Ms Eibhl?n N? Mhunghaile:

To add to what Ms McGrane said about video games and the Deputy's question about the regional possibilities in that context, almost half of the funding in the previous programme went to games companies in the west. There is a cluster of games companies in Galway, including a famous US company, Romero Games, that moved there, although, obviously, it is not eligible for the funding. Independent companies there have received support, some of them on more than one occasion. Furthermore, a company in Ramelton, Donegal, has received support. Because it is computer based, it is the kind of industry that could locate anywhere. The companies tend to cluster together naturally given everyone needs peers in their work, but there are definitely possibilities.

Only €6 million annually from the entire Creative Europe programme goes to video games. The programme supports only a particular type of video game, namely, those that have a narrative component from beginning to end. They are the kinds of projects that are nearest to audiovisual. Nevertheless, the industry has significant potential. I expect many more companies will access the funding available under the current programme.