Scottish games industry doesn't really exist, says government report

A new report on the Scottish economy claims its video game industry has only 200 workers, no students studying game-related subjects, and that its value is £0 to the country. This would all be laughable – except it could inform policy, since it was created by DC Research and commissioned by governmental organizations Creative Scotland and Scottish Enterprises.

"The problem is that this is an official report created by two Scottish government organizations which oversee the cultural and enterprise elements of the Scottish economy," Scottishgames.net wrote. "Moving forward policy decisions, funding allocations etc. will all be made based on the information in this document."

What likely occurred in the study is that video game companies were misidentified, either by themselves in government filings or in the course of the research. The data is based off information from 2010, when video games didn't have their own Standard Industrial Classification.

The Scottish games industry includes Rockstar North and Ruffian Games, along with developing, recognized talent from University of Abertay Dundee.

[Thanks, Brian.]