The British government has, in an interesting reversal of position, announced that it intends to establish a nationwide tax-break for video game development.
Chancellor George Osborn, standing in the Commons for his 2012 Budget speech, made known his belief that the game development industry would benefit from tax-breaks similar to those enjoyed by the UK film industry, declaring that: “We want to turn Britain into Europe’s technology centre.”
In 2010 he called Labour’s game tax-relief policy “poorly targeted” and advocated that it be abolished.
Government’s plans on implementing the tax-break remains a mystery until the 2012 budget is released.
This turn of events has been hugely praised by UK video game industry heavyweights, Ian Livingstone and Peter Molyneux.
Livingstone, president of Eidos Interactive and deputy chair of the UK games industry trade body, UKIE, had the following to say on the matter: “The government’s recent announcement on computer science being taught in schools, coupled with today’s introduction of a competitive tax regime regarding production, helps UK studios to compete internationally on a level playing field. The incentives are now there to encourage inward investment, job creation and for the UK games industry to reclaim its position as a world leader in games production.”
Peter Molyneux, arguably the figurehead of the British game development scene and former head of beloved games studio, Lionhead, is also positive about the tax-break proposal, saying: “Now with the tax-break proposal, we can look forward to Britain becoming the centre for innovation and investment,” echoing the words of Chancellor Osborn. “This is great news for small and large companies alike.”
Even American publisher Activision-Blizzard‘s own CEO, Bobby Kotick, chimed in with praise, saying: “This is a great first step and should put the UK in a stronger position to compete with other countries offering incentives for video game production.”
Here’s hoping that this time around the UK government doesn’t back-peddle on its proposals and determinedly pushes through with their intentions. It would be a great boost for the industry and international interest alike.
Related Articles
Digital game sales figures announced for US and EU
Loading ...
