Spanish government gives indies funding boost with new $7.9M grant

The Spanish government has established a €6.5 million ($7.9 million) grant to help nurture the country's indie development scene.

It's a notable move, particularly because it comes just a few weeks after Spanish minister Alvaro Nadal reportedly attempted to cancel a €2 million ($2.4 million) European Union grant that would provide smaller studios with sorely needed cash.. 

As reported by Polygon, the new grant will be made available to games companies with an annual turnover of under €2 million ($2.42 million) per year, letting them apply for up to €150,000 ($182,000) in funding. 

It's also worth pointing out that anyone looking to use the grant must have been in business for over six months. 

More details will be revealed soon, but the new initiative will be a welcome sight for indies in the region, and Spanish games industry trade body DEV has praised the decision. 

"The future of our industry depends, to a large extent, on the success of independent studies and the employment that we can generate for future professionals," said DEV president Luis Quintans.

"We therefore need both public and private initiatives to grow this important pool of great talent so that we achieve an industry capable of undertaking the large projects that will position us in the place we merit."