UK industry unites and mobilizes in demand for tax breaks

[beemoh]

http://www.mcvuk.com/news/30667/Britsoft-firms-back-official-campaign-for-tax-breaks

http://www.developmag.com/news/29859/13-more-UK-studios-back-Games-Up-campaign

A lot of the companies pledging support are companies from overseas, which is promising, at least in the short run-

Bizarre Creations (Activision)
Blitz
Codemasters
Eidos (who have already pulled a UK studio in favour of a Canadian one -b)
Electronic Arts
Exient
Frontier Developments
Microsoft Games Studios
NCSoft
Real Time Worlds
Relentless Software
Sony Computer Entertainment Worldwide Studios Europe
Sports Interactive (Sega)
Take Two Interactive
Ubisoft

Should be interesting how this pans out.

[beemoh]

http://www.developmag.com/news/29863/Games-Up-maintains-momentum-with-latest-media-report

[ezacharyk]

All the luck to them. I realize how much the UK would rather drag the rest of the world down to their level before thinking about raising themselves up.

I really hope that they turn themselves around before all companies decide to jump ship.

[Pominator]

Hey guys, we have actuallly got a reply from that petition we put up ages ago, here you go!:

The Government takes seriously the contribution of the UK's creative industries to the economy and to the UK's cultural richness. Creative Britain - New talents for the New Economy, published earlier this year, set out the 26 commitments with which the Government would support the creative industries.

In that document, the Government committed to making sure that the creative industries, including the games sector, were aware of and made the best use of the generous Research and Development tax credits for small and medium-sized enterprises, introduced by the Government in 2000. The Government has already been promoting the credit within the industry.

The Government must be mindful of the need to ensure fair competition and value for money for tax payers whilst ensuring that any tax incentives are supported by evidence. The Government is conscious of the recent approval of a cultural tax relief for games in France and is working with the UK industry to collect and review the evidence for introducing such a credit in the UK.

http://www.pm.gov.uk/output/Page15714.asp

check that out!