The Spanish video game industry had a turnover of 510.7 million euros in 2015, 24% more than in 2014

Employment in the sector grew by 32% compared to the previous year, reaching 4,460 professionals working for a total of 480 companies.

With a turnover of more than 510 million euros and a growth of 24% compared to 2014, the Spanish video game industry continues to lead, for the fifth consecutive year, the evolution of the Spanish digital economy, as revealed by the White Paper on Spanish video game development in its 2016 edition, which was presented this Tuesday in Madrid by the Spanish Association of Video Game and Entertainment Software Producers and Developers (DEV) with the sponsorship of U-Tad, University Center for Technology and Digital Art and the support of ICEX Spain Export and Investment.

This study, which in the 2014 and 2015 editions accumulated more than 30,000 downloads, collects the main data of the Spanish video game development industry, investigates the trends that the production of interactive content will follow, and evaluates its needs, providing the Government and the rest of the Public Administrations with the essential recommendations for the promotion of this important sector.

Job creation

Thanks to its entrepreneurial nature, content production continues to lead job creation in Spain and in its role as the driving force of the industry, for yet another year, the video game sector has achieved a high level of growth, increasing its workforce by 32%, which translates into 4,460 professionals. To this we must add the jobs generated indirectly, which, according to estimates, reaches a total number of more than 7,800 professionals linked to the world of video games.

Likewise, the future prospects of this industry are very positive, with growth forecasts estimated at an annual rate (CAGR 2015-2019) of 22.7%, that is, there will be more than 10,000 jobs in 2019.

Billing

Specifically, the Spanish video game industry had a turnover of 510.7 million euros in 2015, 24 percent more than in 2014, a figure that places it among the main national digital content industries.

For their part, the rest of the economic indicators also confirm the continuity of this upward trend, year after year, estimating an annual growth forecast of 22.4% (CAGR 2015-2019), which will mean reaching, if the forecasts are met, turnover of 1,140 million euros in 2019.

The different digital sales business models already represent together 56% of turnover. On the other hand, almost 40% percent comes from alternative sources, such as development for third parties, the sale of services and training.

According to the study, a total of 480 video game companies are registered, that is, 20% more than in 2014. In addition, there are around 125 incipient business initiatives and projects waiting to consolidate themselves as companies in the short or medium term.

In short, this young industry continues to demonstrate its good health and drive, since 85% of active companies did not exist 10 years ago. And this important engine of the Spanish economy has accelerated in the last 5 years, during which 63 percent of current companies have been created. Furthermore, it is a highly creative sector capable of generating new intellectual property of great value and international projection.

Regarding the geographical distribution of video game companies in our country, 80% percent of them are grouped in 5 autonomous communities. Although half of them are concentrated between Madrid and Catalonia, with 26.2% and 24.8%, respectively.

International vocation

The Spanish industry is global, with exports representing 52% on average of total turnover. The two largest international markets are North America, with 22% and Europe, with 19%. Even so, internationalization continues to represent one of the great challenges and needs of the sector, especially for smaller companies.

Virtual Reality is revolutionizing a multitude of economic sectors of our society, including the entertainment industry, one of the most cutting-edge in the country. In this sense, 30% of video game companies are already carrying out developments in VR and Augmented Reality, while practically two thirds of them have stated that they plan to do so in the short and medium term.

Likewise, the video game industries declare that they are ready to join the other major trends in the sector, such as eSports, Cloud Gaming and Wearables.

The taxation of investments in video game production and access to financing, the major pending issues
As in previous editions, DEV demands from the Government and the parliamentary groups an urgent modification of the Corporate Tax Law aimed at assimilating, for the video game industry, the aid and tax incentives that Spanish cinema and audiovisuals already receive, as well as all the countries with which we compete in this global business.

“We must firmly commit to creating an ecosystem that puts us in a position to compete globally with large international industries, such as Canada, South Korea, but also France, the United Kingdom and Ireland in Europe, countries that have decided to bet heavily on video games as a highly technological, creative sector, generating employment and wealth,” says Ignacio Pérez Dolset, president of DEV.

The presentation event also included an intense debate by spokespersons for the PP, PSOE, Podemos and Ciudadanos who have committed to picking up the gauntlet that the Spanish video game industry has thrown at them and continuing with the legislative proposals already presented in the Congress of Deputies and in various regional chambers.