The NLGD today announced that The Netherlands games industry has become a nearly 1 billion Euro industry as it continues to grow within the 30 billion Euro worldwide game development sector. In 2007, the Dutch games industry exceeded the revenue of the Dutch film industry for the first time. The growth of the games industry is enormous in the Netherlands with the sector growing 50% faster than any other industry in the region.

The number of people in the Netherlands working in game development is estimated at 1,500 and more than 100 companies earn money through video game development and production.

According to the NLGD, a significant part of the revenues in the Netherlands are from serious games, a part of the industry in which the Dutch are a significant player.

"The remarkable success of the Dutch game industry can be attributed to the significant interest in game-related research, education and science in the Netherlands," said Seth van der Meer, Chairman of the NLGD Foundation.

For 2008, van der Meer expects Dutch revenues in this industry to grow to 1.2 billion Euros and the number of jobs to increase to 1,800, a 20 percent increase in revenue and workers. Furthermore, he believes at least 10 Dutch-created games for the major platforms (Wii, PlayStation and Xbox) to hit store shelves worldwide.

To support the growing game industry and provide a forum for leadership and discussion, the NLGD foundation has organized the Festival of Games, June 14-22. Those interested in finding out more about this exciting and expanding field are invited to attend.