The Spanish Government has pledged €20 million ($21.9 million) to help protect those cultural industries affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, including the country’s video game industry.
The cash has been handed over to the CREA SGR, a Spanish non-profit specialised in culture, which will work to provide financing and liquidity to companies in need.
Following the move, the Spanish Video Game Association (AEVI) has signed a “collaboration agreement” with CREA SGR to facilitate access to financing through the promotion of credit lines for video game projects, allowing AEVI members to gain access to bank financing with better safeguards.
AEVI’s managing director, Jose Maria Monreno, said the timely cash injection will be “very important” for the video game sector, “as it will help alleviate the most pressing liquidity needs of the companies in our industry in the upcoming months.”
“The announcement of this collaboration comes at a crucial time for the industry. Along with the retail sector, local studios are being the most affected agents of the industry in the face of the outbreak of the COVID-19 crisis,” reads the AEVI website.
“Estimates indicate a 30 percent loss of productivity. In addition, other very direct impacts have to be taken into account for these development studios, such as delays in payments, the cancellation of relevant game events and conventions at which to display their products or the common scenario of postponement of trade agreements with publishers.
“In this context, AEVI is in talks with the government to propose tax deductions on the production of video games within the fiscal incentives already available to other cultural industries, which would provide more liquidity to studios and attract international projects.”