ICT, GAMING AND INTERACTIVE MEDIA

ICT, GAMING AND

INTERACTIVE MEDIA

• Niche strengths in aerospace and defence, financial services, healthcare ICT, business process outsourcing/contact centres, and gaming and interactive media • Reliable and secure

telecommunications infrastructure • Competitive business costs and

incentives to meet your needs like the Digital Media Tax Credit • Producing the talent you need • Immigration friendly policies to

attract foreign workers

• Strategic location means you can easily do business with Europe and across North America on the same work day

COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGES

Interactive Media sector which includes more than 500 companies. Primarily based in Halifax, the sector provides employment for approximately 15,000 people in Nova Scotia.

INFORMATION COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY, GAMING AND INTERACTIVE MEDIA

INDUSTRY HIGHLIGHTS

• Halifax has niche strengths in:

• aerospace and defence, particularly in software-based products and services, as well as systems integration & supporting services;

• financial services, with an emphasis on ICT intensive middle and back office operations;

• healthcare ICT, largely due to the substantial healthcare infrastructure in the city that includes the National Research Council Institute for Biodiagnostics; • business process outsourcing/contact centers,

a local industry that largely serves American corporate clients; and,

• gaming, which includes dynamic companies, like Longtail Studios and Silverback Productions. • Sector is represented by Digital Nova Scotia

NOTABLE COMPANIES

Some of the world’s most recognizable Information Communication and Digital Technologies companies are based in Halifax. They span a number of industries and include:

• Lockheed Martin, the aerospace and defence giant

• CGI, one of the largest independent ICT services firms in North America • Citco, a leading BPO provider to the hedge fund industry

• CAE, a global leader in modeling simulation and training for civil aviation and defence • Radian 6, social media monitoring company purchased by Salesforce.com

SOME OF HALIFAX’S LARGEST INFORMATION COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY, GAMING AND INTERACTIVE MEDIA COMPANIES BY EMPLOYMENT

Company Name Industry Employees in Halifax

Bell Aliant Telecommunications 1,800

Eastlink Telecommunications 830

Minacs Worldwide BPO/Contact Centre 700

BlueOcean Contact Centres BPO/Contact Centre 625

CGI Management Services 600

NTT Data Management Services 450

RELIABLE AND SECURE TELECOMMUNICATIONS INFRASTRUCTURE

• Hibernia Atlantic’s Halifax International Exchange Centre. The Hibernia Atlantic network provides fast and secure transmission of data between commercial North American and European clients via redundant routes through more than fifty commercial centers, including Dublin, Manchester, London, Halifax, Montreal, Boston and New York. Halifax is home to Hibernia Atlantic’s network cable landing station, known as the Halifax International Exchange Centre. This site acts as a switching hub, and is capable of routing data directly to London, without going through common back-office data sites.

• Stable power grid. The province is essentially self-sufficient with respect to serving in-province load and is not reliant on external power sources.

Downtown Halifax has an extremely high stable power supply, with a System Average Interruption Duration Index of 0.98 – meaning that the downtown core is, on average, without service for less than one hour each year. Nova Scotia Power Inc., provides comprehensive disaster recovery plans and services to clients to meet their specific reliability needs.

• 100% Broadband availability. Fee-based broadband service is now available across the entire province.

INDUSTRY ASSOCIATIONS & ORGANIZATIONS

• Digital Nova Scotia

• Innovacorp High Performance Incubation

• Canada Advanced Research and Innovation Network • National Research Council Canada

Hibernia Atlantic’s International Exchange Center in Halifax.

For CGI, Nova Scotia has proven to a very sound decision regarding the location of our Atlantic Global Delivery Center serving the business needs of our clients from around the world.

Jay MacIsaac

VP – Consulting Services CGI

With its skilled workforce, business friendly environment, competitive costs, and advantageous geographical location, Nova Scotia has been a corner-stone of our Canadian operations for many years and will continue to an important part of our growth strategy.

Richard D. Ackerman

VP – Business Development L-3 Electronic Systems INDUSTRY VOICES

We have been watching Halifax for a very long time, and there are a number of programs that have been put in place to enable video game companies to come to Nova Scotia and Halifax…so we jumped on the bandwagon!...There is a great pool of talent and a balanced incentive program to make Halifax attractive.

Gerard Guillemot

President Longtail Studios

Halifax is simply a great place to establish a business. Building a business here makes sense.

Calvin Gosse

Senior Location Executive IBM

Halifax is absolutely the place for a boutique company like us. We looked at Texas. We looked at Berlin. We looked at Poland. Halifax just had too much going for it. It has a sophistication - excellent post-secondary education and established tech and film industries. We looked around us and there was this momentum careening towards a critical mass that we didn’t want to miss.

Willie Stevenson

President, Owner and Creative Director Silverback Productions

Halifax offers more competitive Information Communication and Digital Technologies business costs compared to other cities across North America. In its 2012 Competitive Alternatives survey of 113 jurisdictions in 14 countries, KPMG found that Halifax had significantly lower business costs for digital entertainment, software design, professional and support services for digital entertainment companies compared to all of the major ICT centers surveyed: New York, Seattle, San Francisco, Toronto, Vancouver, Montreal and Boston. Furthermore, it ranked 9th out of all 113 jurisdictions in term of costs for web and multimedia companies.

COMPARATIVE BUSINESS COSTS FOR CORPORATE, IT AND DIGITAL SERVICES

Source: KPMG Competitive Alternatives 2012

COMPARATIVE BUSINESS COSTS FOR CORPORATE & IT SERVICES

City Suppport _Services Software _Design Digital _{Entertainment} Corporate & IT, _{and Digital Services Average} 1) Halifax 85.9 87.4 72.2 81.8 2) Montreal 94.7 89.5 78.4 87.5 3) Toronto 98.7 92.4 76.9 89.3 4) Vancouver 97.2 92.0 86.4 91.9 5) Seattle 99.8 98.9 99.2 99.3 6) New York 107.9 104.2 104.5 105.5 7) San Francisco 109.5 104.7 104.2 106.1

Source: KPMG Competitive Alternatives 2012

BUSINESS COSTS & INCENTIVES

Halifax Montreal Toronto _Vancouver Seattle San F rancisco _{New Y} ork K PM G W eighting

81.5

86.8 90.0

91.1 98.8

106.9

106

Competitive salaries. Digital industries salaries in Halifax tend to be lower than in other Canadian and American cities – a real competitive advantage for companies located here.

AVERAGE BASE SALARIES FOR SOFTWARE DEVELOPERS & IT MANAGERS

City Software Developer (w/ 8 yrs. Experience) Base Salary IT Manager (w/ 8 yrs. Experience) Base Salary Halifax $62,253 $71,407 Montreal $64,425 $74,154 Vancouver $70,976 $79,110 Toronto $74,618 $82,552 New York $95,258 $90,880 Seattle $97,444 $78,639 San Francisco $103,131 $91,682

Source: Payscale, August 2013

Inexpensive office space. According to CB Richard Ellis (CBRE), the average rental rate for class-A office space in downtown Halifax is $18.14/sq ft, well below that of other major cities across North America. Comparable office space is more expensive in Washington, Seattle, Boston, Vancouver, Toronto, Montreal and Ottawa.

INCENTIVES TO MEET YOUR PARTICULAR NEEDS

Whether starting, relocating or expanding a business, we have a number of incentives at both

the federal and provincial level to help you invest in Halifax. We can assist you identifying the

ones that best suit your needs.

Nova Scotia Digital Media Tax Credit

Nova Scotia’s Digital Media Tax Credit is a refundable tax credit for costs directly related to the development of interactive digital media products in Nova Scotia. As of January 1, 2008, tax credit amounts are equal to the lesser of:

• 50 percent of eligible Nova Scotia labour expenditures; or • 25 percent of total expenditures made in Nova Scotia.

Corporations may also be eligible to receive a credit on marketing and distribution expenditures to a maximum of $100,000 per product. These expenditures may be made outside the province.

To be eligible for the credit, a corporation developing an interactive digital media product must be a taxable Canadian corporation and have a “permanent establishment” in Nova Scotia. The digital media product to which a credit may be applied must be: interactive; used to educate, inform or entertain users; developed for use by either individuals or businesses; and, must present information in at least two of three formats: text, sound or images. ACOA’s Atlantic Innovation Fund

A $300 million pool of research funding available to eligible Atlantic Canadian companies undertaking research and development projects explicitly linked to the commercialization of technology-based products, processes or services.

Business Development Program (BDP)

Small and medium-sized enterprises can access capital in the form of interest-free, unsecured, repayable contributions for business studies, capital investment, training, marketing, and quality assurance activities that support business in the region. Assistance is also available to help companies acquire public and private procurement contracts or to develop an innovative product or service.

Canada Media Fund

Champions the creation of successful, innovative, Canadian content and software applications for current and emerging digital platforms through financial support and industry research.

Canadian Innovation Commercialization Program

Help companies bridge the pre-commercialization gap for their goods and services by: awarding contracts to entrepreneurs with pre-commercial innovations through a procurement process; testing and providing feedback on the performance of their goods and services; providing innovators with the opportunity to enter the marketplace; and providing information about how to do business with the Government of Canada.

Capital Investment Incentive

Receive funding to help offset the cost of buying technologically-advanced machinery, clean technology, equipment, software and hardware.

Equity Investment – New Media

Your interactive media production may be eligible for an equity investment of up to 33% of your total production costs to be spent in Nova Scotia, to a maximum of $30,000.

Industrial Research Assistance Program (NRC-IRAP)

NRC-IRAP offers direct technical assistance, access to the latest technological advances, expertise, facilities and resources to eligible small and medium size enterprises. It may also provide cost-shared financing of innovative technical projects to qualified firms.

Nova Scotia First Fund

Receive venture capital up to $3 million for your emerging technology company. Nova Scotia Payroll Rebate

Businesses can receive a return on gross payroll taxes depending on the economic benefit generated to the Province.

Scientific Research & Experimental Development (SR&ED) Program

Canadian controlled private corporations may be eligible to have a portion (or all) of the 35% federal tax credits paid out in cash. If you qualify for the 15% Nova Scotia R&D tax credits, you may be eligible to have a portion (or all) of the credits paid out in cash, if there are no other taxes owing.

Workplace Innovation and Productivity Skills Incentive

Receive funding to invest in employee and management skills development, and improve productivity. It also helps companies adapt to the introduction of new technology and innovative processes, and enhance international competitiveness.

One of the largest concentrations of universities in North America,

producing the talent you need.

Halifax has among the highest ratios of educational facilities to population in North America, with six universities offering a multitude of undergraduate and graduate programs. More than 30,000 students are enrolled at these universities every year, while some 6,805 earn degrees and certificates. This is in addition to the 10,676 students across Nova Scotia who attend the Nova Scotia Community College, as well as students graduating from universities in nearby provinces.

ACCESS TO GRADUATES

Below are recent enrolment and graduate numbers in the Maritime Provinces, as well as programs offered by Halifax’s universities and community college.

TOTAL UNIVERSITY ENROLMENT AND GRADUATES IN THE MARITIME PROVINCES, 2009-2010

Province Enrolment Graduates

Nova Scotia 42,878 9,628

New Brunswick 23,461 4,981

Prince Edward Island 4,415 696

Total 70,754 15,305

MATHEMATICS & PHYSICAL SCIENCES ENROLMENT, 2009-2010 (INCLUDES COMPUTER SCIENCE)

Province Province Province

Nova Scotia 1,716 447

New Brunswick 804 172

PEI 211 50

Total 2,731 669

RELATED EDUCATION PROGRAMS AT HALIFAX’S POST-SECONDARY INSTITUTIONS

Three universities and one college in metro Halifax alone offer programs important to the Information Communication and Digital Technologies sector.

Dalhousie University

Program Areas of Focus Related to Information Communication and Digital Technologies

Bachelor of Computer Science Graphics, Gaming and Media, Artificial Intelligence and Intelligent Systems, Communications Technologies and Cyber Security, Big Data Analytics

Bachelor of Arts Mathematics

Bachelor of Science Mathematics

Bachelor of Informatics Health Informatics, Software Systems, Bioinformatics Master of Applied Computer Science Electrical and Computer Engineering

Master of Computer Science Master of Electronic Commerce

Master of Engineering Electrical and Computer Engineering, Internetworking Master of Health Informatics

Master of Science Mathematics, Computational Biology and Bioinformatics, Electrical & Computer Engineering

PhD. Computer Science, Mathematics, Electrical and Computer

Engineering Mount Saint Vincent University

Program Areas of Focus Related to Information Communication and Digital Technologies

Bachelor of Science Mathematics

Bachelor of Arts Mathematics

Nova Scotia Community College

Program Areas of Focus Related to Information Communication and Digital Technologies

Diploma Computer Electronics Technician, Computer Service Technician, Health Information Management, Information Technology (database management, programming, systems management/networking, web development).

Saint Mary’s University

Program Areas of Focus Related to Information Communication and Digital Technologies

Bachelor of Science Mathematics (Honours), Computing Science

Master of Business Administration Finance, Management Consulting, Human Resource Management, Information Systems, International Business, Marketing

IMMIGRATION-FRIENDLY POLICIES TO ATTRACT FOREIGN WORKERS

Bringing temporary foreign workers into the province is straight forward and fast. The Nova Scotia Nominee Program (NSNP) Skilled Worker stream helps employers hire workers whose skills may be in limited supply in the province. The stream helps employers recruit and retain immigrant workers with the required skills for these positions. Work permits issued from the Nova Scotia Office of Immigration are processed more quickly, on average, than most other provinces.

SOURCES

• Canada Business – Nova Scotia’s monthly business information bulletin, Digital Media, June 2011 • KPMP Competitive Alternatives 2012

• Trade Team Nova Scotia

A COMMITMENT TO HELPING YOU GROW HERE

The Greater Halifax Partnership is the lead economic development organization for Halifax, NS, the economic hub of Atlantic Canada. As a public-private partnership, we bring together all three levels of government, industry, post-secondary and community partners to create and nurture the necessary relationships for business development across a broad range of industry sectors.

We can assist you during your site selection process and relocation to Halifax by providing you with:

• strategic support

• in-depth research and economic data

• connection to business resources, incentives and financing • the customized business case and unique value proposition

relevant to your business needs • marketing materials

• focused after-care program

• SmartBusiness, business retention and expansion program

For more information contact: Nancy Phillips

Director, Investment and Trade Partnership Tel: 902.490.6003

Toll-free: 1.800.565.1191 [email protected] www.whyhalifax.com