Thailand's Software Industry Promotion Agency (SIPA) and Malaysia's Multimedia Development Corp (MDC) have signed anMoU for greater collaboration between the digital content industries of eachcountry, embracing computer games, feature films and animation.

The agreement was signedduring the 2006 Bangkok International Film Festival by SIPA's president, ManooOrdeedolchest, and MDC's vice president, Kamil Othman.

Ordeedolchest noted that thedigital contents industry was worth close to $300m in Thailand in 2005 and that one of SIPA's missions has been togrow the industry by no less than 25% per annum. The agency has been activelypromoting the industries locally and internationally for the past threeyears.

One of SIPA's strategies forexpanding the industry is closer partnership with neighboring countries.

Otham noted that, two monthsago, the Malaysian government announced that digital content would be one of thesix strategic growth areas for the economy.Currently, digital content accounts for just one sixth of MDC's focus,but is expected to become more central in the coming years.

While the agreement aims tocreate a better platform for collaboration, Othman believes that the real measureof the MoU's success will be a concrete collaboration between the two countriesby year end, such as a feature film, animation or computer game.

Although no new tax benefitswere announced today, both Thailand and Malaysia have aggressive government policiesto encourage growth of the content industries, including a tax holiday of eightand five years respectively in the two countries for companies investing in digitalcontent.