In the Okanagan, one of the first companies to put the so-called ‘Silicon Vineyard’ on the map received some special recognition.
Kelowna MLAs Norm Letnick and Steve Thomson presented Hyper Hippo CEO Lance Priebe with an honour for his company’s accomplishments as well as a framed copy of the government’s official proclamation declaring Sept. 21 ‘Screen Day in B.C’.
Priebe co-founded the successful children’s online game, Club Penguin, which sold to Disney for $350 million in 2007.
Hyper Hippo recently created a smart-phone app for Hello Kitty fans.
READ MORE: Hyper Hippo develops Hello Kitty app
Screen Day in B.C. celebrates the valuable contribution that the film, digital media and animation sectors contribute to the provincial economy, according to Letnick.
“It helps to grow our economy, not only locally but throughout British Columbia,” he said. “They’re good paying jobs which help to support families right here in the Central Okanagan.”
READ MORE: Booming Okanagan tech sector soars to new heights: study
“It’s definitely going to bring attention to British Columbia and the different studios that are developing games and encourage talent, education, schools,” Priebe said.
The entire screen-based sector in B.C. employs 86,000 people, according to Letnick.
A recent report from the B.C. government showed 7,600 of those jobs were in the Okanagan, including more than 4,000 of individuals under the age of 35.