Period: 5.2.2024 - 31.12.2026

Content: To accommodate the needs of the green industry clusters in and around the coastal cities of Österbotten and Västerbotten, and to keep enough people in rural areas to justify basic services there's a pressing need for more in-migration, diversification of the job market and more jobs for those with a higher education.

The games industry, a fast growing and scalable digital export sector based on creativity, offers a complementary solution to manufacturing industries and create a more diverse labour market, increase the number of people with higher education in the programme area and introduce competences necessary to future sustainable intersective innovation in alignment with the EU taxonomy.

Some of the existing companies have seasoned leadership with robust international networks and experience in company development, but most companies lack this well-needed expertise. Typically, game industry specific incubators and accelerators address these gaps, but both Österbotten and Västerbotten lack these. To solve that the project aims to strengthen the competitiveness with a digital first support system.

The primary objective of the project is to bolster the competitiveness of SMEs in the games industry, enhancing their innovation process, fueling further product development, and strengthening their business capabilities. By achieving this, we anticipate a stronger and more sustainable games industry in both rural and urban areas. The project also aspires to create the foundation for a cross-border game accelerator coordinated with EU-initiatives, innovation systems, municipalities, regions, and national programmes as well as other key stakeholders.

This project will strengthen the competitiveness of game industry SMEs and also lead to a a fortified regional ecosystem, increased employment opportunities and a general broadening of the overall job market in Österbotten and Västerbotten.

Focus area: Konst kultur och entreprenörskap

Campus: Jakobstad

Rahoittajat: Interreg Aurora, Lapin Liitto

Project owner: Centria-ammattikorkeakoulu

Project manager: Timo Ylikangas

Yhteystyökummpanit: Centria-ammattikorkeakoulu, Creative Crowd AB