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Businesses Entertainment Games

Canada to Give Ubisoft Grants 51

Posted by Zonk from the could-I-borrow-a-loonie? dept.
The Canadian and Quebecois governments have announced millions of dollars in grants and tax subsidies for the Montreal studio of French developer Ubisoft. Bloomberg has the news that these monies will be given to the studio over the course of several years. From the article: "Paris-based Ubisoft plans to hire programmers, game designers and computer animation specialists in the city over the next five years.."
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Canada to Give Ubisoft Grants More

Canada to Give Ubisoft Grants

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  • Time (Score:1, Funny)

    by PhilippeT ( 697931 )
    Give us Canadians enough time and we will be able to say:

    All your Development shop are belong to us.

  • Outsourcing To Quebec (Score:5, Insightful)

    by blueZhift ( 652272 ) on Wednesday February 02, 2005 @11:38AM (#11550687) Homepage Journal
    Interesting. Does this mean that Quebec will become a preferred outsourcing destination for French companies? In any case, this just might get Quebec on Ubisoft's side in the fight against an EA takeover.

    • Re:Outsourcing To Quebec (Score:2, Informative)

      by Anonymous Coward
      - Cost of living is lowest than Vancouver or Toronto.
      - People speak (lot of them) both French and English.
      - Highly qualified hi-tech work force (McGill, Polytechnique and Sherbrooke universities for instance).
      - The province has a touch of America and Europe so it's fantastic place to live in.
      - Crimerate is very low.
      - Poutine.

      So why not outsource?
    • It's a trend that has been going on for at least 10 years.

      The Ubisoft Studio in Montreal date back to 1997. [ubisoftgroup.com] They are the ones made Prince of Persia The Sands of Time, Myst IV Revelation and the Splinter Cell games.

      So, Yes, Quebec is an preferred location for French companies because they can easely ask for bilingual candidates(No suprise here) and can get Tax breaks from both the provincial and Federal Gouv.

      The same reasons why EA games also has a developpement house here, so it's not just French
    • It's not just French companies. American as well.

      Compuware is a good example that set up shop here.
      Here they can take advantage of a weaker dollar, tax benefits and perhaps grants from the provincial and federal gov'ts. You can't beat the location. It's outsourced and very close proximity to the states.
      The cost of living is much lower, unfortunately you can get highly technical people for less.

      I'm just happy for the work, so I can't complain.
    • Why separate when your doing well in Canada?! This would definitely quench the separatist spirit (with a few/dozen games for the record[s])! More games from Canada, sounds like a plan to me!
    • EA also started a development studio in montreal last year, altough it's probably a coincidence.

  • New version of Frogger? (Score:3, Funny)

    by AtariAmarok ( 451306 ) on Wednesday February 02, 2005 @11:50AM (#11550873)
    When can we expect our new version of Frogger, then?
  • I am assuming thier first project (and subsequent) will be Duke Nukem Forever.

    Gov. funded stuff seems to leak money worse than a striper in a wind tunnel.

  • Not that I'm bitter... (Score:5, Interesting)

    by Txiasaeia ( 581598 ) on Wednesday February 02, 2005 @12:09PM (#11551134)
    Ubisoft, in the past, has turned out some pretty good stuff. I'm not arguing this. What I am concerned about is the current government's tendency to spend wads of cash without asking us, the taxpayers, what we think. There was a "sponsorship scandal" here recently in which the federal government supplied the Quebecois government with millions of dollars of cash in order to make the Canada "brand" more visible in the francophone province. As it turns out, most of that money disappeared into the wallets of bureaucrats and CEOs of advertising moguls, with hardly any money at all going towards this dubious end.

    I love computer games, but I like health care more, which is what our MINORITY government *should* be spending more money on. $57 million dollars would go a long way in hiring new doctors and nurses, equipment, and other hospital staff. I'm also really appalled that the first I've heard of this is on Slashdot and not on CTV, CBC or Global (three major news outlets in Canada).

    • That's kind of what I think too. Hey, that's 34M$ they're giving to a huge, foreign company so they can create 1000 jobs (if I remember yesterday's news right)

      I think that they should give this 34M to fund *independant developers* instead. They would help our economy better IMO.

    • Ubisoft, in the past, has turned out some pretty good stuff. I'm not arguing this. What I am concerned about is the current government's tendency to spend wads of cash without asking us, the taxpayers, what we think.

      Are we a tad jealous that only in Montréal, you can congregate the talents needed to have a big videogame (and pharmaceutical and aeronautical) industry? As the french don't have a culture where becoming an entrepreneur* is de rigueur, high-tech employers are very glad to setup sho

      • Are we a tad jealous that only in Montréal, you can congregate the talents needed to have a big videogame (and pharmaceutical and aeronautical) industry?

        Of course. The entire country is jealous of the millions of dollars of Corporate Welfare that Quebec has seen from Ottawa over the years.
      • Sorry, but I can't resist ...
        The problem with the french is that they don't have a word for entrepreneur
        Entrepreneur IS french. This is like saying that english doesn't have a word for "businessman", tabarnac!

        CTV, CBC or Global (three major news outlets in Canada).
        Global is a major news outlet? Not in the eastern half of Canada.

        As for the rest, me to.

    • I wonder why they didn't feel free to give me grants. Ubisoft turns a profit -- they don't need them. I'm a poor student game (er, "art") developer.
    • I hate to break this to you but this is no different than the Film & TV Grants that are setup to encourage productions to come here to Canada. In fact any Canadian game development studio can apply for this grant since game development falls into the Film & TV category within Canada.

      As for stealing the tax payers money, this has been going on for years, its called "equalization payments".

      • Just as a follow up to my first post, the article states that there are two seperate grants being given.

        The Province of Quebec is giving 52 million while the federal government is doing 5, both of these are over about 5 years.

        The 52 million that got you all worked up comes from a very lucrative setup the Quebec government has going to entice businesses there. Essentially they will give you $10,000 a year for each technical worker that is employed in the province as well as a 50% return on all R&D work
    • If you're going to rant on about this stuff it would help if you would get the facts halfway close to correct.
    • 57 million more in health will be a 57 million spending, not investment. 57 million to create 1000 jobs that will pay 35-60k a year is an investment.

      Calculate 1000 people with an average pay of 45000 over 5 years. That's 225 million $ in gross payroll. That's at the very least 100 million in tax revenue from the employees alone. A very good investment imho. Plus the products are exported worldwide, increasing our trade surplus.
  • Hopefully, the current US administration will raise tariffs for foreign subsidized videogames, in order to protect the interests of the indigenous American videogame productors! Otherwise, this would be the end of fair trade!!!!

  • Government grants?!? (Score:4, Interesting)

    by ChibiLZ ( 697816 ) <john@nOspaM.easygoldguide.com> on Wednesday February 02, 2005 @12:15PM (#11551197) Homepage Journal
    I respect Ubisoft and the Montreal studio, they make excellent titles that are well developed.

    But why does the government have to give money to them? I was under the idea that they were doing quite well for themselves. Could this possibly be a move to try to force out EA, or allow Ubisoft to get a majority of their own shares? I think that as long as they continue to pump out great games, us gamers will be more than willing to fill their coffers.

    OTOH, this will be a good bolster to their equipment, and allow them to more fully exploit the next generation systems coming out. Next-gen titles will certainly be more expensive and/or take longer to develop. Maybe we can now get a Splinter Cell 4 soon for the PS3, XB2, or Revolution.

    Finally, a little OT, but I am always glad to see game innovation coming out of somewhere other than Japan. And maybe we should all get out there and buy some stock now, before it shoots up.
  • Is this the first time that a government has financed a game studio? This could be marking a new era..

  • Nothing new in Canada (Score:3)

    by Fr05t ( 69968 ) on Wednesday February 02, 2005 @01:06PM (#11551719)
    In Canada there are tons of different agencies which provide grants, loans, and tax breaks to companies wanting to expand. The logic behind this is it helps new business start, and existing business expand it will bring more money into Canada and create jobs.
  • they now have the cash to justify making Linux games! Well, I can dream, can't I?

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