Karnataka wants to create 30,000 fresh jobs by 2028 in AVGC-XR sector: Siddaramaiah

Karnataka has a mandate to create 30,000 fresh high-quality jobs in the animation, visual effects, gaming and comics and extended reality (AVGC-XR) sector by 2028 and the target is also to export 80% of the services and products of the industry by that time, said Chief Minister Siddaramaiah.

Karnataka has a mandate to create 30,000 fresh high-quality jobs in the animation, visual effects, gaming and comics and extended reality (AVGC-XR) sector by 2028 and the target is also to export 80% of the services and products of the industry by that time, said Chief Minister Siddaramaiah.

He was speaking after inaugurating the fifth edition of Bengaluru GAFX-2024, a three-day annual AVGC-XR exposition, jointly organised by the State government and the industry apex body, ABAI, here on Monday.

“Karnataka wants to be the leader in AVGC-XR sector in the country, similar to the dominance the State currently commands in information technology, knowledge process outsourcing, and innovation spaces. To achieve this feat the industry and the government should work in tandem,’‘ said Mr. Siddaramaiah, while addressing industry players, international buyers, and investors.

He said Karnataka currently held a 20% share in the country’s total media and entertainment industry, employing over 15,000 professionals across over 300 specialised AVGC-XR studios.

In 2021, when India’s nominal GDP grew 19%, advertising growth outperformed and grew 25%. The highest growth was in television advertising of ₹62 billion, followed by digital advertising of ₹55 billion, and then of ₹29 billion from a resilient print, he noted.

India was amongst the largest content producers in the world — with 1,50,000 hours of TV content, 2,500 hours of premium OTT content, and 2,000 hours of filmed content produced in 2021 alone. Interestingly, the digital media has firmly established itself as the second-largest segment and it grew by ₹68 billion in 2021, he added, quoting industry statistics.

On the State’s readiness for growth in the sector, Mr. Siddaramaiah further said the Centre of Excellence (COE) in Bengalurum a one-of-its-kind and the country’s first state-of-the-art facility, houses a highly equipped AVGC post-production lab, providing the industry with resources for hands-on education and to generate high quality content.