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Fuelling a growing market – Financing and investments in the video games sector

The ninth workshop of the European Video Games Society focused on challenges and recommendations regarding public and private investment and funding opportunities in the video games sector.

EUROPEAN VIDEO GAMES SOCIETY WORKSHOP 9 FUELLING A GROWING MARKET FINANCING AND INVESTMENTS IN THE VIDEO GAMES SECTOR WORKSHOP 9 November 15, 2022 Online event Nearly 30 stakeholders joined the ninth workshop of the European Video Games Society, an initiative of the European Commission to support the video games ecosystem. The project, run by consultant companies Ecorys and KEA, aims to inform policy making on the impact of video games in various areas, identify ways for the EU to actively support the sector, and foster an active community in the ecosystem. The ninth workshop focused on challenges and recommendations regarding public and private investment and funding opportunities in the video games sector. SPIELFABRIQUE Video games ecosystem catalyst Funding opportunities are increasing; however, there are disparities among different EU Member States Public funds mainly support the promotion of national culture and the creation of new IPs through subsidies and loans, and tend to focus their support on specific projects Private investors seek the maximisation of their return on investment by supporting studios through equity or debt financing EUROPEAN INVESTMENT FUND Financial institution part of the European Investment Bank Group The EIF supports the video games sector through two main instruments directed to intermediaries: guarantees and equity products EIF’s actions benefit the sector by reducing lending costs and operational risks, which results in increased lending opportunities So far, the EIF’s CCS Guarantee Facility assisted a total of 612 SMEs in the video games sector, for a total of EUR 141 million CHALLENGES AND RECOMMENDATIONS Identified by attending stakeholders CHALLENGES Limited public funds budgets Private investors’ risk aversion Lack of public strategic approach Lack of awareness SMEs lack of financial knowledge Administrative burden Funding opportunities not tailed to video games RECOMMENDATIONS Increase use of tax reduction and tax credit schemes Increase investors’ knowledge about existing opportunities in the sector Provide tailored financial education to SMEs and studios Foster collaboration among Member States on the integration of different types of funding More workshops and interviews will be soon organised by the European Video Games Society. You can contribute to our survey via the following link: https://ec.europa.eu/eusurvey/runner/EUGamingSociety For more information on the project or for future participation, please reach out to EUvideogames@ecorys.com and check out https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/policies/value-gaming.

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Last update

30 January 2023

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