The Scottish Government and a leading business body have restated their call for tax breaks for the games industry in the wake of Realtime Worlds entering administration.
Enterprise minister Jim Mather and Scottish Chambers of Commerce chief executive Liz Cameron expressed their regret at the situation Realtime finds itself in and said the company’s difficulties show just how vital it is to provide the correct environment for enterprise.
Despite plenty of figures within the industry arguing tax breaks were irrelevant to Realtime’s troubles, they said the studio’s experience is a harsh lesson that must be learned, and called on the UK Government to do a U-turn and provide tax relief to a sector where the ratio between risk and reward is so high.
Mr Mather said the first priority has to be to Realtime’s staff but the situation highlights wider issues in the sector.
“This announcement is extremely disappointing and I am concerned for Realtime Worlds’ employees, their families and the wider community, for whom this will be an anxious time,” he said.
“The Scottish Government is in contact with the company and will do all we can to minimise the impact of this announcement and protect these local, highly-skilled jobs in line with our efforts to support Scotland’s key creative industries and their global reputation for excellence.
“We understand that the administrator is seeking to sell the company as a going concern, thereby retaining the skilled and talented workforce in Dundee and protecting the local economy, and we will do everything we can to support this work.
“The games development industry in Dundee has been built on the world-class talent that has been developed in the area, and we are confident that this world-leading talent will remain in Dundee’s games development sector.
“But Scottish-based games developers must be allowed to compete on a level playing field through tax breaks. That is why it is particularly disappointing that the UK Government has so far failed to listen to the industry and the Scottish Government on this crucial issue.”
Liz Cameron said Scotland’s games industry must be able to compete with the rest of the world.
She said, “Obviously this is a worrying time for the talented staff at Realtime Worlds and for the Scottish video games industry in general, where the company was one of our largest and most successful businesses in recent years.
“The task must now be to ensure that Dundee and Scotland retain as many highly-skilled individuals as possible and that buyers can be found quickly for Realtime Worlds’ continuing operations.
“This sad news underlines the significant investment and risk attached to the video games industry and is evidence that the UK Government must take urgent action to support a sector which offers huge benefits to the Scottish economy.
“It is a very long time since video game development was conducted by bedroom programmers and garage industries. Today’s video games are multi-million pound projects developed over several years by huge teams of highly educated and skilled individuals.
“The risks as we have seen this week are enormous, but are outweighed by the potential rewards.”
She spoke of the “great track record” of new talent, thanks to places like Abertay University.
“However, this strong position has been challenged in recent years by other parts of the world offering more attractive fiscal regimes for gaming companies.
“Scotland must match or better the tax breaks offered by our rivals if we are to compete in the future, and that will require urgent action from the UK Government to reconsider its position on tax breaks, denied to the games industry in June’s emergency Budget.”
Dundee and Angus Chamber of Commerce said the demise of Realtime Worlds is not a death sentence for the industry in the city.
Chief executive Alan Mitchell said the company was “very important” but does not represent the whole sector.
“It remains a very viable sector and a thriving sector. It’s very sad and very disappointing and clearly bad news for the individuals affected, but Realtime Worlds may yet emerge from the administration process as a viable concern,” he said.
“A number of individuals may go on and set up their own businesses. What’s to say the next generation won’t come from within Realtime Worlds?”
“The task must now be to ensure that Dundee and Scotland retain as many highly-skilled individuals as possible and that buyers can be found quickly for Realtime Worlds’ continuing operations.
“This sad news underlines the significant investment and risk attached to the video games industry and is evidence that the UK Government must take urgent action to support a sector which offers huge benefits to the Scottish economy.
“It is a very long time since video game development was conducted by bedroom programmers and garage industries. Today’s video games are multi-million pound projects developed over several years by huge teams of highly educated and skilled individuals.
“The risks as we have seen this week are enormous, but are outweighed by the potential rewards.”
She spoke of the “great track record” of new talent, thanks to places like Abertay University.
“However, this strong position has been challenged in recent years by other parts of the world offering more attractive fiscal regimes for gaming companies.
“Scotland must match or better the tax breaks offered by our rivals if we are to compete in the future, and that will require urgent action from the UK Government to reconsider its position on tax breaks, denied to the games industry in June’s emergency Budget.”
Dundee and Angus Chamber of Commerce said the demise of Realtime Worlds is not a death sentence for the industry in the city.
Chief executive Alan Mitchell said the company was “very important” but does not represent the whole sector.
“It remains a very viable sector and a thriving sector. It’s very sad and very disappointing and clearly bad news for the individuals affected, but Realtime Worlds may yet emerge from the administration process as a viable concern,” he said.
“A number of individuals may go on and set up their own businesses. What’s to say the next generation won’t come from within Realtime Worlds?”