Having been instated for a trial period back in 2007, the European Commission has agreed to extend French tax breaks for the games industry until the end of 2017.
The original decision proposed by the French Government had been hailed as a landmark move for the industry by the European Games Developer Federation (EGDF).
Chairman Guillaume de Fondaumiere has now claimed its extension proves the model should serve as an example for a similar initiative set in motion in the UK.
Follow France
"I welcome this important resolution for our industry," said de Fondaumiere of the move.
"It will allow France to pursue a scheme that has proven very successful, in particular to relocate creative forces that had left the country.
"But more importantly for Europe as a whole, I hope that this extended window will now encourage other countries such as the United Kingdom to quickly put in place similar measures."
The EGDF believes the measure cements games position as a "form of cultural expression", equal in important to both films and books.
Green light
The move comes after the UK Government announced a tax break for the games industry in its most recent budget, with estimates suggesting it could generate £50 million for the industry over a two year period.
For its part, UK trade association TIGA said games' continued strong standing in France only serves to highlight that games are "economically important, can be educational, and can be cultural products."
"This is a critical victory not just for the French games development sector but also for the UK games development and digital publishing industry," said TIGA CEO Richard Wilson.
"TIGA successfully convinced the UK Government to introduce a tax break for games production in the March 2012 Budget. Todays announcement by the European Commission gives the UK the green light to introduce this vital tax measure as soon as possible.
"This is a triumph for the French, the UK and the wider European games development sectors achieved by SNJV, TIGA and the EDGF trade associations, and I applaud the Commission's decision."
News
With a fine eye for detail, Keith Andrew is fuelled by strong coffee, Kylie Minogue and the shapely curve of a san serif font.
Related Articles
Top Stories
News
5 hours, 1 minute ago
King and Flexion partner to bring Candy Crush Saga to App Gallery and more alternative app stores
News
5 hours, 56 minutes ago
Zynga’s Game of Thrones: Legends is open for pre-registrations with a July 25th release date
Feature
8 hours, 18 minutes ago
Mobile Mavens: Are today's everlasting, live ops games holding back new innovation?
Feature
9 hours, 46 minutes ago
The key takeaway from Apple's AI-laden WWDC keynote? It's time to buy a new iPhone
Events
Tribeca Games Festival 2024 | North America | Jun 5th |
Steam Next Fest: June 2024 Edition | Jun 10th | |
WN Conference Istanbul 2024 | Jun 11th | |
GamesForum Hamburg 2024 | Europe | Jun 11th |
ESI London 2024 | Europe | Jun 13th |
Game Con Canada (GCC) 2024 | North America | Jun 14th |
Indie Dev Play 2024 | Europe | Jun 14th |
DevGAMM Vilnius 2024 | Europe | Jun 14th |
Popular Stories
Interview
Jun 5th, 2024
A galaxy far, far away… Why Star Wars: Hunters took six years to hit the target
as
Feature
Jun 3rd, 2024