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The UK game industry shrunk by nearly half in 2012 compared to 2011, according to figures released by the department for Culture, Media and Sport.
The economic contribution in 2012 (or gross value added) was 540 million. During 2011 however, the industry was valued at 946 million. This means there has been drop of 446 million.
Game industry trade organisation UKIE has disputed the findings, however, and warned that many UK games companies are not being counted as part of official industrial and economic figures.
These figures are obviously disappointing on the face of it,” said UKIE CEO Jo Twist. A reduction from 946 million to 540 million in one year is not good. This is partially due to the cyclical nature of our industry, as 2012 saw both the start of a build-up to the new generation of consoles and a broader shift towards new, smaller companies.
"However, as the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) note in their estimates, the 540 million GVA figure is not as robust as it could be and ‘should be treated with caution’.
We think a lot of games companies are not being counted as part of our industry, and we are already working with the Office for National Statistics (ONS) to see if this can be improved. This is hugely important in showing government the importance and potential of our industry, and we will be calling on games companies to help with this work in the coming months.”
For a more detailed look at the numbers, head over to Develop.
