Michael Rawlinson resigns from UKIE

Michael Rawlinson, director general of UK trade body UKIE, has tendered his resignation and will step down from his position at the end of the month.

No reason was given for the move, but a statement by UKIE chairman Andy Payne which accompanied the announcement indicated that Rawlinson would be looking for new industry opportunities.

"Michael has been a loyal servant of UKIE for over ten years and has led the organisation as Director General for the last two years," read Payne's statement. "The board of UKIE would like to thank Michael on behalf of the members and the wider industry in general, for all the hard work that he has put in on our behalf particularly with the Government.

"Michael was a key member of the team that created the first pan-European age rating content classification system (PEGI) and worked to ensure that this was legally adopted for the UK as the sole system of classification for computer and video games. We recognise that Michael wants to seek fresh challenges and wish him the very best with his next challenge'."

Rawlinson's ten years with the organisation have seen marked changes over both UKIE and the UK industry, including the 2010 rebranding from ELSPA to UKIE, which the director general oversaw.

Rawlinson was also thought to be heavily in favour of the proposed merger between UKIE and TIGA, suggested by both Ian Livingstone and DCMS minister Ed Vaizey.