Results of an interactive media sector study in the province were announced September 24, 2010. The study gathered sector participants' (content creators' and enablers') opinions on important sector issues and financial activity to compose a profile of the sector’s overall economic impact in 2009. Here is a brief overview of the findings and conclusions:

Industry overview:

• There are an estimated 210 interactive media entities (including 152 businesses plus government and educational departments) operating in Saskatchewan
• The Saskatchewan interactive media sector employs approximately 680 full-time equivalent (FTE) employees
• The number of FTEs employed by subsector is highest for service provider activities such as web design/development, animation and motion capture, and marketing activities such as interactive advertising and promotional content and product extensions.
• Most participants have been in the sector for 10 or fewer years (eight years on average).
• Fee-for-service projects are more common for sector participants
• Saskatchewan’s interactive media sector revenues in 2009 total $66.8 million
• Saskatchewan expenditures total $51.3 million (including $32.3 million in salaries and wages)
• The sum of direct and indirect ("spin-off") effects constituted $40.0 million
• The number of jobs created by the sector is 30.7 person-years per $1 million sector expenditure.
• Each $1 expenditure made by the Saskatchewan interactive sector increases Saskatchewan’s GDP by 78¢ when direct and indirect economic effects are considered

Actionable items:

• The Saskatchewan sector, comprised mostly of small shops doing fee-for-service work, will benefit more from a funding model which provides financial assistance for product or IP development, production, and marketing/distribution than one that gives wage tax incentives.
• With government funding targeted to business development effort, the successes in Manitoba and Alberta can be emulated by Saskatchewan.
• Increased government funding to SaskInteractive will support sector growth.
• Small organizations represent a great share of Saskatchewan’s sector and supporting them is crucial to grow the province’s sector; in particular, support in the form of seed funding, financial assistance for professional development and training opportunities geared toward fostering smaller enterprises.
• A means of strengthening the relationship between organizations and education is to offer interactive digital internship opportunities.
• Provincial government and educational and training institutions must also work with organizations to become more responsive to sector educational needs and acknowledge the sector’s human resource requirements by supporting programs that will help the private sector expand and increase profitability.
• Educational institutions are yet another facet of the interactive media sector that would benefit from additional funding.
• Professional development opportunities are deficient for existing interactive media employees.
• Government funding and incentives will encourage further professional development opportunities.
• These findings indicate a need for greater dialogue between organizations, educational institutions and government to ensure curriculum remains current and relevant to Saskatchewan’s sector.
• Organizations require assistance in attracting and retaining skilled interactive media sector personnel, more than just recent graduates. Professional development for employers in the area of HR best practices may assist organizations in fostering practices that will assist with employee recruitment and retention.
• Seed funding is required to drive innovation.
• Funding must also be easy to access
• Funding opportunities should include support for attending sector events.
• Funding to attend out-of-province and international events will increase event participation. Such funding will be particularly important to smaller organizations, which are less likely to attend events such as SXSW than larger organizations. An increase in local events will also serve to increase overall event participation.
• Survey findings show that business support programs and services are needed for the Saskatchewan interactive media sector.
• Funding can help SaskInteractive implement essential growth support systems such as commercialization and incubator facilities implemented in other provinces.
• There is evidence of the need for a stronger relationship between the sector and education.
• Opportunity exists for the universities and SIAST to expand their current interactive media offerings to support the development of certain segments and skills required within the sector.
• Support in terms of infrastructure is required to assist the Saskatchewan interactive media sector’s growth.
• Saskatchewan interactive media companies will greatly benefit from product development and marketing assistance.

For a copy of the complete interactive media sector study, please
click here (9 MB):