The Indian online gaming industry is foreseen to experience growth at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 40% to $2.8 billion by the year 2022, surging significantly from $1.1 billion in 2019, as per a Deloitte India report released on Tuesday. Mainly driven by the easy availability of cheap smartphones, affordable internet & rising disposable income, the swift growth is foreseen to bolster the sector’s share of total media & entertainment industry by 4−5%.

Report findings also shed light on the fact that covid-19 has moreover accelerated the growth as users opted for online gaming platforms to meet their social and entertainment needs during the lockdown. The time spent by Indians on gaming apps, grew by 21% during the initial nationwide lockdown, with the total customer base surpassing 300 million users. With vaccines now available & economic activities having resumed across the country, it may lead to the stabilisation or a decrease in the average time spent on online gaming. Regardless of that, the industry is surely in its golden period right now.

For the uninitiated, India is among the top 5 mobile gaming markets globally, with a 13% share of global game sessions & is foreseen to add 40 million online gamers during the period between the years 2020−22.

CEO and Co-founder of Poker Sports League (PSL) Pranav Bagai said that increased internet penetration, 5G network & broadband proliferation will revolutionize the gaming sector, with more people joining online gaming cohorts & a rise of game streaming providing opportunities to monetize their passion.

“The forecast for the online gaming industry in India in terms of revenue is also bright. The Deloitte report suggests the same. Furthermore, the Indian gaming industry has been growing exponentially and can generate substantial revenues, create jobs, ensure responsible gaming and also curb and eliminate illegal activities, like match-fixing and money laundering, if brought under formal regulation and taxed rationally,” he stated.

The Deloitte report further stated that the business model of gaming platforms has also seen a shift from a model reliant on download volumes & advertisements to one with varied revenue streams built on consumer engagement & higher experience levels. In-game revenue streams like chargeable expansion packs or virtual coin packs in addition to subscriptions are steadily picking up steam.

For those unaware, Indian gaming platforms have seen more than $450 million investment in the past 6 years. Speaking of recent investments, it comprises those in Mobile Premier League (MPL), which raised $90 million in 2020 from Pegasus Tech Ventures & others, JetSynthesys (raised $40 million from DSG, Jetline and Triveni Engineering & Industries) and Reliance Jio which invested in mobile gaming startup Krikey and more.

With regards to gaming segments, real money gaming (RMG) is experiencing growth at the rate of 40%, with support for games like poker and rummy (to be recognized as games of skill & hence legal). E-sports revenue is foreseen to grow at a CAGR of 36% over the duration of the upcoming 3 years. Report findings further stated that gamers spend more of their time witnessing other people play video games as compared to the time spent watching traditional sports on TV. To be precise, an Indian gamer on an average spends 3.6 hours each week watching e-sport tournaments. At the same time, fantasy sports revenue rose 9x in the pre-pandemic years between 2017−18 & 2019−20, soaring to a massive ₹16,500 crore.

The report additionally said that policy-level employment-akin initiatives by the government would make sure that any gaps in the talent pool aren’t left vacant & will help the industry to get near its potential.

Noting that the online gaming industry is self-regulated and governed by comprehensive charters & audits, All India Gaming Federation CEO Roland Landers stressed the need to regularize the sector. “…..it has become important that the industry’s self-regulation practices should be recognized by the relevant ministries and they should seek to devise a regulatory framework in consultation with the industry stakeholders. This will boost investments leading to technological advancements as well as additional revenues to the exchequer. The gaming industry can generate massive employment, through direct and indirect jobs from ancillary sectors such as telecommunications, marketing, financial services and banking, technology, events, and real estate,” he added.