Ukie, the trade body for the UK’s games and interactive entertainment industry, has announced the launch of Interactive Entertainment Scotland (IES), a new dedicated Scottish body designed to champion the country’s rapidly growing games sector.
IES will serve as the primary voice for Scottish games companies, working directly with the Scottish Government and local stakeholders to advocate for policies that support growth for Scottish games studios and creators.
Ukie said that the initiative will attract more investment to Scotland, foster commercial development, and develop talent pipelines through partnerships with universities and colleges.
IES members will also benefit from Scotland-specific expertise and access to the full range of Ukie services and advocacy efforts, ensuring Scottish voices are heard in policy discussions both domestically and internationally.
“Scotland has always been a vital part of the UK’s games success story,” said Nick Poole, CEO of Ukie.
“The launch of Interactive Entertainment Scotland recognises the sector’s maturity and importance north of the border. IES will provide the focused, local representation that Scottish studios deserve while maintaining the collective strength that comes from being part of the UK’s broader games ecosystem.”
The launch of IES comes at a time when the UK games industry is firmly recognised as a key part of the UK Government’s industrial strategy, with a £30 million Video Games Growth Package launched in June to back startup studios and developers.
The sector contributes over £7 billion annually to the economy and supports more than 26,000 jobs nationwide, with Scotland playing an increasingly important role.
The country is home to 130 computer game enterprises, compared to just 15 in 2010, including industry giants like Rockstar North in Edinburgh, alongside a new wave of emerging game developers, bolstered by the video game expertise nurtured at Scottish universities like Abertay.
Ukie said that over the next decade, IES could play a key role in supercharging Scotland’s creative potential to be felt across the UK.
“As the birthplace of globally significant titles from Lemmings to Grand Theft Auto and home to companies involved in globally significant titles such as Minecraft, the games industry in Scotland has undergone meteoric growth,” said Richard Lochhead, Scottish business minister.
“The formation of a dedicated trade body to champion and collaborate across Scotland’s globally renowned games sector is both timely and important. I look forward to working closely with Interactive Entertainment Scotland to build even further on these remarkable achievements.”
Ukie’s announcement of IES follows the conclusion of the DICE Europe summit, held in Scotland for the first time earlier this week, which saw 150 global gaming industry leaders come to Edinburgh for key talks and to hear from Nintendo’s Managing Executive Officer Satoru Shibata, who was invited to speak by the first minister.
Source: DIGIT