UK Games Tax Relief fund of £730m 'revived' industry in 2015 says trade association TIGA

237 projects received government assistance with expected £1.11bn contribution to economy

The UK videogames industry received a total of £728.9m from the government's Games Tax Relief (GTR) fund last year, helping to create 237 new projects at an estimated five-year UK economy contribution of £1.11bn.

The cash boost, claims trade association TIGA, could also eventually help to create 2,700 new jobs. The figures were released this week by the BFI.

The GTR represents the execution of a scheme the government agreed to back in 2012, which TIGA and other groups heavily lobbied to achieve in order to land tax breaks on a similar level to those enjoyed by the film industry.

In a similar way to the UK Film Tax Relief, projects must pass a "cultural test" to apply for the tax relief, which "substantially" reduces the cost of developing a videogame.

Richard Wilson, CEO of TIGA, said the tax breaks had played a vital role in the industry's recent fortunes.

"Games Tax Relief has played a key part in reviving the UK video games industry and helped the sector grow by almost 10 per cent in 2014," said Wilson.

"Today's figures from the BFI show that the GTR is helping the production of more culturally British video games and boosting investment into the sector."

But Wilson believes even more can be done: "We should examine the case for increasing the £1m subcontracting limit that GTR currently operates under, promote GTR at home and abroad and work to ensure that more developers use this valuable Tax Relief."

The organisation argues that, for larger projects, the £1m subcontracting figure is not enough for what is considered a "normal" subcontracting spend.

TIGA also wants to monitor other reliefs around the world to keep ensuring the GTR is "best in class".

Jason Kingsley OBE, Chair of TIGA and CEO of developer Rebellion, said the UK is "unparalleled in terms of creativity and craft" in videogames and that the GTR "is finally allowing our industry to thrive".

The fund, he said, "signifies that games are not just for gamers".

"They are a hugely valuable element of our economy," he concluded.

This week also saw the UK video games industry receive the promised £4m "UK Games Fund" contribution from the government, in a sector now worth £84bn to the economy.