The New Media Industry in British Columbia May 5, 2005 ISRN Conference, Toronto Lynda Brown Executive Director, New Media BC Executive Producer, Vancouver International Digital Festival

/Definition New Media is the use of new and emerging interactive digital media for the purposes of entertaining, educating or informing

/Who is New Media BC?_  Not for profit industry association  200+ member companies  To grow and support the industry  Research, networking events, training, mentoring programs, advocacy, lobbying, strategic direction

/BC Industry Highlights_  800 companies – close to 1200 including supporting services  Employs 14,000+ people in FT positions  Three quarters of companies export  81% of companies are producing own IP  Over 1 billion in annual revenues

/Age_  62.9% of companies are less than 6 years old  The average company is 6.5 years old  Nearly one third of companies started during the boom period of the late 1990s  Start-ups are involved in: web development/design mobile content  eLearning game development  digital film and animation

/Work_Force/Numbers_  Industry employs 14,000 people in FT positions  Rapid growth in games sector – predicted new hires in next year  Outside of games sector, most positions are in small companies (fewer than 10 people)  Significant contract labour – 81% of respondents employed between 1 to 5 contractors

/Growth_Expectations_  Highly optimistic, almost one in two expect growth of 25% or more in the next 18 months.  Nineteen percent anticipate growth of 100% or more.

Salary Survey Results Average Base Pay for the Following Positions: Creative Director: $74,000 Art Director: $67,500 Sr. Designer: $55,000 Int. Designer: $43,000 Jr. Designer: $30,500 Production Designer: $52,000 QA Lead: $58,250 Content Strategist: $60,900 Sr. Information Architect: $64,000 Information Architect: $55,000 Sr. Usability Specialist: $65,000

/Sectors_ Within BC’s digital media realm there are many thriving subsectors including: Video Games Animation and Digital Film eLearning Mobile Content Interactive Design

Why a Market Map?

Other Growth Sectors – eLearning  BC also boasts a thriving eLearning industry  More than 80 companies working in this area  Home of large international companies such as Bridges.com and Web CT  For more information:

Other Growth Sectors – Wireless  200 companies in BC  Nearly 25% of which develop and/or publish content for mobile applications  Emerging mobile content cluster

BC Mobile Industry Map

Key Challenges 1.Lack of Financing 2.Economic Volatility 3.Lack of Access to Markets 4.Lack of Business Network 5.Human Resource needs

Lack of Financing - Strategies  Business partnering  VC education  Company education  Subsidies and credits  Lobbying and advocacy

Economic Volatility - Strategies  Global market  Government advocacy  Long term vision and strategic direction  Cross-fertilization

Lack of Access to Markets - Strategies  Coordinated trade and marketing activities  International Partnering Forum (VIDFEST)  Business matchmaking  Buyer workshops (TradeRoutes)  Exploring consortium models

Lack of Business Network - Strategies  Networking events  Personal introductions  Peer to peer mentoring  VIDFEST  National opportunities

Human Resource Needs  Research and competencies  Graduate program in digital entertainment  Stronger linkages between industry and academia

Vancouver International Digital Festival  June 15 th – 17 th, 2005  5 Streams: Interactive Design, Digital Film, Animation, Video Games, Mobile Content  Creative Exchange: Keynote Panels & Master Classes  Screenings: Digital Film, Animation, Experimental  International Partnering Forum  And… the VIDFEST Gala!