A cost-benefit analysis of the museum of image and sound in Rio de Janeiro

Abstract

This article presents a cost-benefit analysis of the new Museum of Image and Sound (MIS) that the State Government of Rio de Janeiro, in partnership with the Roberto Marinho Foundation, is building in the city of Rio de Janeiro. The museum will expand the collection the cultural production of the city, as much in regards to its history as to its future production. Our study initially estimates the benefits associated with the new museum regarding (i) the value for non-use, or cultural services, and (ii) the value for tourist services, using the contingent valuation method with split samples and estimations procedure suggested in the literature to control for scope and protest biases. When comparing these benefit estimates to their respective building and operation costs, an internal return rate of between 25.5% and 54.8% is determined indicating that the new MIS is highly feasible in the social terms. [PUBLICATION ABSTRACT]