The New Year rang in with the usual thoughts of new beginnings and hope. However, this year those positive thoughts were tinged by the downturn of the US and global economies. Mental preparation was needed for what was bound to be a slower 2009. To my surprise, the New Year began with a flood of new entrepreneurs looking to start their own businesses. Many studies show that entrepreneurism thrives in a downward economy, but I have to say, I would not have believed it if it weren’t happening today. The question is, why?
Some will say it is because folks have more time on their hands from project slowdown or a recent layoff. My belief is this industry is entrepreneurial by nature and is passionate about what they do – making games. Recently, enterpriseSeattle conducted an economic impact study of the video game business in the state of Washington to document what this industry means to our local economy in terms of jobs and dollars. In the course of one year: 150 companies or divisions wholly involved in games; over 15,000 jobs; and contributed over $4.2 Billion to the local economy. These numbers were fantastic, of course, but what the cluster analysis revealed was even more intriguing.
Our local industry’s past, present, and future lie with our three anchors: Microsoft, Nintendo, and Real Networks. The big three are our major employers of course, but they also are the foundation of our local game development community. Most of our local game development companies have founders or executives who have had early roots with at least one of these companies. Following the paths of the many spin-offs, it became clear that the video game industry is very entrepreneurial – more so than most industries. The more established companies give our local workforce the skills to make a game, but it is the passion for play and the entrepreneurial spirit that inspires individuals to begin their own venture.
Last year, the Washington Interactive Network began a series of eight workshops designed to help these entrepreneurs, Game Industry Start Up 101. These workshops cover a variety of topics from “Building Your Business Plan” to “Financing Fundamentals” to “Exit Strategies. This series brought in many new faces, new companies, and new ideas in 2009. Throughout these workshops, we learned quite a bit about the state of the local industry.
As most of you already know, funding from publishers has slowed down significantly and that affects our independent game companies. These folks are taking this opportunity to be entrepreneurial and to diversify their projects. Since finance entities are holding back on the purse strings, we’re finding many folks looking to self-finance their next project. This of course limits the size of the projects our indie developers can take on this year. We’re expecting casual and iphone games to be the bread and butter for the independent community in the next year.
Our larger independent game companies are doing fairly well, despite the US economy. We are finding that although growth plans are being scaled back, there will still be growth in 2009. Online subscriptions will see some disruption with defaulting credit cards, but games will continue to be a popular “stay-cation” activity. Consumers find value in that they get more bang for their buck when you spend $10 on a video game rather than on a single visit to the movie theater. As history shows us, and as we are seeing today, the entertainment industries continue to thrive despite the challenging economy. The video game industry is no exception.
My thoughts of trepidation for 2009 have turned to looking forward to what opportunities 2009 will bring.
For more information about the Washington Interactive Network go to http://www.washingtoninteractivenetwork.org/ or email at khudson@enterpriseSeattle.org.
Some will say it is because folks have more time on their hands from project slowdown or a recent layoff. My belief is this industry is entrepreneurial by nature and is passionate about what they do – making games. Recently, enterpriseSeattle conducted an economic impact study of the video game business in the state of Washington to document what this industry means to our local economy in terms of jobs and dollars. In the course of one year: 150 companies or divisions wholly involved in games; over 15,000 jobs; and contributed over $4.2 Billion to the local economy. These numbers were fantastic, of course, but what the cluster analysis revealed was even more intriguing.
Our local industry’s past, present, and future lie with our three anchors: Microsoft, Nintendo, and Real Networks. The big three are our major employers of course, but they also are the foundation of our local game development community. Most of our local game development companies have founders or executives who have had early roots with at least one of these companies. Following the paths of the many spin-offs, it became clear that the video game industry is very entrepreneurial – more so than most industries. The more established companies give our local workforce the skills to make a game, but it is the passion for play and the entrepreneurial spirit that inspires individuals to begin their own venture.
Last year, the Washington Interactive Network began a series of eight workshops designed to help these entrepreneurs, Game Industry Start Up 101. These workshops cover a variety of topics from “Building Your Business Plan” to “Financing Fundamentals” to “Exit Strategies. This series brought in many new faces, new companies, and new ideas in 2009. Throughout these workshops, we learned quite a bit about the state of the local industry.
As most of you already know, funding from publishers has slowed down significantly and that affects our independent game companies. These folks are taking this opportunity to be entrepreneurial and to diversify their projects. Since finance entities are holding back on the purse strings, we’re finding many folks looking to self-finance their next project. This of course limits the size of the projects our indie developers can take on this year. We’re expecting casual and iphone games to be the bread and butter for the independent community in the next year.
Our larger independent game companies are doing fairly well, despite the US economy. We are finding that although growth plans are being scaled back, there will still be growth in 2009. Online subscriptions will see some disruption with defaulting credit cards, but games will continue to be a popular “stay-cation” activity. Consumers find value in that they get more bang for their buck when you spend $10 on a video game rather than on a single visit to the movie theater. As history shows us, and as we are seeing today, the entertainment industries continue to thrive despite the challenging economy. The video game industry is no exception.
My thoughts of trepidation for 2009 have turned to looking forward to what opportunities 2009 will bring.
For more information about the Washington Interactive Network go to http://www.washingtoninteractivenetwork.org/ or email at khudson@enterpriseSeattle.org.
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