Canada is third-largest home to game devs

[Deleted_171835]

Canada, according to data from the Entertainment Software Association of Canada (ESCA), is now the world’s third-largest home to game developers, surpassing the United Kingdom and trailing only Japan and the United States.

While the UK tries to compensate by finally passing tax-breaks for those in the game development sector, GamePolitics caught up with Peter White (pictured), President of the London (Ontario) Economic Development Corporation (LEDC), which, in turn, is a member of the Ontario Technology Corridor (OTC).

The five-year old OTC promotes Ontario as a region that is especially receptive to technology and videogame developers, complete with tax incentives, affordable cost-of-living and a treasure trove of universities turning out skilled graduates that are ready to go to work.

White began by describing some of his typical day-to-day duties, “In my capacity, we focus specifically on London and the immediate region, which represents an area of about 500,000 people for an economic base. In the focus of the OTC, really what we are trying to do is focus on the capabilities we have as a region and promote that in a number of different elements, whether that’s opportunities at trade shows, with foreign delegations or with foreign governments.”

The OTC was formed—and is driven by—both a combination of local municipalities and the Ontario government, along with input from other stake holders, such as local universities and colleges. The OTC represents the regions of Toronto, Ottawa, Waterloo, London and Niagara.

White explained:

Really, it was an opportunity for us together to promote the capabilities and strengths that we have along our corridor region. Canadians like to think that people know where Ontario is… but when you go to Europe and Asia, people know Ottawa and Toronto, but generally they don’t know the rest of the detail of the geography. Even in certain parts of the U.S. (this is the case). So, we thought it was a great opportunity for us to promote the entire region.
The OTC has befitted from a government that is willing to formulate and implement strategies as it goes along. White noted that “it’s really been in the last 24 months that the government brought in some more aggressive tax incentives.”

Were these improved incentives a result of a lot of lobbying? White answered, “Both the Ontario and the federal governments have focused on digital media as being a core area, so it hasn’t really required a staff to go out and do broad lobbying. We’re able, actually, to go out and tell the government ‘Look you’re thinking of doing this, this is why this works even better’ and it just helps back up their strategies around that.”

Such unanimity, White said, makes it easier to woo prospective companies, “They can look and see that all three levels of government are involved in this process.”

White has a number of tiered interests to juggle: As a Canadian, he wants more developers to come to Canada. As an Ottawan, he wants developers to settle in that province. As President of the LEDC, he naturally wants developers to choose the London-area as home. These layers sometimes require the London-based White, at least initially, to work with competing locales, or other areas represented in the OTC.

Great! The US and Japan are too large for any country to beat so most countries aim for third-place! Heh. We beat the UK!

Source: GamePolitics

 

[iFish]

w00t Canada!!!

 

[Danny600kill]

Yay we did it we beat them, stupid Uk with its taxes and stuff, tey really do suck and are ruining the game industry

* Finds out the UK includes England

WTF you thieves, give us our devs back

 

[hellohey]

wooo canada

 

[Giga_Gaia]

No surprise, Ubisoft has a branch in montreal and there is a lot of other producers here.

 

[FAST6191]

Wow a good chunk of TV and film and games as well now.

Hope it works out for them and they are not just building a bubble.

 

[Panzer Tacticer]

Canada, it's like the US, only we have better laws

and our freedom is actually better freedom.

Our Homeland Security is called trees, lots and lots of trees, and bugs lots of bugs.

 

[playallday]

Well, we already have EA and Ubisoft in Montreal and together they have almost 3,000 employees. And that's just Montreal!