Publishers ‘no longer the UKIE majority’

Games trade body UKIE is “no longer predominantly a publisher trade body”, the group said today after announcing its membership has climbed to 100 partners.

UKIE, which in 2010 changed its name from the ‘Entertainment and Leisure Software Publishers Association’, has accumulated new members from development communities, educational institutions and service companies. Last year it had around fifty members, the trade body said.

The group said it is no longer a predominantly a publisher trade body because “non-publisher interactive entertainment businesses make up the majority of UKIE membership”.

However, of UKIE’s thirteen board members, ten are directly involved in publishing. None work at games studios.

Speaking today at the group’s annual general meeting, UKIE chairman Andy Payne said 2011 “has been another exciting year of seismic changes within our industry”.

“UKIE has evolved with the industry, and I am delighted to announce today that we have just signed up our one hundredth member and more than doubled our membership in the last year,” he added.

“We are now the only trade body to represent the wider interactive entertainment industry – our members are developers, publishers, format holders, retailers, distributors and academic institutions.”

UKIE has in recent months increased its campaigns to assist and evolve Britain’s game development sector, specifically in regards to skills creation.