New German-wide Games Funding Grant For New Studios

The Minister of State for Culture and the Media, Claudia Roth, has announced a nationwide games start-up grant called "Press Start: Games Founding Grant" or "Press Start: Gründungsstipendium Games" in German. It is an 18-month programme with a grant, workshops and coaching. The application phase will start soon. The funding pot amounts to eight million Euros.

The State Minister for Culture and the Media is supporting the establishment of new game studios in Germany with the new funding programme "Press Start: Games Founding Grant". Over a period of 18 months, founders will receive a grant of €2,750 per month to help them focus on the start-up phase. Grant recipients will also receive a training and networking programme, as well as coaching to help them get started in the industry. An expert jury will select up to 130 founders. The application phase will run from 28 October to 17 November 2024. The programme is run by game - the German Games Industry Association in cooperation with the Foundation for Digital Games Culture and funded by the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media. The Games Founding Grant from the Minister of State for Culture totals approximately 8 Million Euros.

The programme is open to game developers based in Germany who have either founded a company in Germany in the last 18 months or plan to do so within the next twelve months. Applicants who are still studying will also be considered. A valid application must include at least one game concept or game in early development. All projects using game mechanics and technologies in the broadest sense, such as gamification, serious games, VR/AR/MR, etc. are also eligible.

More information on the application criteria, submission and jury process will be available soon at: www.games-stipendium.de. Interested founders can learn more about the programme at a webinar hosted by the Foundation for Digital Games Culture and Game on 30 October 2024.

Claudia Roth, Minister of State for Culture and the Media: "With the Games Founding Grant, we are supporting the games industry at its creative and cultural roots: the game ideas and founding projects of young talent. In this way, we are supporting the further development of the innovative and diverse games development landscape and thus strengthening Germany as a games location. With this pilot project, the funds earmarked by the German Bundestag for cultural games funding will benefit games visionaries throughout Germany."

"We are delighted to be able to implement this exemplary Games Founding Grant, which has been in demand for many years, in cooperation with the Minister of State for Culture and the Foundation for Digital Games Culture. In the current market situation, founding a company is particularly challenging for up-and-coming game developers. This is demonstrated by the sharp decline in the number of games start-ups in Germany in recent years. This makes this initiative all the more important," explains Felix Falk, Managing Director of game – The German Games Industry Association. "The program will give an important boost to the German games market and further strengthen it in line with the federal government’s games strategy. Our sincere thanks go to the Minister of State for Culture, her office and the members of the German Bundestag who have provided the funds for this."

"The Games Founding Grant is a great opportunity for games developers in Germany. We are very happy to contribute our previous experience and networks in the areas of jury work, founders support and workshop organization," adds Nandita Wegehaupt, Managing Director of the Foundation for Digital Games Culture. "We now have some busy weeks ahead of us, but we have already set the right course to ensure that even more creative and ambitious teams have the confidence to take the step of founding a company and can do this well and as safely as possible thanks to close support."

The announcement goes on: "In addition, the Minister of State for Culture, in cooperation with the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Protection, will strengthen the cultural asset of games in Germany through the new federal games funding guideline planned for 2025 by promoting the production of games."

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