Tag Archives: government

Do you fancy yourself Civilization’s number one fan? Well, have you created a state-wide holiday to honor the historically inaccurate awesome series?

Didn’t think so.

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UK intelligence organization GCHQ, which works with MI5 and MI6, has announced that it is to run an ad campaign on Xbox Live to attract new recruits.

The six-week campaign was put into the works by recruitment firm TMP Worldwide which uses recruiting criteria through “reflected in game-play experiences on Xbox, such as quick thinking, problem solving and team work” and is aimed at 18 to 34-year-olds.

“As well as tackling ‘traditional threats’ GCHQ’s work is also about helping government departments, such as the Ministry of Defense, to protect their information and communication systems,” said a GCHQ spokesperson.

“This means we can offer excellent training and careers for people with specialist technical skills. However, the fact remains that many potential candidates remain unaware of GCHQ and what we do. Using video on Xbox LIVE helps carry our message to the right people in a creative and innovative manner.”

More through Guardian UK.

Following the introduction of a French tax break for games developers, the British Government said in a statement today that it is seriously looking into providing a similar environment for UK developers.

“The Government must be mindful of the need to ensure fair competition and value for money for tax payers whilst ensuring that any tax incentives are supported by evidence,” said a spokesperson. “The Government is conscious of the recent approval of a cultural tax relief for games in France and is working with the UK industry to collect and review the evidence for introducing such a credit in the UK.”

This is the first clear indication that the UK’s Government is taking proper note of dogged lobbying from Paul Jackson and ELSPA on the issue.

Read the full statement after the break.

Thanks for the heads-up, George.

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Hot on the heels of ESA’s 301 filing to the US government, pleading for help in the international war on pirates, Nintendo’s jumped on board and done the same thing.

This one’s not quite as mad as ESA’s, which called for trade sanctions against Canada, but does include, according that reports, assistance from the US government in performing a “crackdown on corruption in Paraguay”. Just bomb them all. It’s easier.

Jodi Daugherty, Nintendo’s senior director of anti-piracy, said, “The unprecedented momentum enjoyed by Nintendo DS and Wii makes Nintendo an attractive target for counterfeiters.”

Nintendo estimates the lost sales caused by piracy to be around $975 million worldwide.