Channel 4 reaches out to UK's budding developers

UK public service broadcaster Channel 4 today announced that it would be taking part in a series of panels and workshops at this year's Edinburgh Interactive Entertainment Festival, aimed at helping "new video gaming talent get ahead in the industry."

The push, called Talent Arcade, builds on the channel's previous cooperation with the event's "Get into Games" sessions, and is being organised by 4Talent Scotland, a division of the broadcaster's 4Talent group. There will be panels featuring "industry experts" looking at all sides of games development, from finding funding and self-publishing games to how to succeed in a major developer.

As well as these panels there will also be hardware demonstrations and a panel where all-comers can grill a panel of experts on their own gaming-development queries.

As well as these workshops, four of the companies taking part--TPLD, 3MRT, Tag Games, and Cohort Studios--are going to offer briefs for new projects on the day, which teams from any discipline relating to game development will then have three weeks to respond to. Up for grabs as part of the new scheme will be work placements with developers, as well as places on training courses.

Talent Arcade is set to take place on day two of the festival, from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Monday, August 11. Tickets for the event are free, and information on how to apply for them can be found on the 4Talent Web site.

The EIEF is now entering its sixth year, and its first in the Edinburgh International Conference Centre. The event promises to be much larger than last year, with new exhibition and recruitment areas that will be open to the public. It runs from Sunday, August 10, to Tuesday, August 12, 2008. The conference programme includes discussions around Alternative Reality Gaming, a briefing from Eve Online's lead economist, a new look at the role of games in schools, and a talk from Rod Cousens, CEO of Codemasters, on "Keeping the UK on top of its game."