SYDNEY--The Australian games industry may still be a minnow in a sea full of big fish, but it is growing at a rapid pace. Figures from a new survey have found that the industry is now worth AU$110 million each year and employs more than 1,600 people--an employment increase of 60 percent over three years ago.

　　The Australian Electronic Game Profile Report, which was commissioned by the Game Developers' Association of Australia (GDAA), found that of the 1,600 local games employees, 1,350 were permanent and 250 were contract staff. The report also found that the Australian games sector was a fairly concentrated one, with the eight largest companies accounting for more than 80 percent of the total industry's revenues. Each of these top eight companies report annual revenues of more than AU$4 million, with the top four returning yearly revenues of more than AU$10 million.

　　The report found that Australian game companies are mainly export focused. Overall export revenues are estimated to account for more than 90 percent of total industry revenue. And it seems the larger the company, the bigger the focus on exports--the largest 10 game companies in Australia are 80 percent export oriented.

　　Working almost exclusively for larger international publishers doesn't seem to have dampened the enthusiasm to develop local games intellectual property, however. The report found that 85 percent of Australian games companies develop their own projects. And of these companies, 80 percent self-fund, 30 percent get external funding, while 20 percent enter into joint projects. The success rate isn't stellar, though--of the companies who have undertaken their own IP projects, only 20 percent have progressed to end market.

　　The outlook for the future seems bullish. The survey found that 90 percent of Australian game companies expect to grow during the next three years, with 70 percent expecting to increase their level of investment in their own IP within the next three years.

　　Other findings from the Australian Electronic Game Profile Report include:

　　- Of the 12 largest companies in Australia, five are in Queensland, five in Victoria, one is in NSW, and one is in the Australian Capital Territory.

　　- 37 percent of the industry's permanent employees are based in Queensland; 46 percent are based in Melbourne.

　　- 77 percent of games companies think attracting talented staff is the biggest hurdle to the industry's growth.

　　The report's release coincides with the beginning of Game Connect: Asia Pacific, an industry conference organised by the GDAA. Game Connect: Asia Pacific is being held in Brisbane, Queensland, and begins November 30.