PHL, Japan partnership to boost game development industry — DTI

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MANILA — The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) has seen the Philippines and Japan tie-up to enhance gaming and creative industry in the country.

In a conference entitled “Game and Creative Contents Networking Philippines 2014” held in Makati City Monday, DTI Undersecretary Ponciano Manalo Jr. said the Philippine-Japan partnership aims to assist the capacity building of aspirations of local game development stakeholders.

“A strong synergy between prospects for collaboration between the game development industries of the Philippines and Japan in digital content development exists. Now is the right time for Japan to look at the Philippines as capabilities in the game development industry,” he said.

Manalo hopes to use the event as a pass for the Philippines to participate in the two global game development events this year.

In a statement, he said the Philippines is now the third largest source of game development and animation outsourcing in the world, next to India and South Korea.

He also said the game development and animation industry of the Philippines is expected to be one of the largest growing sub-sectors of the country’s IT-enabled services segment, estimated to sustain double-digit growth rates in the next few years.

Manalo mentioned the country’s young labor force is the key for the Philippine game development sector to compete in the global market.

“We credit this sophistication to the highly-trainable and creative talent we have in our country that thrives in an environment that is evenly and uniquely balanced from its familiarity with the East and West,” he said.

“With Filipino technical talent, the opportunity to expand to the international market is at hand,” he noted.

According to the DTI official, game developers can make the Philippines their hub by outsourcing their need of English-proficient workers to more global connection and perspective.

”We have English proficiency, where we are 95 percent literate, and it has been an advantage for us in terms of industry wanting to locate in the Philippines,” Manalo said.

As estimated by the international research firm Markets and Markets, “the youthful talent pool [in the Philippines] with dynamism, technical savvy sense, discipline, adventurism and ability to think outside the box, is in a good position to provide both wonders and solutions for companies aiming to capture global animation and gaming markets.”

On another note, Manalo said the foreign companies sees the Philippines as the next leg of the game and creative content and networking event in the ASEAN region.

He said the government has encouraged and facilitated investments and partnerships through consistent attendance or participation in conventions, conferences, and training and exhibits.