GREE, a mobile social gaming company with a worldwide network of over 230 million users, announced today it will open its first Canadian game development studio in downtown Vancouver.

GREE Canada will be the Japan-based company's seventh international studio, creating 10 new jobs in Vancouver when it launches, with plans to potentially double its presence as its first offerings of innovative, free-to-play mobile games are developed.

GREE's expansion into British Columbia has been guided and facilitated by the province's Ministry of Jobs, Tourism and Innovation and its International Trade and Investment Attraction division. Ministry efforts focused on familiarizing GREE executives with the advantages of setting up in B.C., most notably its large contingent of talented and highly-skilled workers.

In February 2012, International Trade and Investment Attraction staff worked with the federal government's Canadian Trade Commissioner Service and DigiBC, the industry association for digital media and wireless, to bring GREE executives to Vancouver for business-to-business meetings with fellow game developers, educational institutions and service providers.

In Japan, British Columbia's International Trade and Investment Representative promoted the province and Vancouver as good ecosystems for game development and social networking services in a series of meetings with GREE officials. British Columbia's Tokyo-based Investor Services team subsequently worked closely with the Japanese company and its San Francisco office on the logistics of opening the GREE Canada studio.

British Columbia is home to a bustling and expanding entrepreneurial cluster of video game studios looking to capitalize on new trends in mobile devices, social networks and digital distribution. The past year has seen DeNA/Gameview open a new studio in Vancouver and Gamehouse and Microsoft expand into Victoria.

GREE Canada has already started its recruiting efforts and is currently hiring for engineers and artists.

Quotes:

Minister of Jobs, Tourism and Innovation Pat Bell -

"We are thrilled to add GREE Canada to the thriving cluster of innovative video game and digital media companies that have been drawn here by British Columbia's deep pool of talented workers and our positive investment climate."

"In 'Canada Starts Here: The BC Jobs Plan', we committed to doubling our overseas presence to promote British Columbia's advantages abroad and attract international investment, and that strategy is paying dividends with these new jobs to support B.C. families."

Minister of Community, Sport, and Cultural Development Ida Chong -

"GREE Canada's arrival in Vancouver is further confirmation of the uniqueness of Vancouver's digital media talent."

"Digital media companies know that the competitive advantages offered in Vancouver provide them the opportunity to grow their businesses and expand their market reach."

Steve Lin, general manager of GREE Canada -

"The creative community in Vancouver has made tremendous contributions to the mobile and video game industry and we are looking forward to tapping into that talent pool and working with a team of passionate innovators."

"The goal for GREE Canada is to take our current successes and merge those ideas with more experimental approaches. We want to take some risks and come up with new games and ideas and contribute to the ongoing evolution of the mobile game space."

Howard Donaldson, president of DigiBC -

"We are very pleased that GREE, the largest social mobile company in the world, has chosen Vancouver for its next interactive development studio. British Columbia offers a wealth of digital media talent, quality of living and tax incentives."

Quick Facts:

• British Columbia has more than 600 digital media companies, which employ about 16,000 people and generate $2.3 billion in annual sales.

• B.C. is a leading global video games hub with over 85 development studios employing 5,000 full-time, well-paid employees and thousands more under contract throughout the province.

• The Interactive Digital Media Tax Credit provides a refundable 17.5 per cent tax credit to promote the development of interactive digital media products in B.C.

• GREE will be at next week's Casual Connect conference in Seattle and members of its Canadian recruiting team will be on hand at the GREE booth to answer questions and take résumés.

Learn More:

Go to www.BritishColumbia.ca to find out about the province's International Trade and Investment Representative offices around the world

Read the Creative Industries Brochure

Read British Columbia's Technology Sector Strategy: www.BCJobsPlan.ca/Technology

To get details about GREE, visit: www.GREE-corp.com

Contact:

Media Relations
Ministry of Jobs, Tourism and Innovation
250 356-8177