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France To Subsidize Games As Art
Posted by
Zonk
on Wed Nov 08, 2006 04:52 PM
from the 50-percent-art-and-50-percent-business dept.
from the 50-percent-art-and-50-percent-business dept.
The New York Times is reporting on efforts by the French culture ministry to treat videogames as art. About time. This initiative will include giving tax breaks for game development, and national recognition of game developer achievements (like the arts award received by Shigeru Miyamoto this March). From the article: "With a total of roughly 100 video game companies, France, along with Britain, has long produced more video games than the rest of Europe combined, according to the market research firm Idate, of Montpellier, France. Of late, however, the French companies have been facing tough times. Infogrames has been struggling against high debt, and an American rival, Electronic Arts, bought 19 percent of Ubisoft's shares in 2004. And Vivendi Games earns most of its revenue from one best-selling game, World of Warcraft, said Laurent Michaud, head of the video games division at Idate. 'It is true that the French video game sector is fragile,' Mr. Michaud said. 'But this is true for companies in all markets due to the quick-changing nature of industry.'"
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Canada (Score:3, Informative)
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGA
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http://www.escapistmagazine.com/issue/70/15 [escapistmagazine.com]
The article points out that the companies in Canada that are getting the money (currently) are ones like Ubisoft - very large and able to move large numbers of jobs around... Money for independent gamers would be nice. But as things are set up, it makes more sense in some ways to give $$$$$$$(CD) to giant companies instead of the little guys - who I think make better games!
We'll see what ha
The article does not mention a subsidy. (Score:3, Informative)
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There are times not to trust Wikipedia (Score:3, Insightful)
The inapplicably of the word "given" (when there is nothing given at all) shows that to be yet another poorly worded Wikipedia entry. After all, if a mugger takes only your wallet and nothing else he is not giving you your shoes and watch by the mere action of not taking them from you. Thanks for pointing out a Wikipedia mistake.
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not yet. (Score:2)
Not yet. The header on the article still indicates the problem with it: "Some information in this article or section has not been verified and may not be reliable. Please check for any inaccuracies, and modify and cite sources as needed."
Encyclopedia Britannica agrees. (Score:2)
always hilarious (Score:4, Insightful)
Parent
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I think. The money they use to pay taxes could not possibly be the same money we pay them for goods and services, could it?
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However, in real terms, our income taxes aren't that high either (tax free up to a certain allowance, then 21%, and if you're well paid, the top amount of your income gets 40% tax or so... but you can claim back for all kinds of things, like paying rent, or a mortgage, or having paid tax on other things, or who knows what! An average worker might effecti
Strap on your armored beret ... (Score:3, Funny)
Count me in. (Score:2)
If that's the new "Frogger", let me know where to sign up for beta.
Tax breaks as a form of censorship? (Score:2)
So there will be a government commitee deciding which games get nifty tax breaks and which don't. I am curious if the same is true for
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*Did anyone catch how in the original Splinter Cell, your boss urges you to collect more evidence because "If we
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Actually, according to the Wikipedia article (far from exhaustive, I know, but with the recent release of Splinter Cell 4 I'm not about to start sifting through Google for it), the original Splinter Cell was developed by Ubisoft Montreal. French Canada, yes, but not France.
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Ubisoft? (Score:2)
either way, it is sorta interesting, is this taxbreak also avaliable to things like movie studios and tv?
The favored platform... (Score:5, Funny)
Not again... (Score:2)
Only one thing to say... (Score:3)
Not publishers--the studios themselves! (Score:2, Insightful)
It seems the current game industry business model is starting to break down. All they talk about are how publishers are struggling. Why give publishers a tax break when you can get all the really artistic games a push directly by subsidizing studios themselves? Fuck the publishers altogether--the vast majority of people who have a computer have the internet. The internet is the new publisher.
Subsidizing publishers is encouraging their mindless hunt for mass appeal--which has nothing to do with creativity.
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The U.S.'s decision to invade Iraq was critised from the day it was made, sometime around 20jan2001.
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