The authorities are discussing the creation of a special fund to support Russian online content. It will work by analogy with the Cinema Fund. At the same time, not only TV series creators, but also video game developers will be able to count on subsidies.The plans to create a Fund for Russian online content were reported by RBC with reference to sources familiar with the situation.
One of the main options for state support may be co-financing of production.
Who will the fund be designed for?First of all, we are talking about the creators of TV series for online cinemas.
The authorities hope that the creation of the fund will help speed up the process of producing Russian content for such sites.
At the same time, the volume of the proposed fund and the sources of its financing have not yet been determined. One of the main options discussed is the use of funds that online cinemas pay as VAT. This amount is about 3 billion rubles annually.
The Internet Development Institute (IRI) can become the operator of the fund. Since last year, he has been responsible for a competition to create Internet content for young people. Film producers, bloggers and software developers can receive subsidies.
How can this affect game developers?According to one of the sources of RBC, Russian developers of video games and applications for smartphones will also be able to count on subsidies.
There are no specifics on this issue right now, but online cinemas are likely to be a priority for the proposed fund.
“There are thousands of companies and game developers in Russia who lack resources, including financial ones, to scale effectively,” said Ilya Karpinsky, Director of Strategic Development at MY.GAMES.
The idea of creating such a fund was also discussed during the preparation of the second package of measures to support the IT industry. Alexey Byrdin, head of the Internet Video Association, noted that representatives of the gaming industry proposed to create a separate fund for developers. It was assumed that the money would be allocated for the creation of games related to Russia. The results of this initiative remain unknown.
Some industry experts are generally skeptical of such government ideas. As an example, the work of the Cinema Foundation, which supports films approved by the council at special pitchings, is given.
Every year, the Cinema Fund allocates 3.5 billion rubles to subsidize films. However, many content producers prefer to work with their own money. This is due both to the difficulty of obtaining funds from such funds, and to the incommensurable level of responsibility for their use.