UK government requests evidence to support game developer tax break
by Griffin McElroy 
{ Jun 30th 2009 at 1:15PM }
The UK's Department of Media, Culture and Sport responded to the request by mailing TIGA and the ELSPA, asking for evidence to support why such a tax break is needed, and how it would culturally enrich the country. We're pretty sure that if such a tax break inspired the creation of a few more Media Molecules or Lionheads, we'd end up feeling pretty enriched.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
PR0F3TA @ Jun 30th 2009 1:25PM
so basically they said yes, but just give us proof.
hope he can.
Wiizer @ Jun 30th 2009 1:29PM
Evidence on how it would culturally enrich the country?
For one, the tax break could pay for all those bad teeth in them UK heads.
O snap, I just went there...
GunForHire @ Jun 30th 2009 2:00PM
Nice stereotypes there, it's not like the US doesn't have bad teeth (see the Deep South). Perhaps in the UK they're not all so superficial as to spend many thousands of dollars to fix all teeth, just because they're not perfectly straight enough to match the increasingly bizarre Hollywood standard.
See, the stereotypes game is a game for two or more!
Wiizer @ Jun 30th 2009 2:32PM
How funny! And I'm from the South!
:B
McWilly @ Jun 30th 2009 2:36PM
Yeah we kind of gathered that from your ignorant comment.
Kyle @ Jun 30th 2009 3:01PM
LOL THE ENGLISH ALL HAVE BAD TEETHS AND DRINK TEA ALL DAY WITH THE QUEEN AND SAY "WOT WOT OLD CHAP" IN THEIR CASTLES.
ಠ_ಠ
Skipjimroo @ Jun 30th 2009 4:30PM
Your comment just enraged me to the point that I threw my afternoon crumpets at my monitor!
Good day to you sir. Good day..
Alex @ Jun 30th 2009 4:53PM
Thou shallt be sent to the tower... Expect a strongly worded pigeon to arrive shortly with your ye olde death warrant.
Chris @ Jun 30th 2009 6:14PM
Is it ironic that you're furthering your own national stereotype of ignorance with your joke that is based on a stereotype?
Douche Bigalow @ Jun 30th 2009 1:31PM
The lesson is that the government never wants to surrender funds. They think they need your money more than you do, so they can 'redistribute' it for you.
Kyle @ Jun 30th 2009 2:57PM
I sure hope this pans out.
UK31337 @ Jun 30th 2009 3:20PM
If there's any money left in the UK to do this. By "support the game industry" the Government really means "give every prisoner in the UK a free PS3 at the taxpayers' expense, meanwhile claim your Xbox LIVE subscription on MPs' allowances".
I've said something else before when this last came up, but there are plenty of games being made in this country which are just Americanised to bursting. Rockstar North are based in Edinburgh and Realtime Worlds/Ruffian based in Dundee, but with all the American English spellings and US date format, American voice actors (I live in Dundee for six months of the year and have never heard a single US accent once anywhere, don't know where the locally based Realtime Worlds find a million different ones for Crackdown), American looking environments and cityscapes (hell, Mirror's Edge was made in Sweden and even it's like mini-USA), American style roads and cars... ... you'd be forgiven for thinking the games are imports.
Make the games more culturally suited for the environment in which they're being made (what would be wrong with GTA London on the GTA IV engine, for example?) and then it would be justified. No tax breaks for UK based developers to push out subsidised Americanised derivative drivel please, it might as well be a far-East sweatshop if we don't get our own input on it during the development of these titles.
tweek @ Jun 30th 2009 6:38PM
The fact that the government has to ask this sort of question shows how far away from the pulse of the country.
They've had their heads up their asses for years.
Max @ Jun 30th 2009 8:33PM
Uh...why do these companies need tax breaks?
Seems to me like these gaming companies should be paying their way just as any other company.
Don't get me wrong, I'd love to see more gaming companies in the UK...but this just seems unfair.
BC @ Jul 1st 2009 6:09AM
They get tax breaks so they can compete against other countries that have tax breaks.
Then these companies do better and people keep their jobs and more are made.
These employed people pay their taxes from their wage rather than go on the dole.
The country makes the money back.
It also has an added benefit of stimulating the economy because they can buy more stuff and the company brings business to other companies (for example, stationary, pcs, the company I'm at buys fruit every week from a local greengrocer).