Top Austin-based tech companies embark on ‘Tech City Showcase’ to explore partnerships and growth opportunities in Europe’s premier cluster of innovation and entrepreneurship

Austin, TX (24 January 2012): The City of Austin, UK Trade & Investment (UKTI), the Tech City Investment Organisation (TCIO) and the British Consulate-General in Houston are leading a group of innovative Austin-based digital media and gaming companies on a two-day showcase of London’s Tech City, one of the fastest growing tech clusters in the world and the largest in Europe.

The British Consulate-General and UKTI invited the Mayor of Austin, Lee Leffingwell, to lead the delegation. Representatives from nine Austin-based companies, including Appconomy, the Central Texas Angel Network (CTAN), Phunware, Portalarium, Replay Games, Ricochet Labs, Small World Labs, Spredfast, and Third Cousins Media will participate in the visit.

“Austin attracts talent and innovation; as a result we are on the cutting edge of digital trends that could spread worldwide. The visit will allow some of Austin’s entrepreneurs to experience London’s Tech City, Austin’s digital media and gaming counterpart, first-hand,” said Mayor Leffingwell. “We look forward to working with and further improving trade and economic relations with the UK.”

The group will participate in a two-day programme that will introduce them to Tech City and their UK digital media and gaming counterparts, as well as attend workshops about setting up operations in London and hear from some US-based companies that have successfully entered the UK market.

“We are proud to be representing the best of Austin’s start-up scene to our London counterparts,” said Andy Jones, Business Development Director at Small World Labs. “This will be a great opportunity not only to showcase what we’re doing and explore potential new business opportunities here in the UK, but to learn and take some ideas back with us to Austin.”

The visit is timed to coincide with a pre-South By Southwest Interactive briefing for 40 UK-based companies that will be attending the conference through the UKTI. Both Mayor Leffingwell and the digital media companies taking part in the mission will have an opportunity to meet and address these potential partners.

A friendship agreement between the London Borough of Hackney and the City of Austin will also be signed. The friendship agreement seeks to intensify co-operation between the City and Borough in the high-tech sector; London’s Olympic legacy and event industry and Austin’s forthcoming Formula One race; sustainability; and between the growing Digital Shoreditch festival and South by Southwest.

Commenting on the mission, Eric van der Kleij, CEO of TCIO, said: “Hosting such a talented group of entrepreneurs to Tech City is a great chance for us to showcase London, but to also look for growth opportunities. Austin has really established itself as a hub of innovation and this mission will lay the foundation for increased collaboration and partnership between our thriving technology communities.”

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For more information on the Tech City Investment Organisation, please contact: 020 7413 3751 or [email protected].

The Tech City Investment Organisation (TCIO) was created in March 2011, following Prime Minister David Cameron’s announcement of the Tech City initiative in the ‘Silicon Roundabout’ area of East London. TCIO was set up by UK Trade & Investment (UKTI) and is designed to help the existing cluster of tech-digital and creative companies flourish. Tech City stretches out from the financial heart of the City of London to Stratford and the Olympic Park in East London, and is the fastest growing technology cluster in Europe. The TCIO team is a　unique combination of experienced entrepreneurs and UKTI business specialists. Their role is to help　existing companies succeed, as well as attract global business, entrepreneurs and high-value investment to the digital capital of Europe. For more information, visit www.techcityuk.com or www.ukti.gov.uk/techcity or follow us @techcityuk

UK Trade & Investment (UKTI) is the Government Department that helps UK-based companies succeed in the global economy. We also help overseas companies bring their high quality investment to the UK’s economy – acknowledged as Europe’s best place from which to succeed in global business. UKTI offers expertise and contacts through its extensive network of specialists in the UK, and in British embassies and other diplomatic offices around the world. We provide companies with the tools they require to be competitive on the world stage. For more information on UKTI, visit www.ukti.gov.uk or telephone +44 (0)20 7215 8000. For latest press releases, visit the online newsroom at www.ukti.gov.uk/media.

About the British Consulate-General in Houston: The British Consulate-General in Houston covers Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, Oklahoma and New Mexico. They work to promote and develop the commercial, political, and academic links between this area and the UK. For more information, please visit http://ukinusa.fco.gov.uk/houston