The Scottish government has unveiled a new paper, outlining its plans for digital infrastructure in Scotland. While the digital media and interactive sectors are not mentioned specifically, the paper provides high level details of plans for the digital economy, including the highest levels of broadband penetration and pick-up in the UK. More detailed strategy is promised ‘in the next few months’.
You can find the whole paper on the Scottish government’s website.
Following the publication of the paper, TIGA has gone on record the praise the plans, stating:
“It is good that the Scottish Government recognises the importance of digital businesses to Scotland’s future economic well being. Access to broadband could be increasingly important for education and training.
“Provision of high speed broadband could also help the Scottish video games industry. The trend towards digital distribution means that there is a need for increased bandwith if more people in Scotland are to be able to play and download high quality video games.
“Scotland already has a number of highly successful digital businesses. The Scottish Government has an opportunity to build on these success stories, not just through infrastructure improvements but also via imaginative action to create a friendly business environment. This could include relief on rates and rent for high technology businesses, including video games developers, support for business incubators and the provision of mentors to help start-up companies survive and grow.
“In terms of tax policy, the Scottish Government and Scottish Parliament should seek to encourage Westminster to introduce Games Tax Relief and to enhance the existing R&D tax credits. These measures would provide a powerful boost to the Scottish video games sector.”
We’ll track the government’s plans for digital infrastructure and report new information as it appears.
