Interactive Ontario’s Recent Wins
- Receiving clarification from the Ontario Government on the eligibility of remote work under the OIDMTC.
- Announcing a Benchmarking Study on Ontario’s Creative Technology Labour Market.
- Lowering the labour threshold for annual filing to the Ontario Interactive Digital Media Tax Credit (OIDMTC) from $1M to $500K.
- Reducing the OIDMTC queue — now at about 20 weeks — and accelerating processing time.
- Getting a commitment from the Ontario government to keep the OIDMTC stable.
- Getting a commitment from the Ontario government – 2021 Fall Economic Statement – that they will continue to work with us to attract more investment and create jobs in Ontario.
- Providing recommendations contributing to improvements of the Ontario Creates Interactive Digital Media Fund (IDM Fund) and the Canada Media Fund (CMF) programs.
- Instigating the creation of the Phase 2 CMF COVID-19 Emergency Support Fund for the IDM industry.
- Significantly raising awareness of our industry at all levels of governments, and now also in the general public and media with The Lodgge (www.thelodgge.com).
IO’s Fall 2020 Budget Consultations to the Government of Ontario
Download IO's Fall 2020 Budget Consultation to the Government of Ontario Interactive Ontario submitted its Fall 2020 Budget Consultations pre-budget recommendations to the Government of Ontario on October 15, 2020. We reiterated some of the recommendations that were developed under [...]
Canadian Heritage (PCH) and the CMF Announce Phase 2 Emergency Fund
Toronto, Ontario – The Canada Media Fund (CMF) is making $10M available to Canada’s interactive digital media companies. This is part of the $27.8M in funding that was designated for Canada’s audiovisual sector as part of Phase 2 of the [...]
Impact of the Pandemic on SMEs & Potential Solutions – IO’s Appears Before the Standing Committee on Finance and Economic Affairs (SCFEA)
Interactive Ontario recently appeared before the Standing Committee on Finance and Economic Affairs (SCFEA) alongside Mary Sorrenti (Game Pill & VRGEN), Vikas Gupta (AVARA Media), Joel Burgess (Capybara), and Jonathan Stanton-Humphreys (Hitgrab Game Labs). Previously IO appeared before SCFEA [...]
Important COVID-19 Relief & Recovery Survey
In March, we shared the “Measuring the Impact of COVID-19 on the IDM Industry” survey, which was funded by the Canadian Media Fund (CMF) and produced by Nordicity. The results from the questionnaire helped to substantiate Interactive Ontario’s recommendations to the government [...]
CRA Updates for the OIDMTC
The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) has put into place measures to help businesses that are experiencing financial difficulties due the COVID-19 crisis. For measures regarding OIDMTC processing claims and audits, check out the information below. Pre-COVID: The Process: T2 received [...]
The Modernization of OIDMTC
Interactive Ontario continues to focus our advocacy efforts--at the provincial level--on improving the OIDMTC so we can recover, grow and compete with other jurisdictions. The OIDMTC is a key instrument in the economic recovery and growth of the Ontario [...]
OIDMTC: The Tax Credit Queue Now Stands at 10 Weeks
We have been relentlessly advocating for the reduction of the OIDMTC queue and as of last Friday it now stands at 10 weeks. This means that the oldest file that is ready for analysis and waiting for review was received in the latter half of April 2020.
IO’s Appearance Before the Standing Committee on Finance and Economic Affairs
The Standing Committee on Finance and Economic Affairs (SCFEA) recently held sector-by-sector hearings on the impact of COVID-19 and recommendations for economic recovery.
Provincial & Federal Advocacy Update – June 19
Working alongside both Provincial and Federal governments, IO has been working to make recommendations to support Ontario IDM companies as well as measure the impact of COVID-19 in Ontario.
IO Update: Advocacy Priorities and Timeline at the Provincial Level
The Ministerial Advisory Council on Interactive Digital Media (IDM) submitted its final recommendations to Minister MacLeod in line with IO’s advocacy priorities and timeline at the provincial level.
Survey Results: Measuring the Impact. Recovering Strong
To gauge the impact of COVID-19, the Canada Media Fund (with support from Interactive Ontario and other provincial IDM associations across the country), asked Nordicity to develop a Canada-wide survey.
COVID-19 Industry Relief Measures & Advocacy Update
Interactive Ontario and a group of Interactive Digital Media (IDM) leaders continue to meet with Minister MacLeod, who is in charge of the IDM sector in Ontario.