Electronic sports, or “esports,” which are competitive video game tournaments held on online gaming platforms, have overwhelmed the world and are viewed as one of the most promising industries in India. This sector is likewise expected to grow further before very long because of affordable mobile data and the introduction of 5G in the country. In any case, the question is how much it can add to India’s economy.

A few experts ensure that the esports industry will grow quickly before very long due to a rising number of gamers and developing interest in e-tournaments, while 5G will control additional opportunities in this industry.

For example, according to the Ericsson Mobility Report, combining the capabilities of 5G networks and edge computing technologies will enable game streaming services on smartphones with a quality of experience comparable to PCs or consoles, as well as open the door for innovative, immersive mobility-based mobile games. This is likewise expected to open up gaming to a larger crowd, with almost anybody with a 5G connection ready to join the gaming community.

As of late, the Indian government has officially recognized esports as a component of multi-sport events. Esports will be overseen by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports’ sports department. This move is viewed as a game changer for the esports industry in the country, as official recognition will additionally promote and speed up the sector’s development.

According to the official notification, released in late December 2022, the President of India, Droupadi Murmu, amended the regulations governing eSports using the authority “conferred by clause (3) of Article 77 of the Constitution” and requested that “e-Sports be included as part of multi-sports events” from the Ministries of Electronics and Information Technology and Sports.

It is perceived that this move will likewise assist with promoting the local gaming industry and establish a more vibrant atmosphere for esports in the country, which is quite possibly the largest market in Asia.

The projection says it all.
The fame of esports in India has started to grow as of late. According to industry experts, the unexpected development of esports was for the most part seen during the COVID lockdowns in 2020 and 2021.

And now, according to EY India’s report, “the industry is expected to grow at a 46% CAGR to grow over fourfold from Rs 2.5 billion in 2021 to Rs 11 billion by 2025.” “The prize pool is expected to reach Rs 1 billion by 2025.”

According to the report, a few factors will drive fame and development, such as an increase in esports prize money, more games, localization, regional adaptation, and the growth of smartphones and laptops, as well as broadband infrastructure.

The report says: “Esports will generate a total economic impact of over Rs 100 billion in the next four years through investments, direct industry revenues, in-app purchases, and other revenues.” “By 2025, games popularised by esports tournaments are expected to generate approximately Rs 14 billion in in-app purchase revenues, and the industry is also expected to generate approximately Rs 300 million in ancillary revenue, which includes licencing and merchandising revenue and player salary revenue.”

THE IMPACT
According to Kowshik Komandur, associate vice president at OnMobile Global Limited, one of the country’s leading mobile gaming and entertainment companies, India is currently ranked sixth in terms of revenue on the world’s largest gaming market index, while the unexpected flare-up of the COVID-19 pandemic has prompted a surge in millennial interest in esports.

He likewise brought up that somewhere between 2017 and 2020, the country’s industry developed at a CAGR of 38%, contrasted with 8% in China and 10% in the US. While talking about employment, Komandur stated: “Currently, the sector directly employs about 50,000 people, of which 30% of the workforce consists of programmers and developers.” This will likely add 1 lakh new direct and indirect jobs in FY23 and grow 2.5 times by 2026. Additionally, the sector is expected to attract FDI to the tune of Rs 780 crore by FY23.

Referring to the FICCI Report 2022, he noted that the gaming market is set to become the fourth biggest segment of the Indian M&E sector, driven by innovations across NFTs, the metaverse, and esports. The industry expert likewise said that the number of expert esports players will twofold from 300,000 in 2020 to 600,000 in 2021, and esports revenue in India was valued at $33.5 million in 2021 and is additionally projected to reach $245.21 million by 2028, showing a CAGR of 32.5% during the projected time frame (2022–2028).

Nonetheless, he believes that esports becoming a medal sport in the Olympics and Asian Games, the latest move by the Indian government, financial projections, and big announcements in the industry, such as Krafton’s announcement of the Battlegrounds Mobile India Pro Series with a prize pool of Rs 2 crores, are “testimonies to the potential of this rapidly growing industry” and that “the esports industry in India is going to witness limitless growth and endless opportunities”.

Meanwhile, Roland Landers, CEO of All India Gaming Federation, also believes that this is one of the fastest-growing sectors in the country and said that “we are extremely bullish about Digital India’s future in esports.”

“With the recent and most welcome move to have the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports regulate esports as part of multi-sport events, we believe there is surely a greater impetus towards creating more revenue generation opportunities for esports in India. “The framing of rules governing online gaming intermediaries by the IT Ministry will also doubly aid the esports industry in growing responsibly within India,” AIGF’s CEO noted.

Meanwhile, Soham Thacker, CEO & Founder of Gamerji, one of the leading esports tournament platforms, told News18 that with a growing audience and gamer base, esports has the potential to attract a large number of people with its growing number of tournaments and broadcasting rights.

“As the industry matures, advertisers and agencies are expected to leverage esports tournament viewership to gain reach and engagement with the audience.” India has more than 300 million gamers, and it has already started to compete for viewership with the likes of cricket, football, and other conventional games. “This will attract a lot of investment in the sector while also contributing to the GDP of the country,” he noted.

Moreover, the industry insider likewise said that esports and gaming have already been recognized by the government, and it is just a matter of time till they become a parallel mainstream sport. “The major following for esports comes from Gen Z and the millennials.” “As this age bracket grows financially, it will directly impact the industry and India’s economy,” he said.

Credit: News18