GAMES COME TO LONDON

London Interactive Announced; Week-long Games Festival in Capital City; Discussions with London Mayor's Office under way; ELSPA drives Euro focus on London

Friday 21st November 2003/... ELSPA, the Entertainment and Leisure Software Publishers Association, is to launch London Interactive, a week-long festival of gaming to support the European Games Network and Game Stars Live. London Interactive will take place between 30th August – 5th September 2004.

Taking as its theme the four elements of play, interact, experience and live, London Interactive will be the ultimate festival of computer and video games with both large scale consumer activities and investment in industry initiatives. It will position London as THE centre for the gaming industry in Europe and will use video games as the tool to help generate visitors to the capital.

Discussions have taken place with representatives from the Mayor of London's Office and Visit London (formerly the London Tourist Board) about how to help support London Interactive.

Mayor Ken Livingstone commented: "The creative industries, including computer and video games, are major contributors to London's economy. It is important to promote these industries and to create conditions in which they can thrive. A London-wide festival of gaming could offer an excellent means to promote computer and video gaming to investors as well as the public and to underpin the capital's role as a centre for gaming."

David Hornby, Commercial Director of Visit London, added: "Visit London is delighted to support such an event. The creative industries are the fastest growing industries in London followed by the growth in the visitor economy. Events such as this provide an ideal backdrop for visiting London for both business and leisure."

Roger Bennett, director general of ELSPA, said: "As our industry grows in prominence within the creative industries, developing our own equivalent to the London Film Festival, London Fashion Week or In The City, is both logical and desired."

Meanwhile discussions are also under way with the DTi seeking support to develop a series of inward missions for trade delegations from around the world to visit London in the week of London Interactive and European Games Network. These trade missions will provide the opportunity to showcase the benefits of London as a pan-European distribution base, thus encouraging inward investment and the creation of jobs.

Bennett added: "There's a lot of hard work ahead of us to bring this to fruition but we are confident in our expectation of seeing London reinforce its position as the European hub of gaming, not just for the industry but for the general public as well."