award Archives - Jyväskylä Digi and Game Center

5.6.2025

Digitalization Deed of the Year Award Goes to Peliosuuskunta Expa (Expa Game Business Cooperative)

Digitalization Deed of the Year Award Goes to Game Cooperative Expa!

The Digital Committee of the Central Finland Chamber of Commerce annually awards the “Digitalization Deed of the Year” to a company or organization that has excelled in the field of digitalization. This year, the award was given to Expa Game Business Cooperative (in Finnish Peliosuuskunta Expa) in recognition of becoming Finland’s first—and the world’s northernmost—Unreal Authorized Training Center. This designation allows them to offer official, high-quality training in the use of this cutting-edge technology across various sectors.

Expa Game Business Cooperative has achieved significant international recognition: it has been named Finland’s first and the world’s northernmost Unreal Authorized Training Center. The recognition was granted by the U.S.-based technology company Epic Games, known for the popular game Fortnite and its development platform Unreal Engine.

Unreal Engine is a game engine—i.e., a software platform—used for creating games, movies, animations, and virtual reality content. This recognition means that the Digi & Game Center can now provide official, high-quality training in leveraging this high-end technology across industries, from gaming and architecture to education and advertising.

The recognition was made possible through cooperation with the Finnish company Fireframe Studios, founded by Mikko Kodisoja, one of the co-founders of the game company Supercell. Fireframe Studios combines gaming and film technologies to develop new, immersive storytelling formats. Their work involves real-time graphics and so-called in-camera visual effects technology, where digital landscapes and effects are visible directly in the camera during filming, not just added in post-production.

This recognition strengthens Central Finland’s position as a pioneer in creative technology and opens up new opportunities for professionals and students across various fields to explore the latest tools in virtual production and interactive content.

" The Digitalization Deed of the Year award is a recognition of the long-term work carried out around the Digi & Game Center by many contributors. It's been great to see this kind of status even recognized as a possibility, and through determined efforts, achieved. With this status, we have an excellent opportunity to raise the visibility of the entire ecosystem and accelerate development even further. I now invite everyone to help boost this forward—there are many opportunities, and this is just the beginning. I want to sincerely thank everyone who has been part of building this community, especially Tuomas Roininen, who has led the effort," says Joni Borgström, Chair of the Digital Committee."

The award was presented on June 4th. Tuomas Roininen, Vice Chair of Game Cooperative Expa, accepted the award.

"We are deeply honored by this recognition, and it's especially meaningful that it comes from such a respected group of stakeholders. The award strengthens our belief that we are on the right path and makes the value we're building more visible. However, this is just the beginning—it’s a marathon. We’re now launching a new learning platform, around which we will build collaboration with Epic Games, educational institutions, and companies. Our goal is to strengthen Central Finland’s appeal and retention, support businesses, foster entrepreneurship and job creation, and ensure that skilled professionals stay in the region. We now have the infrastructure and partnerships in place to make this happen, and our discussions with international players are already progressing promisingly," says Roininen.

The Digitalization Deed of the Year award has been given annually since 2019.

Previous recipients include Trustmary (formerly kokemuksia.fi), Digi & Game Center, Howspace Oy, JAMK University of Applied Sciences, the University of Jyväskylä, and Valmet Technologies.

The mission of the Digital Committee is to enhance the competitiveness of Central Finland by promoting the development of the ICT sector. The goal is to increase Central Finland’s expertise and attractiveness as an ICT environment in education, research, and business, both locally and internationally. The committee aims to better connect service providers and users and foster new business through digitalization. It also addresses the educational needs of schools and universities from the perspective of business and industry.

Further information:

Joni Borgström, Chair of the Digital Committee, Central Finland Chamber of Commerce
Tel: +358 40 911 2012
Email: joni.borgstrom@pengon.fi

Tuomas Roininen, Vice Chair of Game Cooperative Expa
Tel: +358 50 380 0991
Email: tuomas.roininen@expa.fi

Read the orginal article “Vuoden digitalisaatioteko -palkinto Peliosuuskunta Expalle” in Finnish here:

https://kskauppakamari.fi/fi-fi/article/ajankohtaista/vuoden-digitalisaatioteko-palkinto-peliosuuskunta-expalle/5258/

Learn all about Digi & Game Center:

https://www.digigamecenter.org/

Learn all about Central Finland FINNCHAM

https://kskauppakamari.fi

Learn all about Expa Game Business Co-operative:

https://expa.fi/

1.9.2021

OP Central Finland The Let’s Do Good Together donations gives help and opportunities for many – Digi & Game Center was selected to receive a significant donation

The Digi & Game Center issued 10 000 euro

The 2021 The Let’s Do Good Together donation pot of EUR 25,000 was widely distributed to actors reaching different target groups. A total of 27 donation applications were received, of which six applicants received donations. The donations were decided by the bank’s board at its August meeting. The Let’s Do Good Together donation campaign is part of OP Central Finland’s responsibility work, which is guided by the bank’s own and OP Financial Group’s responsibility program. The Let’s Do Good Together donation received 27 applications from clubs, associations and other third sector entities operating in the bank’s area of operation. Eighty-five per cent of the applications came from the Jyväskylä region and 15 per cent from elsewhere. Five of the donors are from the Jyväskylä region and one from elsewhere. The need for help is still great and without volunteering, the activities of the associations would not work. The selection of recipients of donations has focused on diversity, different target groups and timeliness. The selection criteria have been activities in line with the bank’s values, i.e. closeness to people, responsibility and success together, regional and target group size effectiveness, and the widest possible consideration of different target and age groups.

Digi & Game Center is a Central Finnish brand founded in 1/2020, an ecosystem operated by Peliosuuskunta Expa. The aim of the activity is to create synergies between companies in the digital and gaming sectors and in other sectors and thus help to create cooperation projects, companies and jobs between companies and educational institutions. The donation supports e.g. space use costs and benefit young entrepreneurs, students, cultural operators and actors in various fields who need help, e.g. digitization or gaming technologies. The activities are international and the aim is also to engage international students and actors in Central Finland. The work is currently done on a voluntary basis. In 2020, the operations helped the creation of 12 companies.

With Peliosuuskunta Expa and Digi & Game Center, we are extremely taken and grateful for this accolade.

Source:
https://www.op.fi/fi/web/op-keski-suomi/-/teemme-yhdessa-hyvaa-2021?icmp=yl-atiili-1

Additional information:
Pia Saikkonen, communications manager , pia.saikkonen@op.fi, p. 010 256 5610.
Tuomas Roininen, Vice Chairman, tuomas.roininen@expa.fi p. 050 38 00991

9.6.2021

The Digitalisation Act of the year 2020 -award goes to Digi & Game Center

Central Finland’s Chamber of Commerce’s Digitalisation and New Business -committee grants The Digitalisation Act of the year -award annually. This year the award was given to Digi & Game Center which helped to give birth to 12 new businesses and helped companies in the region in the use of game technologies.

With the award Chamber of Commerce of Central Finland wants to highlight Central Finland’s companies that have successfully taken over digitalisation.

“Digitalisation has become part of just about every industry. Such actors and co-operation as Digi & Game Center are needed to bring the growth potential made possible by digitalization to the benefit of companies” says Ari Hiltunen, CEO of the Central Finland Chamber of Commerce.

The jury of committee members justified the choice on the grounds that the Digi & Game Center has successfully helped entrepreneurs in the area to take advantage of game technologies. It has been used in industry, the arts and culture, among other places.

“The operations of Digi & Game Center are worthwhile both in building a new kind of digitalisation center in the Jyväskylä region and in disseminating game technologies outside the game industry itself. Increasing the added value of digitalisation just needs such cross-pollination” says Anssi Kuoppala, Chairman of the Digitalisation and New Business Committee.

The goal of the Digi & Game Center is to create synergies between companies in the digital and gaming industries and other industries, and thus help to create co-operation projects, companies and jobs between companies and educational institutions. Last year, the Digi & Game Center helped creating 12 companies, 8 of which were born during COVID-19.

“We are grateful that we were nominated for the award and were elected. The honour belongs to everyone in our network. We would not exist if we did not have these companies, educational institutions and entrepreneurs involved in the network” says Tuomas Roininen, Chairman of the Peliosuuskunta Expa, Operator of Digi & Game Center.

The ecosystem has been built for nine years. There are now 16 digital and gaming companies involved. At the beginning of last year, more than 400 people attended the opening of the Digi & Game Center alone.

Digi & Game Center is a unique concept

Digi & Game Center is not a company but a Central Finnish brand and concept that is operated by Peliosuuskunta Expa together with others in the ecosystem. The Digi & Game Center co-operates with the city, educational institutes and different businesses like Fingersoft and Amazon.

According to Roininen many regions are reducing their activities related to game-related studies which Central Finland has now begun to increase. The Digi & Game Center’s ecosystems goal is to bring companies and partners together and to get them to know each other.

“We strive to be another living room where a company or cultural representative can come on a low threshold to find a solution that suits their needs. Our desire is to develop the digitalisation of Central Finnish companies and to be the operator who introduces new digital functions at a low threshold” Roininen describes.

Roininen says that sometimes it is difficult for people to understand what game technologies and gamifications really are.

“It doesn’t mean making a game. For example, simulations such as airplane simulators, 3D models, or visual worlds of movies have been implemented with modern gaming technologies. It is good to understand that the same technologies are used in traditional industries. Experts will not be found on the traditional side, but it will have to utilize the multi-experts in the gaming industry, who are currently trained by JAMK and JYU in Central Finland” Roininen elaborates.

The concept has also been quoted abroad. The aim is to export operations abroad in the future as a licensing concept.

Learn more about Digi & Game Center parnerhips:

Co working with amazing people and network!

https://www.digigamecenter.org/for-investors/