay" companies.[2] However, criticism has been leveled at businesses which target pink money from homosexual groups, arguing that this segregates the gay and lesbian community from society, and holds back gay rights.[1]

It's been considered more often than not a market exclusive for USA, UK and some places in Europe, but it's extension covers a large amount of Latinamerica and part of Asia, making its actual earns larger by year and giving marketing options some impulse and variety.

Contents

In the United Kingdom

Known as the pink pound in the United Kingdom (occasionally, the similarly termed "blue pound" is used specifically for lesbians), the British gay market is estimated to be worth up to £6 billion a year.

The Pink Pound is often considered to be responsible for the high sales of specific products seen to be favored by a large number of gay people, most noticeably music sales of records by gay icons such as Madonna, Lady Gaga, Kylie Minogue and Cher. A range of large corporations have recently realised the power of the Pink Pound and have begun to directly market their products towards the gay community through advertising in the gay press. In June 2006 a specialized marketing conference called the Pink Pound Conference was held in London and a similar conference was held in November 2006 by the Market Research Society.

Groups and organizations concerned with the ghettoisation, conformity, and commercialism of the pink pound include OutRage!, the NUS LGBT Campaign and the Queer Youth Alliance — paralleling the more general criticisms of pink money.

A large market of goods and services for gay people has appeared in recent years, including gay wedding services, gay press including radio and television, and domestic services such as builders and plumbers. In 2001 several gay companies produced pink stickers and stuck them onto thousands of Pound Coins which are still in circulation.[citation needed]

In the United States

Known as the pink dollar or "Dorothy dollar" in the United States, estimates of the US LGBT market put its value at approximately $641 billion in the year 2006.[4][dead link] in addition, many of these households are known by demographers as DINK — which generally have more disposable income.[4] In the United States, gays are on average economically advantaged, with 28% of gay households reported as having an income in an excess of $50,000 a year.[5]

Some US industries have tried to focus on these markets with specific advertising campaigns; for example, American Airlines saw its earnings from LGBT people rise from $20 million in 1994 to $193.5 million in 1999, after formation of a team devoted to gay and lesbian marketing.[6]

In politics, pink money has been viewed as controversial, mainly due to pressure from conservative groups promoting traditional values, — for instance, Presidential Candidate Michael Dukakis publicly disassociated himself from pink money during the 1988 US presidential election.[7] However, more recently pink money has become politically acceptable, especially as a major source of funding for the Democratic Party — in 2000, contributing $5 million to the Democratic National Committee alone, "a total that puts them among the top tier of Democratic givers, along with unions, [and] trial lawyers".[8] Major candidates such as Bill Clinton, Al Gore, John Edwards, Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, Howard Dean, John Kerry, and Joe Biden have actively campaigned for the gay vote.

According to Witeck-Combs Communications, Inc. and Marketresearch.com, the 2006 buying power of U.S. gays and lesbians was approximately $660 billion and is expected to exceed $835 billion by 2011.[9] Headlines later claimed "'Gay Buying Power' to hit $2 Trillion by 2012."[10]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b Morris, Chris (1999-02-12). "Now meet the real gay mafia". The New Statesman: pp. 22–23 
  2. ^ a b "Business: The Economy: The Pink Pound". BBC News. 1998-07-31. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/the_economy/142998.stm. Retrieved 2008-02-29. 
  3. ^ Sheila Perry, Sheila; Máire Cross (1997). Voices of France: Social, Political and Cultural Identity. Continuum International Publishing Group. p. 172. ISBN 1855673940. 
  4. ^ a b Gay Buying Power Projected at $641 Billion in 2006
  5. ^ http://www.rainbowreferrals.com/sponsors/statistic.asp
  6. ^ Arndt, Michael (24 May 2000). "United Tries for Gay-Friendly Skies". BusinessWeek. http://www.businessweek.com/bwdaily/dnflash/may2000/nf00524b.htm. 
  7. ^ "Gays come out for Gore - as lesser evil". Financial Times. 2007-01-01. 
  8. ^ Marcus, Ruth (2000-08-18). "'Pink Money' Flowing to Democrats; Gay Contributions Now Major Source". The Washington Post. 
  9. ^ PRNewswire. "Buying Power of US Gays and Lesbians to Exceed $835 Billion by 2011." January 25, 2007
  10. ^ The Raw Story. Yahoo. June 26, 2006

External links


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужно сделать НИР?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Pink dollar — Pink dollar, also know as the Dorothy dollar , is a term describing the purchasing power of LGBT individuals in the United States. In the United States gays are some of the most economically advantaged people which personal income with an excess… …   Wikipedia

  • Pink — This article is about the color. For the singer, see Pink (singer). For other uses, see Pink (disambiguation). Pink   Common connotations  girls …   Wikipedia

  • Pink Friday — Studio album by Nicki Minaj Released November 19, 2010 …   Wikipedia

  • Pink Floyd live performances — Pink Floyd are pioneers in the live music experience, renowned for their lavish stage shows that combine over the top visual experiences with music to create a show in which the performers themselves are almost secondary. Pink Floyd s combination …   Wikipedia

  • Pink Friday — Studioalbum von Nicki Minaj Veröffentlichung 19. November 2010 Aufnahme 2009 2010 Label …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Money (Pink Floyd song) — Money Single by Pink Floyd from the album The Dark Side of the Moon B side …   Wikipedia

  • Pink Friday — Album par Nicki Minaj Sortie 22 novembre 2010 Enregistrement 2009 2010 …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Pink Floyd — в 1968 году. Слева направо: Ник Мэйсон, Сид Барретт …   Википедия

  • Money (Lied) — Money Pink Floyd Veröffentlichung 24. März 1973 Länge 6:23 Genre(s) Rockmusik, Progressive Rock Text Roger Wat …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Pink Friday — Студийный альбом …   Википедия

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”