President of the Republic of Finland Tarja Halonen has presented the 2011 Internationalization Awards to the Finnish gaming cluster Neogames, which promotes the creation of a new growth industry.
The aim of the internationalization award is to promote companies' activities in an international environment and their ability to develop and implement new operating models. It is also intended to encourage the winning companies' internationalization and that of other Finnish companies. The 2011 internationalization awards were presented on the 9th of February in Helsinki.
Habbo Hotel, Max Payne, and Angry Birds are examples of the international success stories created by Finnish gaming companies. The community award received by Finnish gaming cluster was presented to three organizations that are active in the field: Finnish Game Developers' Association ry., which represents gaming companies, IGDA, which brings together game developers in Finland, and Neogames, which represents business, training and research in the games industry.
"The task of organizations is to serve as a spokesperson for the industry and promote company activities by creating structures for matters like training and financing. Game companies are always aware that they have to be international. They participate in tough international competition right from the start, so the operating field for organizations is also international," explains KooPee Hiltunen, Director of Neogames Centre of Game Business, Research and Development.
Companies that develop games and provide game services are at the heart of the industry. The game industry employs approximately 1,300 people in Finland. The combined turnover of the 70 companies operating in the industry was more than EUR 165 million in 2011, and the industry is the largest of its kind in the Nordic countries.
The award is now being granted for the 44th time. The prizes are donated by the Finnish Fair Foundation.
More information: Finnish gaming cluster, KooPee Hiltunen, Director of Neogames Center for Game Business, Research and Development, koopee(a)neogames.fi, tel. +358 40 532 4176