Ukie

Ahead of The Funding Formula on the 10th November, we're going to be highlighting a few of our panels. First up is Finding the Right Funding Fit: Publishers, Angels, VCs and beyond. Being one of our first panels of the day, his session will offer a valuable overview of the games funding landscape, exploring the range of financing options available to businesses and how different approaches can support their growth. Speakers for this panel will be: Phil Mansell , Cultivated Games, The Games Angels Joe Burridge, Play Ventures Harvey Elliott , Playstack Oliver Jenkinson, Finstock Capital There's still time to get your tickets to join us if you haven't already: https://zurl.co/kIzyY

In case you missed it, we've just announced our keynote speaker for this year's The Funding Formula! We are thrilled to have Kartik Prabhakara joining us, Founding Partner at Aream & Co. His keynote, aptly named State of Play, will see us delving into where the money is going in the games industry, what investors are looking for, key opportunities available for developers, and even more valuable information. This isn't something you want to miss, and we've got more than ten more panels and talks planned for the day. To join us and take advantage of everything available, get your tickets today: https://zurl.co/SFaT3

Next week is Games Finance Week at Ukie We'll be kicking things off with our Investment Summit. This event is an opportunity for investors and capital allocators to come together and hear about the barriers within the games industry when it comes to investment and funding. Co-founder of Games Workshop, Ian Livingstone will be speaking to attendees on the day to give his own insight on the industry. Following that, we'll be shining the spotlight on our upcoming panels, the messaging we'll be offering through them, and the industry professionals who will be there to lead these important discussions. Finally, we'll be closing the week with The Funding Formula. Running for its second year, The Funding Formula is a unique event aimed at helping games companies better understand the current and future market landscape for funding and commercial opportunities. And tickets are still available! If you'd like to attend, you can get your tickets here: https://zurl.co/qPDKq For both of our events during this week, we are thrilled to have keynotes delivered by Kartik Prabhakara, Founding Partner at Aream & Co. His address will be exploring the changing games investment landscape and what it means for studios seeking funding and growth. You can read a full announcement from our media partner for The Funding Formula, PocketGamer.biz https://zurl.co/BPNHq

Ukie's response to today's HM Treasury Autumn Budget: The UK helped invent the modern video games industry and today, we have some of the best developers in the world, creating games played by hundreds of millions of people. We welcome the Chancellor’s focus on backing British enterprise and innovation to drive growth in every part of the country, and measures announced today, such as the new Founders’ Relief and the young entrepreneurs allowance, will help the next generation of founders, including in games, take their first steps. But other countries are working hard to attract the next generation of games businesses, investment and jobs, and we had hoped to see more targeted support for an industry with such huge potential for growth. Ukie has consistently called for improvements to the Video Games Expenditure Credit, better access to finance and more support for UK games businesses looking to grow and compete internationally. We will continue making the case for these changes and working with Government to ensure the UK remains one of the best places in the world to make games. https://lnkd.in/ebhWFkRT

Aream & Co. founding partner Kartik Prabhakara will be a keynote speaker at Ukie’s upcoming conference The Funding Formula on Tuesday, November 10th. Taking place at the Glaziers Hall in London, the event aims to bring together studios, publishers, investors and industry experts to discuss funding, publishing partnerships and commercial opportunities for games businesses. Prabhakara’s talk will delve into where the money is going in the industry, what investors and publishers are looking for, and what the biggest opportunities are for developers right now. The session will also cover the overall investment landscape, the rise of independent publishers backed by global indie studios and project financing. https://lnkd.in/gTiUaPAw

All eyes are on No 11 today as Chancellor John Healey prepares to deliver the first Budget of the Burnham Government. He faces a complex challenge - factors like the war in Iran and sluggish domestic growth have cut his "headroom" from a reported £23bn over the Summer to just £12bn. The cost of Government borrowing has risen sharply along with gilt yields and the OBR has once again cut growth forecasts, this time to just 1.1%. That's the economics, but the politics are challenging too. This is the first opportunity for the Government to put it's money where it's mouth is on Devolution, while commitments on Social Care will require nothing less than a wholesale re-engineering of our approach to Pensions. At the risk of being reductive, the Exchequer needs more money in the form of tax receipts, if the Government is to make good on it's ambitions. This is why Ukie has structured our budget proposals to Government around a set of fiscal measures designed to boost growth without requiring a huge capital outlay. Our thinking is this: supporting games, and particularly games SME through enhanced tax reliefs and "catalysing" grants is a low-cost, high-return option for HM Treasury. Because games studios are in every town and city, boosting our capability for growth precisely hits the Government's stated ambition for "growth in every postcode". We know that small studios are more resilient to financial downturns, and constitute the "backbone" of an industry that delivers in excess of £6bn back to the UK economy - both in terms of real tax receipts, jobs created and local economic activity. There are no magic bullets here, just solid economics. You cannot cut your way to growth - you have to build confidence and create the right kind of environment for growth to happen. Boosting SME across the UK, particularly high growth-potential creative digital SME with a clear export path is exactly the kind of smart policy Treasury is looking for. It's an uphill battle - the mood music is "Treasury says no", but even if we can secure some concessions on the modernisation of VGEC, the better to reflect how games are made today, it will open a door for structured dialogue around the next Governmental Spending Review. So we will be watching the Budget carefully, after months of dialogue with officials and elected representatives. Will the Chancellor take the opportunity to boost one of the UKs true growth industries? We will know very soon. https://lnkd.in/egTeQUr5

Ahead of tomorrow’s Autumn Budget, we are setting out what UK games businesses need to keep growing.   Look at the businesses UK studios have built, and the reputation they have earned for British games around the world. From Rebellion and Frontier Developments to BULKHEAD and Hello Games, Screen Burn Interactive and many more, British teams have made games that millions of people around the world play, and built companies that have lasted. This year’s releases are the latest chapter in a success story that goes back decades.   But international competition for investment and talent is growing and If we want that story to continue, the UK needs to stay one of the best places in the world to make games.   Ahead of the Autumn Budget, Ukie is asking the Government to act in three areas:   💰 Reform the Video Games Expenditure Credit: Increase the baseline rate and introduce a new Games Growth Rate, so smaller and mid-sized productions get better support and British studios can compete for investment internationally. 📈 Establish a National Games Scale Up Fund: Give ambitious games businesses access to the finance they need to grow, develop their own IP and build lasting companies. 🎮 Modernise the tax system: Make VGEC work for the way games are made today, including live service development and co-development, and simplify it for smaller studios.   We have worked closely with our members, TIGA, the UK Video Games Council and Government to build the case for these changes. The talent, creativity and ambition are already here and we see it every day, but what studios need now are the right conditions to become global success stories. https://lnkd.in/eqhh3rey

Gaming is an increasingly important part of family life, but navigating it isn’t always easy for parents. Family Gaming Database’s Andy Robertson has written a free Parent’s Guide to Gaming with Confidence, in association with Nintendo UK, to help parents feel more informed about everything from age ratings and online safety to screen time and parental controls. The guide provides advice from professionals, including Shahneila Saeed, FRSA , Programme Director at Digital Schoolhouse. Download your copy of the guide today: https://zurl.co/gLdxw

Fifty years. One extraordinary career. 🏆 Congratulations to Sir Ian Livingstone, who received the Sunday Times Lifetime Achievement Award at the The Times and Sunday Times Hundred dinner at the British Museum, presented by editor Ben Taylor. The award recognises 50 years in games since Sir Ian co-founded Games Workshop in 1975. Along the way he co-created Fighting Fantasy, helped build Eidos and launch Lara Croft: Tomb Raider, founded the Livingstone Academy Bournemouth, and worked with government to put Computing on the national curriculum. It’s a remarkable legacy, and one that has opened doors for generations of UK games makers. We’re proud to count Sir Ian among the first inductees to the UK Video Games Hall of Fame. Thoroughly deserved, Sir Ian!