Adelaide - South Australia's capital
The South Australian Government is hoping to create hundreds of new tech jobs in the state after pledging $2 million into a new Digital Games Development Hub in Adelaide.
According to the state Government, the new hub is expected to create up to 500 new local jobs in the multi-billion dollar digital games industry.
The new hub will be operated by Game Plus, which claims Microsoft, Google Cloud and AWS Activate as partners, and already has a collaborative workspace for game developers and related specialist technology start-ups in the nation’s capital, Canberra.
It is understood that the Canberra Game Plus hub has provided more than $420,000 in contract work to developers.
Meanwhile, up to $450,000 of the South Australian fund will be used to fit-out the new Pirie Street space.
A further $1.3 million of the fund will be used to assist with the production and marketing of Adelaide-made digital games and a further $200,000 will be allocated to industry specific skills development and education programs.
“Ultimately this alleviates identified challenges faced by the industry and provides an industry pathway for new and existing companies,” Game Plus COO and co-founder, Amit Oberoi, said.
The Adelaide hub, which is expected to be somewhat larger than its Canberra-base sibling, will include three offices and 29 hot-desks, which will be available for digital games development companies.
The establishment of the Game Plus Hub is also expected to encourage more game developers from around the country and, hopefully, the world, to set up shop in South Australia.
“The $2 million fund to support the development of the hub sits alongside a range of measures we have put in place to drive jobs growth and foster our leadership in emerging industries - including the $200 million Future Jobs Fund, Job Accelerator Grant and payroll tax cuts for small business,” South Australian Premier, Jay Weatherill, said.
