Ubisoft Montreal invests $373M, creates 500 jobs

Video game giant Ubisoftwill create about 500 new jobs in Montreal over the next seven years.

UbisoftMontreal and Toronto CEO Yannis Mallat announced the$373-million investmentthis morning at the company'sMontreal headquarters, alongside severalParti Qubcoiscabinet ministers.

Mallat said the company which has five locations in Montreal is looking to hire locally, withthe majority of jobs goingtoQuebecers.

The company currently has2,650 staff members in Montreal and it expects to employ 3,500 people in its Quebec studios by 2020.

"Were happy to have been able to make this project here in Montreal. It could have been elsewhere, but the jobs are here," Mallat said.

He said Ubisoft considered expanding in other cities, but chose Montreal primarily because of afinancial boost from the provincial government.Premier PaulineMaroisannounced a $9.9-million investmentin theUbisoft expansion, and said the company will beoffered tax incentives.

MaroiscalledUbisofta "jewel" in the Quebec economy.

Montreal is now one of the largest video game production centres in the world,behind TokyoandLosAngeles.

Mallat said that when Ubisoft arrived in Quebec in 1997, it took advantage of the existenceof a number of university programs that trained people to work in the video game industry. He said it helped to make Montreal a hotspot for video game development.

Sixteenyears later, what makes us stay here is the insane amount of talent that we found, and that we nurture and help to grow, he said.

Most of the new jobs to be created inMontreal are a reflection of how video gaming has evolved over time, Mallat said.

He said gaming has majorly shifted to online, requiring Ubisoftto expand its online operations and hire for a greater diversity of skilled positions. Community managers, systems operators and interactive marketing specialists are among the jobs the company is looking to fill.