28 April 2009 - Eightbyte launch - full text of press release
London, UK. 28 April 2009. Eightbyte today unveiled a raft of professional services tailored specifically to suit the needs of the 21st Century independent game development studio. Founded by industry veteran Gerry Tucker, Eightbyte offers financial and commercial expertise.
Tucker has considerable experience in the games industry having held senior positions in both publishing(Take Two, Virgin Interactive, Activision and Acclaim) and development (Kuju Entertainment PLC).
Gerry Tucker, CEO of Eightbyte said, "I believe that the industry, survives and evolves by bring new creative ideas to market, and independents are best positioned to generate that innovation ... if they survive and thrive. Eightbyte will work with companies who want to survive, and who want to be profitable.”
Kelly Sumner, former CEO of Red Octane and Take Two said, “To succeed in any business it’s vital to hire the right people for the right job at the right time. Gerry’s experience and knowledge of the industry will be a great asset to any independent developer.”
Ian Baverstock , CEO of Kuju Entertainment added, "Gerry was a key member of the team that successfully developed Kuju's business following the acquisition by Catalis. His insight into all aspects of the publisher/developer relationship was extremely helpful"
Initially aimed at working with UK companies, broader international experience in the sector puts us in position to roll out service beyond UK
Eightbyte Key Services: - Cash flow planning and management o In difficult times companies need to focus on this area of business. Eightbyte brings understanding and management of cash flows combined with insight into the requirements of suppliers and customers.
- Business Planning and Key Performance indicators o Eightbyte can provide guidance on key elements of planning vital to a studio’s business, highlighting key performance indicators required.
- Purchase / Sale Due Diligence o Typically, a drain on management resource – Eightbyte can streamline the process saving valuable time and speeding up the process.
- Fund raising / banking facilities o Eightbyte can produce accurate management and financial accounts giving credibility to future forecasts critical to fund raising.
- Financial / Commercial mentoring o Eightbyte offers a mentoring programme to embeds critical skills into the business, teaching which factors are likely to increase chances of commercial success
- Outsourced back office finance functions (payroll, book-keeping and management accounts. o Advice and assistance to produce accurate and timely information on which to base commercial decisions, without the need to carry the overheads of an in-house finance function
Gerry Tucker was Finance Director at Kuju, a leading independent games developer, from 2007 during a period of transition from being a listed company to being part of a larger group. Prior to that carried out the launch of Guitar Hero in Europe.
Gerry graduated from Cambridge University, and qualified as a chartered accountant with Deloitte and Touche. Gerry Tucker has held a number of senior financial positions in the computer games industry since 1988 with companies such as Virgin Interactive, Acclaim, Take Two Interactive and Activision. During his time with Take Two, Gerry completed major acquisitions such as DMA (the developers of the ‘Grand Theft Auto’ franchise), and various publishing and distribution operations across Europe and the Far East.
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