Four out of five UK games businesses expect near-term growth

UKIE’s 2015 member survey has found that four out of five UK video games businesses expect to experience growth in the next 18 months.

That’s up from the 2014 survey, where 77 per cent of businesses expected the same. The highest levels of enthusiasm were found among developers, where 93 per cent predicted growth.

The survey also pointed to overall growth for the sector, with 46 per cent of respondents having been around for five years or less. The majority were also classed as micro businesses, with 61 per cent employing 25 or fewer staff.

68 per cent of respondents generated 60 per cent of more of their revenues outside of the UK while 64 per cent say they’ve been able to hire more staff thanks to successful UK tax relief applications.

It’s great to see such a confident outlook from UK games businesses as we continue to demonstrate that we are a hugely productive, growth sector of the future,” UKIE CEO Dr Jo Twist said. UKIE lobbied hard for the Tax Relief to come into effect, and to see it having such an impact in actively growing our industry is amazing.

Our survey also shows the importance of overseas markets to UK companies – our sector is competing against some major global competitors and our presence in the international markets is something of which we should all be proud. I look forward to seeing the further impact of the Tax Breaks, the introduction of more events in our global trade programme and the continued growth in the fantastic UK industry in the next 18 months.”