Michael Steiner¹, Wolfgang Alteneder²  
(1. Institute of Economics, University of Graz, Austria; 2. Synthesis Forschung GmbH, Austria)

Abstract: There is a growing interest in role of institutions organizing and supporting sport activities. The focus of the paper is the relationship between the institution that organizes on a professional level competitive as well as leisure forms of winter sports, namely Ski Austria, and the economic effect and outcome of its efforts. For this purpose trends in Austrian winter sport and tourism are given and its economic dimensions both from a macro and micro perspective are calculated. From this basis the impact of the manifold activities of Ski Austria and its potential to create impulses for the inclination to exercise winter sports is evaluated. The effects are measured in analogy to advertising and marketing activities leading to quantitative dimensions in terms of value added, employment and income. In interpreting the economic effects the paper also emphasizes the public/private and catalytic character and the social context of all activities of Ski Austria.

Key words: winter sport and tourism; role of sport organizations; analogy to advertising; public-private partnership

JEL codes: L32, M37, Z20, Z33