GOODWILL AS AN INDICATOR OF INNOVATION ACTIVITY AND ITS IMPACT ON THE COMPETITIVENESS OF CREATIVE ECONOMY ENTITIES

The study investigates the role of goodwill as an integral indicator of innovation activity and a key driver of competitive advantages among leading global companies operating within the creative sector of the economy. Based on a comprehensive empirical and analytical assessment of actual and forecasted financial data covering the period from 2020 to 2026, the research identifies and characterizes significant heterogeneity in corporate strategic development models. Specifically, the paper categorizes industry players into three distinct trajectories: the purely organic model exemplified by Netflix and Adobe, characterized by minimal or zero goodwill and a heavy reliance on internal research, development, and intellectual capital scaling to generate sustainable growth without exposure to speculative M&A risks; the external consolidation and hybrid leadership model represented by Disney, Sony, Google, and Meta, which successfully combines internal developments with targeted, strategic mergers and acquisitions to reinforce technological ecosystems and maintain market dominance; and the crisis model of excessive consolidation and value destruction observed in Warner Bros. Discovery, where aggressive external expansion and disproportionate goodwill spikes contrast sharply with declining competitiveness coefficients, signaling severe operational integration challenges and asset impairment risks. The findings demonstrate that high goodwill effectively stimulates long-term competitiveness growth only under strict conditions of qualitative operational and market integration. Furthermore, the research outlines prospects for future scientific exploration, focusing on the impact of specific intangible assets, such as patents, proprietary licenses, and artificial intelligence technologies, on the market capitalization and structural resilience of creative industry entities amidst modern global economic challenges. Thus, the forecasted competitiveness coefficients for 2026 reveal extreme polarization, ranging from a maximum value of 49,76 for Disney to a deep negative value of -30,34 for Warner Bros. Discovery. These quantitative outcomes empirically validate the constructed theoretical framework and confirm the critical importance of strategic alignment between intangible asset management and market performance.