Georgia Emerges as a National Leader in Digital Entertainment

ATLANTA, April 16, 2010 – The State of Georgia is an emerging U.S. leader in both number and diversity of companies and technologies focused on digital entertainment – including the nation's best tax incentives offer. A press conference will be held today at 1:00 pm EDT at Buckhead's W Hotel to allow industry experts from within Georgia to expound on this claim. Moderated by Richard Warner of What's Up Interactive, the panel includes Turner's CIO Dan Darling, Peachtree TV's Jeff Johnson, Kaneva's Chris Klaus, BeyondZ's Karen Lennon and digital entertainment business owner Shay Griffin. The event coincides with the annual Atlanta Film Festival kick-off luncheon in partnership with Digitainment Georgia and the Gwinnett Chamber, where the media will learn more about this rapidly growing industry that encompasses film and broadcasting, digital marketing, music and video games. 'There is no region in the country that surpasses metro Atlanta and indeed the entire state of Georgia when it comes to producing digital entertainment,' said Dan Darling, CIO of Turner Broadcasting. 'Combining music, film, games – and all of the arts – with back end delivery and support technologies, the Digital Entertainment industry is the melding of multiple forms of entertainment, overlaid with technologies that bring innovation to the forefront and compel audience devotion.' The emergence of this nascent industry in Georgia became apparent a little over a year ago when the State of Georgia introduced its 'Best in the Nation' tax incentive legislation, allowing digital entertainment companies doing business in Georgia to receive a 30 percent tax incentive, depending on how much and how quickly the investment would be made. "Competitive incentives, a talented workforce and vast resources allow Georgia to stand out from the pack,' said Bill Thompson, deputy commissioner of the Film, Music & Digital Entertainment Division of the Georgia Department of Economic Development. 'Our local, regional and statewide partners are actively working together to recruit and develop Georgia's digital entertainment industry." 'The digital entertainment industry is vibrant and active in Georgia,' said Audra Browning, President of Digitainment Georgia, the premier association of digital entertainment professionals in Georgia. 'Its leaders, as we have heard today, demonstrate a strong sense of collaboration, the very element essential to growth and sustainability of this dynamic industry.' Probably the best picture of Georgia's digital entertainment industry can be found in a comprehensive, 85-plus page white paper compiled and produced by the Gwinnett Chamber Technology Council, which is composed of industry professionals and economic developers focused on proactive community and economic development. The white paper is a technical marketing document built for site consultants, corporate real estate executives, and the digital entertainment industry to share comprehensive information, testimonials and a host of resources showcasing Georgia's existing industry and providing a foundation to attract more of it here. 'Gwinnett focuses on regional collaboration every time there is an opportunity,' said Nick Masino, Gwinnett Chamber vice president of economic development and Partnership Gwinnett. 'We are stronger together as a region and state than we are as individual local communities. The white paper we have produced will serve that purpose, providing all Georgian economic developers, from Savannah to Macon and Atlanta to Valdosta, with a unique and valuable recruitment tool to support the digital entertainment industry.' To obtain your copy of the white paper, visit www.gwinnettchamber.org/technology. The Atlanta Film Festival's kick-off luncheon marks the first of many events during the coming week for this exclusive and unique organization that seeks to cultivate a collaborative environment with industry professionals for a better tomorrow in entertainment. For more information on the festival, visit www.atlantafilmfestival.com and to learn more about Digitainment, visit www.digitainmentgeorgia.com. For more information on the Gwinnett Chamber and Partnership Gwinnett, visit www.gwinnettchamber.org.