The eSports industry is booming right now. With new games coming in and the expansion of mobile gaming, the eSports market is up for a steep hike.
ESports or electronic sports is an advanced type of competitive organized video gaming, which is played professionally with a specific objective. It is a burst of the gaming community at the cross-section of social connections formed online.
According to a report, the eSports market is expected to exceed $3 billion by the end of 2025. This hike will occur at a CARG of 18% between the years 2019-2025. Japan, China, Germany, South Korea, United States, France, UK, and Canada are the biggest stakeholder in the industry right now.
Moreover, the eSports industry also expects to see a paradigm shift. The industry will become even more interactive and streaming-based in the years to come.
Also, eSports events bring in huge traffic. The audience has two groups: occasional viewers and regular viewers. Regular viewers are hardcore fans and gaming enthusiasts. Since 2019, regular users have accounted for most of the revenue. But, the occasional audience is also increasing steadily.
Another big source of revenue for the eSports industry is streaming platforms like YouTube and Twitch. Events are streamed live on social media platforms as well and generate a lot of traffic.
Digging a little deeper into the report, another main contributor to this growth is the proliferation of smartphones. The ‘mid-range’ segment is becoming more and more competitive. Companies like OnePlus and Xiaomi are bringing smartphones with sheer horsepower into this segment. As these powerful smartphones are becoming more and more accessible, eSports is also becoming more accessible.
Moreover, with the advancements in 5G technology, eSports is becoming more streamlined and simultaneous. 5G has expanded and become more widely available as well.
But, why is eSports such a big thing?
Developers realized the eSports potential and began to get more involved, leading to more money, better broadcasts and, higher production values. Live streaming in turn became increasingly popular through platforms such as Twitch, allowing gamers around the world to bring steady incomes.
Immensely popular games like Defense of the Ancients 2 (DOTA 2), Call of Duty (COD), Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS: GO), League of Legends, and Starcraft all have their own mega-events. Gaming enthusiasts from all over the world stream these events live and the generated revenue also enables the hosts to ensure handsome prizes for the winners.
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Moreover, Valve hosts an annual DOTA tournament called The International. Classy Name. It is one of the most popular eSports events. DOTA players from all over the world compete in this tournament for prizes.
The International 2017 had an insane prize pool of $24,787,916. Consequently, it broke all records for the biggest prize pool in any eSports event.
The popularity of eSports has grown so much in recent years that it will be joining Olympics 2024. Now that will definitely be something to look forward to!