There is no doubt that South by Southwest, Austin’s largest event and one of the most popular music and film events in the world, generates big bucks, but just how much? Last year brought in $167 million to the city and that number is estimated to be even bigger in 2012.

To put in perspective just what $167 million means to Austin, this number is about half of what the Super Bowl generates. SXSW was founded in 1987 and current director Hugh Forrest says they’ve even tried to deter the high number of attendance by raising badge prices, but even that can’t discourage die-hard film and music fans.

More than 2,000 bands from 50+ countries come to play on over 90 Austin stages every year.

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