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Disclaimer:The article is authored by Mr. <keyword id="17130" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="santhosh" source="Orion">Santhosh</keyword> Viswanathan, Managing Director - <keyword id="28115" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="intel" source="Orion">Intel</keyword> <keyword id="3658" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="india" source="Orion">India</keyword> and he is an expert in the tech industry. The video game industry has been around for several decades. What began as a purely entertainment focused endeavor, has turned into a multi-billion-dollar industry that touches upon countless aspects of our modern existence. Today, gaming has relevance not just in the “entertainment dens” of geeks, but in academia, professional training for highly specialized skills (think pilots), research and even as a viable career. As the global outlook towards gaming started to shift, India too has embraced this new avatar with open arms. Not only is the number of gamers in the country on a steady rise, but so are related <a href="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/jobs/is-indias-gaming-industry-set-to-take-off-and-create-jobs-for-gen-z/articleshow/89644615.cms">employment opportunities</a>. E-Sports tournaments continue to take place within the country, with considerable prize pools to boot. As the arena of gaming continues to spread and grow, so does the revenue, which is expected to grow up to $3.9 billion by 2025 in a study initiated by <keyword id="149966" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="iamai" source="Orion">IAMAI</keyword> (Internet and Mobile Association of India). The gaming industry has seen a meteoric rise in popularity and revenue growth, with no signs of slowing down. While it may not be possible to attribute any one factor to this evolutionary change, there have been several milestones that played a key role in taking Indian gaming to all new, respectable heights. <h2>Remember Pong?</h2> It all started when <a href="https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/11/gaming-games-consels-xbox-play-station-fun/">Atari</a> released Pong in the ‘70s.What followed was a wave of releases by major companies through the ‘80s and ‘90s giving birth to the arcade format. The arcade style of gaming was eventually surpassed by the need to game in the comfort of one’s home, bringing about the age of consoles and personal computers. While consoles were mostly still dabbling in 2D games, the PC had opened new frontiers with games that took the visual experience of the time to a whole new level. As games became more immersive thanks to realistic graphics and incredible physics engines, the hardware and software industry as a whole was compelled to deliver better and better experiences. As the 2000s rolled around, games evolved further, becoming more story-driven at their core. Gamers wanted to feel connected, more invested in the experience. Game development studios were now hiring storytellers to make their games more narrative focused rather than “run-and-gun” model of the era past. The coming of the Internet and <keyword id="28168" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="smartphone" source="Orion">Smartphone</keyword> era The best games and gaming experiences continued to be limited to a specific audience for a majority of the early 2000s. However, by 2010, India high-speed internet had found its way to many homes and in another five years, the country would witness its biggest technological boom; the smartphone. The smartphone quickly rose to “essential commodity” status, propelled in part by plummeting costs of 4G connectivity and in part by OEMs driving down cost of ownership for end-consumers. What began as an obsession with Snake back in the 90s, over the years spawned an industry that would bring AAA titles from the PC to the smartphone. Cheap internet and an unphased spirit of healthy competition propelled competitive mobile gaming into the limelight, with more and more gamers taking up multiplayer gaming than ever before. Currently, India is home to roughly <a href="https://www.ibef.org/blogs/india-s-nascent-gaming-industry-on-the-rise#:~:text=The%20Indian%20gaming%20industry%20recently,of%20mobile%20games%20in%202021.">502 million</a> smartphone users of which almost 300 million users identify as gamers. A <a href="https://www2.deloitte.com/in/en/pages/technology-media-and-telecommunications/articles/tmt-predictions-2022.html">Deloitte</a> study posits that by 2026, India would be home to a billion smartphone users, while another <a href="https://web-assets.bcg.com/38/14/41fdfa494a9b84aaa32c47cc92b0/mobile-gaming-market-opportunity.pdf">study</a> claims that the Indian mobile gaming market expected to grow to $5Bn+ by 2025. Mobile gaming undoubtedly continues to be widely popular and greatly accessible, however, an <a href="https://in.mashable.com/tech/19136/pc-gaming-set-to-take-off-exponentially-in-india-in-2021-a-conversation-with-intels-akshay-kamath">Intel Kantar study</a> suggests that 90 percent of the mobile gamers in India are likely to shift to the PC as their preferred gaming device. <h2>The Pandemic changed the game</h2> As the COVID-19 pandemic put the world into complete social isolation, gaming quickly emerged as the go-to method for socializing, relieving stress and just passing time in general. As new gamers joined the fold, demand for gaming PCs and gaming monitors soared and continues to show an upwards trend. India continues to play a big role in this growth, with the country having <a href="https://www.idc.com/getdoc.jsp?containerId=prAP48895822">shipped</a> 14.8 million units in 2021, a 44.5% growth YoY. <h2>PC Gaming unleashes the champion </h2> One of the biggest contributors of legitimacy to gaming is the E-Sports boom. The global E-Sports industry was <a href="https://www.globenewswire.com/en/news-release/2022/06/06/2456862/0/en/The-Global-Esports-Market-is-expected-to-reach-a-value-of-USD-2-8-Billion-by-2028-at-a-CAGR-of-14-50-2022-2028-SkyQuest-Technology.html">valued</a> at $1.08Bn in 2021, and is expected to grow to $2.8Bn by 2028 at a CAGR of 14.50 percent, and India continues to play a notable role in its growth. The popularity of gaming titles combined with the superior experience of playing them on the PC has spawned an entirely new industry and allowed gaming to be seen as a much-respected vocation. E-Sports players today compete not only for eye-watering sums of prize pools awarded to the winners, but also the opportunity to walk away with other monetary prizes for other in-game achievements as well. Gamers who choose to pursue a career in E-Sports don’t just sit around and play all day, but just like any other sportsperson, spend a significant amount of time training their bodies and minds. Discipline, team-work, communication and endurance are just some of the key components that make a winner, just like any other sport. For those who still look upon gaming as “an activity for the delinquent,” the Asian Games 2022 officially included E-Sports as a competitive category, and India will send a <a href="https://olympics.com/en/news/asian-games-2022-indian-esports-team-athletes-qualified-full-list">contingent of 18 eSports athletes</a> who will be competing against the very best from around the world in five different gaming titles. Paving the Way Forward Gaming continues to gain mindshare amongst consumers, even those who wouldn’t call themselves hardcore gamers. What was once a standalone industry, existing in its own vacuum, now influences almost every popular aspect of pop-culture. Today, we have <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/video-games/2020/03/06/tired-marvel-cinematic-universe-wired-video-game-cinematic-universe/">TV shows and movies</a> based on games, feeding into the entertainment cycle. Game merchandise continues to hold significant value in bragging rights and not to mention, games continue to shape many of our cultural and inter-personal mannerisms as well. While gaming might be tethered to a singular device, its impact on our lives is grand and ubiquitous. While <a href="https://in.mashable.com/tech/19136/pc-gaming-set-to-take-off-exponentially-in-india-in-2021-a-conversation-with-intels-akshay-kamath">hardware</a> will continue to get more and more powerful, the future of gaming experiences will also be augmented by superior connectivity technologies such as WiFi6 and 5G thanks to their higher bandwidth and low latency nature. These new technologies will take the superior gaming experience, so far reserved for the PC, and bring it to a whole new class of devices thanks to the growing development and consumer interest in cloud gaming. While on one hand we’re seeing games break away from the staple devices, the <keyword id="11121339" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="metaverse" source="Orion">Metaverse</keyword> promises a whole new paradigm to the digital experience, including gaming. Imagine a scenario where you can attend an E-sports tournament, experience the exhilaration of being amongst thousands of other like-minded audiences, all from the comfort of your home. Amidst all this progression, what is clear is that gaming is no longer a casual activity, but a billion-dollar industry with something for everyone.

Evolution of PC gaming – an exciting ride ahead

<ul><li><keyword id="2440542" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="esports" source="Orion">Esports</keyword> has witnessed a massive growth in <keyword id="3658" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="india" source="Orion">India</keyword> over a short span of time. A recent EY report stated that the esports industry is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 46% to touch ₹11 billion by 2025. </li><li>Rajan Navani, Vice Chairman &amp; Managing Director, JetSynthesys writes on the state of esports in India and what opportunities lie ahead.</li></ul>Young 23-year-old <keyword id="8670455" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="tirth-mehta" source="Orion">Tirth Mehta</keyword> picked up his bags and flew to Jakarta back in 2018. Just another passenger, not a lot of people recognized the new athlete the <keyword id="84384" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="asian-games" source="Orion">Asian Games</keyword> was going to see that year. His homecoming however was an elaborate celebration filled with politicians, prominent personalities, citizens, friends, and family congratulating him on winning the bronze in Hearthstone, the esports demonstration event at the Asian Games 2018, becoming India’s first esports medallist at the global tournament. Cut to 2021, the gaming industry cheered for yet another win as esports would finally debut as an official medal sport at the 19th Asian Games 2022, a landmark event in the history of the gaming industry. Probably on the path to being recognized at the <keyword id="6360967" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="olympics" source="Orion">Olympics</keyword> as well, the category has witnessed a massive growth over a short span of time. Even though a nascent industry, it is already pulling in the big bucks and contributing to India’s economy; something which especially came handy at a time when the world was hit with the biggest black swan event of the decade, the Covid-19 pandemic. A recent EY report stated that the esports industry is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 46% to touch ₹11 billion by 2025. With the country's esports industry growing at a faster pace than the global esports industry, India is also concentrating on growing its prize pool which is expected to grow at 66% CAGR to reach ₹1 billion by 2025. One of the major factors for this is that esports is no longer a metro phenomenon. In fact, for the first time in history, rural India has a higher internet penetration than metros with 227 million active internet users, which is 10% higher than urban India at 205 million, as per the <keyword id="128625" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Internet-and-Mobile-Association-of-India" source="Orion">Internet and Mobile Association of India</keyword> (IAMAI). This internet and mobile penetration helps bring a fragmented market together, making esports a major driving force for the gaming industry in India. Needless to say, it is up to the many stakeholders of the sector to ensure its bright future materialises so let’s promptly deep dive into the potential growth areas and the next steps for each. First up are the players and the companies who make up the core ecosystem. The aforementioned EY report states that India has 1,50,000 players and around 60,000 teams currently and the number is expected to grow at 78% CAGR by 2025 to reach 1.5 million players and 250,000 teams. As esports becomes a viable profession, especially for the youth, brands operating in the space have their job cut out too – 1. make next-gen, compelling games which can engage Indian-origin sensibilities and sensitivities, and 2. motivate players through monetary incentives, recognition, and awards to train and play better. A special shoutout to Real Cricket here - the first Indian esports game the world will play and compete in! Also, with esports cutting across borders, it has paved the way for vernacular content creators to connect with their community easily, and for gamers across the board to come to the centre-stage. In fact, esports competitions in India and internationally are now broadcasted in many Indian languages such as Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Bengali, and Punjabi apart from English to make the sport further accessible and inclusive across the length and breadth of the country. This growth will be further propelled by the increase in prize money, more games, localization, regional adaptation and growth of smartphone, laptop, and broadband infrastructure. Government bodies will also play an instrumental role in taking esports in India to the next level by setting the right framework to promote participation. All of this and more will help people understand the depth behind this form of gaming, and also help sensitize parents about the virtues of esports as a viable career option. After all, it’s not just about those who actively play the sport but also about the trainers, coaches, casters, commentators, and many others who make up the support ecosystem. As a country, we are also steadily building the infrastructure for this industry with gaming houses and esports academies being created where players can train and spend time honing their skills. Brands and companies are pumping in financial investments, and ramping up sponsorships, contributing to the largeness of the sport. Globally, Europe, USA and Korea are the leading market for esports, but India, with its huge player base and enthusiasm is catching up fast with the global biggies, carving out its own coveted niche. Few months back, India saw the third edition of the Skyesports Championship record a concurrent viewership of 227K and 5 million one-day views, breaking viewership records and acting as a fantastic proof point for the high traction esports content generates already. Next year, as we compete in the Asian Games, one hopes this number will skyrocket even further, and more Tirth Mehtas will celebrate their moment under the sun.

Why esports is the latest gaming frontier to conquer

<ul><li>In our last feature from the series where we crystal-gazed into 2022 and brought to you some key trends that will impact the industry, we speak to experts from the Indian <keyword id="6357332" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="gaming" source="Orion">gaming</keyword> industry.</li><li>They share their thoughts of a few big trends that will dominate the industry in 2022.</li></ul>As we enter 2022, we can only look back and wonder at the meteoric rise online gaming has seen in India in the past two years. While gaming had been witnessing growth, albeit a relatively slow one, before the lockdown, it was during the locked-at-home phase that many across the country not only discovered the joys of gaming, but also realised they could make a healthy living out of it. If most reports coming out in the last one year are to be believed, India will see an even faster growth for the industry in the next few years, and now Bharat is joining in this growth. A recent report by <keyword id="7087972" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="mobile-premier-league" source="Orion">Mobile Premier League</keyword> (MPL), an <keyword id="2440542" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="esports" source="Orion">esports</keyword> and skill gaming platform revealed that India’s tier-III cities and towns have witnessed a significant rise in the number of online gamers in 2021. The top 30 of them reported up to 170% more gamers compared to 2020. Some of the small towns have more than 100% to up to 200% growth in online gamers. Another report by Sequoia India and BCG said that while the gaming industry in India is currently smaller than that of the US and China and is 1% of the global gaming market, it is generating $1.5B revenue and is expected to triple to over $5 billion by 2025 on the back of the ‘mobile first’ phenomenon. This massive growth has also led to a new breed of influencers who are being followed by hundreds of thousands of engaged audiences. YouTube’s recently released list of top Indian creators on its platform featured 5 gamers. And things are just about starting to get heated. To understand where this highly dynamic industry is headed in this next year, we reached out to a few prominent voices from the industry and this is what they had to say: Lokesh Suji, Director, Esports Federation of India &amp; Vice President of the Asian Esports Federation (AESF) India was a sleeping giant till Covid-19 happened, and now we have established ourselves as a market that cannot be ignored; Stakeholders like the brands, investors, authorities and so on, were just sitting on the fence and observing. But with a market of at least 450 million online gamers, the potential of video games and esports cannot be ignored. The year 2021, has been the inflection point for video games in India. While esports evolves itself into various business models, Non-fungible token (NFT) will be one big trend to watch out for in 2022. Video Games is the best use case for NFTs, customization of the skins, virtual avatars, in-game items/rewards etc. all this already exists in video games (so-called metaverse) and is now starting to be converted into NFTs. One of the key drivers for the meteoric growth of Video Games has been live streaming and esports, and such content creators and/IP holders will eventually look at converting the best of gameplays/streaks/moments into NFTs, which not only help increase monetization for content creators, video game developers etc. but also be a catalyst in terms of retention of fans and users respectively. Anirudh Pandita, Founder, <keyword id="820765" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Loco" source="Orion">Loco</keyword> Gaming has now arrived as a truly mainstream entertainment experience and has become the primary source of entertainment for India’s young generation. 2021 saw the rise of esports and game streaming, and 2022 will see this multiply. In 2021, we saw the arrival of BGMI which all Indian fans were waiting for and in 2022, we will see multiple big publishers release games for India. In 2021, we saw esports go to new heights and we will see continued growth in the sector in the next year as prize money as well as number of games will increase. Game streaming saw the entry of hundreds of thousands of new streamers and millions of viewers, and this trend should accelerate in 2022, with individual streams rivaling those of major traditional sports. Lastly, with blockchain providing interesting use cases, we expect to see interesting new use cases come out to help creators and consumers. We, at Loco, have always aimed at paving the way for gaming to go from a niche hobby to a mainstream national interest- which the year 2021 has helped realize. We are confident that with this, India will cement its place on the global gaming map in 2022. Abhishek Aggarwal, Co-Founder &amp; CEO, <keyword id="12415204" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="trinity-gaming" source="Orion">Trinity Gaming</keyword> The gaming industry is progressing, taking complete advantage of the latest developments in technology, software, better internet services, gadgets, cloud technology and more. In the Indian scenario, there is an explosive growth of gamers in this booming industry with creative and engaging content being an important aspect of the system. With more games introduced and with more people joining the pool, more brands are shifting their focus on marketing their brands through these young creators who have an enormous fan following across the age group of 15-30 which is the most targeted audience in advertising terms for both endemic and non-endemic brands. Gaming content has begun to penetrate the Tier II, Tier III locations, and beyond, giving vernacular content creators a chance to grow. With Hindi &amp; Tamil being the two most popular languages in streaming in India, it will surely gain more prominence in the coming time. More people will watch game streaming. Audiences tend to admire their creators and feel more connected to them due to their high level of engagement. The future of gaming beholds a lot and a stronger and classified gaming ecosystem is on the rise. Tarun Gupta, Founder, <keyword id="10820861" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="ultimate-battle" source="Orion">Ultimate Battle</keyword> Games and gaming content are highly engaging and we're seeing a huge spike in average and concurrent viewership for gaming content. The consumers are very dynamic and their attention span size has decreased noticeably in GenZ. We see short gaming video content to witness a never seen before hype in the gaming community. The mobile gaming market is expanding in tier 2 and tier 3 cities and we'll witness a rise in engagement in games, viewership, and content creation. Young gamers will play engaging games, consume fast-paced engaging content, and want to socialize with gamers often simultaneously. This will lead to more virtual world socialization among the young generation and higher consumption of gaming content. As such, 2022 will usher higher inclination by brands into the gaming industry to target the young age group of 18 to 25. With many startups and organizations focusing on gaming and esports, we'll see a spike in Esports events and team IPs being created. This will boost the gaming ecosystem in India and open multiple opportunities in careers for gamers and IT professionals. Roland Landers, CEO, <keyword id="3634002" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="All-India-Gaming-Federation" source="Orion">All India Gaming Federation</keyword> The Indian gaming industry along with the M&amp;E segment has now become one of the fastest growing sectors in India with around 7.3 Bn downloads in recent years. It has emerged as an important avenue due to a multitude of favorable factors such as young and tech-savvy population, affordable availability of feature-packed smartphones, better internet connectivity, and an overall technological development. The move has also accelerated the growth of multi gaming format in the online gaming space. The Indian gaming industry is expected to reach 3 billion by 2025 and is now projected to grow faster than the global online gaming segment. The industry currently employs 40,000 people in direct jobs and by 2024 the online skill gaming industry is expected to employ around 2 lakh people. This growth will further lead to revenue generation for the country, driven by ease of payment, better security and instant withdrawal of winnings etc. As the regulatory landscape is also evolving and positive judgments are expected from many states, we as an industry leader look forward to an exciting year for this sunrise sector. With its exponential growth, the gaming industry will also attract international investors to invest in the Indian market. Sameer Barde, CEO - E Gaming Federation <div type="image" title="IMG-20220110-WA0005" msid="88826278" hostid="261"></div> Online gaming will become increasingly mainstream and find acceptance as a source of entertainment in 2022. This year, we anticipate a growth rate of over 35 % for the sector as a whole. However, for this to happen, we hope to see government stakeholders accepting the need for regulation to protect the player and industry interests. Increasing monetization and adoption of new-age technology including blockchain and NFTs in the gaming ecosystem will be seen. We expect a larger number of players moving from free-to-play to paying-to-play, in-game purchases, and skill gaming. Industry players will develop new and exciting games for users based on traditional games and Indian themes, keeping the PM’s vision in mind. Additionally, e-Sports being a medal sport in the forthcoming Asian Games in September will result in a significant increase both in terms of acceptance and interest. All in all, we at EGF are excited and believe that this will be a bellwether year for the entire industry. Bhavin Pandya, CEO and Co-Founder, <keyword id="8913431" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Games24x7" source="Orion">Games24x7</keyword> The Indian online skill gaming industry is poised for tremendous growth. With the right support particularly in the form of progressive policy structures, gaming can spur a second software revolution in India. As of today, this industry offers direct employment to almost 50,000 people. It is also a major source of taxation for the exchequer. In addition, the sector has multiplier benefits for several other domains including fintech, banking, semiconductors, animation, and other aspects of Information Technology. The sector has witnessed significant investments from marquee international investors and accounts of several Unicorns. With the right encouragement and support, India can emerge as a global pioneer in gaming technology. Ankur Singh, CEO and Founder, Witzeal We believe that the gaming sector will continue to expand with the high end adoption of AI and data science to understand and provide users experiences they wish for. Future of gaming will likely be based upon newer technologies like Blockchain and its active usage would prove fruitful in the years to come. Another key trend to look forward to is the penetration of gaming in rural areas because the penetration of internet and smartphones is on a gradual rise. Yashash Agarwal, Co-Founder and CEO, <keyword id="3212361" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Gamezop" source="Orion">Gamezop</keyword> <div type="image" title="RIC_8498" msid="88758667" hostid="261"></div> Blockchain gaming is shaping up to be a very interesting space. We are already seeing very interesting games emerge with blockchain and NFTs at the heart of all the action. Games like Axie Infinity have popularized the Play to Earn mechanic and they have been able to scale engagement as well as monetization to huge numbers. Take it one step further and we see that decentralization is fundamentally changing how companies operate: all the way from raising money, to day-to-day governance. This is most notable in DAOs (Decentralized Autonomous Organisations), which follow a bottom-up, community-driven management style. We are excited to see the blockchain gaming projects that emerge from India! Vaibhav Odhekar, COO &amp; Co-Founder, <keyword id="2734866" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="POKKT" source="Orion">POKKT</keyword> The gaming industry is constantly evolving, and its popularity will continue to rise. In the last three years, the sector has welcomed 500 million new gamers globally. New technological breakthroughs such as virtual reality have provided another dimension towards entertainment in this domain. For many young folks, the industry has also become a viable career option. Talking about the trends- The audience will continue to diversify in the coming years. So, instead of a male/female audience bias, we'll have a nearly 50-50 gender split, with a lot more older people joining the online gaming space. India is expected to create more global content. Although the percentage is extremely low right now, as more high-quality content is created in India, the trend will improve. Also, e-Sports as a category will grow in popularity. In 2022, there will be a significant increase in the number of movies released worldwide. So, the biggest trend we anticipate to see is a lot more games based on movie franchises. Gaming has its own history of adapting films and gamers are enthralled by such games. Video games are a vast medium that covers a wide variety of genres and experiences that can only be experienced in games, along with contributions from a population from all over the world. Even while many modern games are inspired by movies, they are nevertheless unique in their own way and we expect them to expand in the coming years.

Gaming: What to expect from the Indian gaming and e-sports industry in 2022

Play-to-earn games gaining rapid popularity across South Asia <ul><li>The <keyword id="2440542" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="esports" source="Orion">Esports</keyword> gaming market in India is expected to reach a valuation of $5.7 billion by 2025. </li><li>GuardianLink with gaming partner IndiGG will initially have over 65k users. </li><li>Players have spent $4.9 billion on <keyword id="4668945" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="nft" source="Orion">NFT</keyword> games last year. </li><li>Asian leads the adoption of <keyword id="12497705" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="metamask" source="Orion">Metamask</keyword>, a <keyword id="7387190" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Cryptocurrency-wallet" source="Orion">cryptocurrency wallet</keyword> used for many Web 3 apps and online gaming.</li><li></li></ul>GuardianLink, has joined forces with gaming hub IndiGG, the Sub-DAO of Yield Guild Games (YGG), to build and promote the Web3 gaming ecosystem in South Asia. Guardian Link has famously been associated with supporting artists like Stan Lee and Amitabh Bacchan by managing their NFT sales. GuardianLink, together with gaming partner IndiGG and its user base of 65,000 online gamers, is on a mission to help gamers monetize their virtual gaming skills. IndiGG has made a significant investment in purchasing NFTs from GuardianLink and will lease them out to its community members to encourage them to play the NFT cricket game, win matches, and stand a chance to earn exciting rewards. "Like <keyword id="14555695" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Youtube-streamers" source="Orion">YouTube streamers</keyword> or TikTok/Instagram influencers, <keyword id="6355684" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="blockchain" source="Orion">blockchain</keyword> gaming has all the potential to become a dependable source of earning in the gig-economy era, if not for a full-time career. We strongly believe that NFT has the power to revolutionize the online gaming ecosystem in Asia," said Kameshwaran Elangovan, co-founder and COO of GuardianLink. Kameshwaran also adds, "Cricket is a religion in India, and even though Web2 games lack adoption for the sports genre, I believe Web3 cricket games would attract a lot of non-gamers in India as well. MCL is becoming one of the most popular live online cricket games thanks to its sustainable earnings potential," says Ayush Gupta, growth leader at IndiGG. Play-to-Earn games (P2E) have especially become popular post-pandemic. According to market tracker <a href="https://dappradar.com/blog/2021-dapp-industry-report">DappRadar</a>, gamers spent $$4.5 billion on NFTs last year. The amount one earns depends on the value of the game token which can be in the form of a cryptocurrency made on a blockchain. These blockchain games also provided a respite during the pandemic, where countries like Philippines and Thailand saw millions of users signing up for NFT game Axie Infinity due to rising unemployment. $500 in two hours Asian countries also lead the adoption of Metamask, a cryptocurrency wallet that is used during NFT online gaming. Vietnam, Thailand, India, China, Philippines and Indonesia occupy the <a href="https://consensys.net/blog/press-release/metamask-surpasses-10-million-maus-making-it-the-worlds-leading-non-custodial-crypto-wallet/">top 10</a>. According to a report by <a href="https://www.pwc.com/gx/en/industries/entertainment-media/outlook/downloads/pdf-global-gemo_take-a-tour.pdf">PWC</a>, global virtual gaming alone is projected to grow at 27.81% annually. Since the Indian subcontinent is a cricket fanatic, GuardianLink has also launched a first-of-its-kind NFT-powered play-and-earn cricket gaming app, <keyword id="13701309" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="meta-cricket-league" source="Orion">Meta Cricket League</keyword> (MCL), through its latest blockchain marketplace, 'Jump.trade'. MCL allows online game lovers to earn rewards worth $500 dollars in two hours. The esports gaming market in India is predicted to grow to be one of the largest in the world. A <a href="https://assets.kpmg/content/dam/kpmg/in/pdf/2021/06/digital-mobile-casual-gaming-in-india.pdf">KPMG study</a> claims that after five years of steady growth, it is anticipated to triple in value and reach from $1.7 billion in 2021 to $5.7 billion by 2025. SEE ALSO: <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/news/how-to-find-the-best-smart-projector-for-your-home-a-buying-guide-by-expert/articleshow/93112644.cms">How to find the best smart projector for your home — a buying guide by expert</a> <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/after-food-healthcare-expenses-are-becoming-a-bitter-pill-to-swallow-for-indian-consumers/articleshow/93115725.cms">After food, healthcare expenses are becoming a bitter pill to swallow for Indian consumers</a>

‘Blockchain gamers have the same potential as YouTube streamers, TikTok/Instagram influencers’

<ul><li>PwC's latest report reveals that India’s Entertainment and Media industry is expected to grow at 10.75% CAGR to reach Rs 412,656 Cr by 2025.</li><li>One of the fastest-growing industries in India, video games and esports revenue reached Rs 11250 Cr in 2020, and is set to expand to INR 24213 Cr in 2025, at 16.5% CAGR.</li></ul>India’s Entertainment &amp; Media industry is expected to reach INR 412656 Cr by 2025 at 10.75% CAGR. These figures come from PwC's Global Entertainment &amp; Media Outlook 2021-2025, the 22nd annual analysis and forecast of E&amp;M spending by consumers and advertisers across 53 territories. Rajib Basu, Partner &amp; Leader – Entertainment &amp; Media, <keyword id="148915" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="PWC-India">PwC India</keyword> said, "Despite the pandemic, the Indian entertainment and media sector has shown remarkable resilience. As we predicted last year, India is forecasted to be the fastest growing entertainment and media market globally in terms of consumer and advertising revenue. Technological advancement and deepening of internet access will continue to influence the way Indians consume content. Our Outlook shows that the demand for great, localised content, increased internet penetration and the creation of new business models will drive the industry’s growth for the next 5 years.” Key findings for India in this year’s Outlook include: <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="TV advertising:" text="TV advertising:">TV advertising: </cmsannotation>TV advertising has continued to expand in 2020, despite COVID, reaching INR 35015 Cr. India is the fourth-largest market globally after the US, China and Japan. Further expansion at a 7.6% CAGR will take TV ad revenues to the level of INR 50586 Cr in 2025. Multichannel advertising will account for nearly 92% of the total TV advertising market in 2025. Online TV advertising will make modest inroads in the forecast period, with broadband penetration remaining extremely low at 7.3% of households. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Internet advertising:" text="Internet advertising:">Internet advertising: </cmsannotation>India is the fastest-growing Internet Advertising market in the world at a CAGR of 18.8% during 2020-2025. Growth in mobile ad revenue overtook wired revenue in 2019 and is expected to be 74.4% of the total internet advertising revenue of INR 30471 Cr by 2025. In 2020 revenue from mobile internet advertising in India was INR 7331 Cr and will rise to INR 22350 Cr in 2025 – increasing at a 25.4% CAGR. This makes India the fastest-growing mobile ad market in the world, reflecting the potential for growth, with over half the population yet to take up a mobile Internet subscription in 2020. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Newspapers &amp; consumer magazines:" text="Newspapers &amp; consumer magazines:">Newspapers &amp; consumer magazines: </cmsannotation>In 2020 the Indian newspaper &amp; consumer magazines market was worth INR 26299 Cr and is likely to have a CAGR of 1.82% upto 2025. In 2020, print advertising revenue fell by 12.0% and print circulation revenue was down by 4.0%, mainly due to the pandemic. Digital magazine circulation and advertising revenue is set to increase between 2020 and 2025 from just INR 231 Cr to INR 358 Cr at a CAGR of 9.5%. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Cinema:" text="Cinema:">Cinema:</cmsannotation> Box-office revenues plunged by 75% year-on-year in a COVID-hit 2020 to INR 2652 Cr. Local producers turned to digital streaming to make up the shortfall. Box-office revenue is expected to recover and grow at a CAGR of 39.3% grossing up INR 13857 Cr by the end of 2025. The overall segment comprising box-office and cinema advertising is predicted to grow back to pre-covid level by mid of 2023. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Music, Radio &amp; Podcast:" text="Music, Radio &amp; Podcast:">Music, Radio &amp; Podcast: </cmsannotation>India’s total music, radio and podcasts market revenues dropped in 2020 to INR 4626 Cr, as the pandemic stripped almost INR 522 Cr from the country’s live music sector. Digital channels account for almost 90% of the recorded music market. And, like elsewhere, streaming is the most-popular category. Ad-supported streaming is the dominant digital product in India, generating INR 1088 Cr in 2020, almost twice the sum reported from subscription revenue (INR 581 Cr). The growth for the overall segment is predicted at 19.1% CAGR 2020-25 to reach INR 11026 Cr. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Video games &amp; esports:" text="Video games &amp; esports:">Video games &amp; esports: </cmsannotation>The gaming market in India continues to enjoy exceptional growth and shows enormous potential. Video games and esports revenue reached INR 11250 Cr in 2020 and is set to expand to INR 24213 Cr in 2025, at 16.5% CAGR. India’s gaming market is dominated by the social/casual category, which accounted for 77% of all video games and esports revenue in 2020. India’s esports market is small but as awareness grows and, crucially, the mobile esports offering becomes stronger, this sector will see rapid expansion, at a 31.6% CAGR over the forecast period. Other factors impacting the global E&amp;M sector: <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Generational shift: Youth will be served" text="Generational shift: Youth will be served">Generational shift: Youth will be served</cmsannotation> Not surprisingly, many younger consumers have little awareness of, or interest in, traditional media. On the other hand, media platforms designed for young consumers or that enable lightly-produced, authentic content have boomed. Gaming is central to the youth movement and is becoming a significant driver of data consumption – in fact it is on pace to be the fastest-growing content category in that regard, accounting for 6.1% of total data consumption globally by 2025, up from 4.7% in 2020. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Regulatory shifts: pushback on platforms" text="Regulatory shifts: pushback on platforms">Regulatory shifts: pushback on platforms</cmsannotation> The regulatory scrutiny of big tech is yet another shift impacting E&amp;M. Antitrust pressures have increased with calls to break up big tech platforms along with government proposals for new media regulations. Changes to current regulatory regimes are inevitable and it’s vital that E&amp;M players incorporate regulatory risks in their planning processes. Werner Ballhaus, Global Entertainment &amp; Media Industry Leader Partner, PwC Germany, concluded: “Even in the areas that offer the most compelling topline growth – like video streaming – the nature of competition is likely to change dramatically over the coming years. And all the while, the social, political, and regulatory context in which all companies operate continues to evolve in unpredictable ways. All of which means that sitting still, relying on the strategies that created value and locked up market share in the past, will not be the most effective posture going forward.”

India is the fastest-growing Internet Advertising market in the world at a CAGR of 18.8% during 2020-2025: PwC Report

Global technology brand <keyword id="20047445" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="lenovo" source="keywords">Lenovo</keyword> on Tuesday launched the new lineup of Legion gaming laptops in India, with <keyword id="19904566" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="artificial-intelligence" source="keywords">Artificial Intelligence</keyword> (AI) and next-gen features. The new lineup includes -- Legion Pro 7i, Legion Pro 5i, Legion 7i, and Legion 5i laptops. The latest series starts from Rs 129,990, and it can be purchased from Lenovo.com, Lenovo Exclusive Stores, leading e-commerce websites, and other offline retail stores. "Our devices integrate cutting-edge technologies with the power of AI, tailored for gaming and content creation. Our Legion devices provide diverse options to meet the evolving needs of gamers, offering trendy designs, flexible hardware choices, and feature-rich displays," <keyword id="21013009" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="ashish-sikka" source="keywords">Ashish Sikka</keyword>, Director and Category Head, <keyword id="20865482" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="lenovo-india" source="keywords">Lenovo India</keyword>, said in a statement. These latest gaming machines come powered by up to 14th Gen Intel Core processors and up to Nvidia RTX 4090 graphic cards. According to the company, Legion Pro 7i and Legion Pro 5i feature advanced components like an extra-wide vapour chamber, liquid metal infusion with AI-driven power management, and Legion ColdFront for Esports level performance for a competitive gaming advantage. In addition, the company said that Legion 7i and Legion 5i come loaded with PureSight display and <keyword id="21013010" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="truestrike" source="keywords">TrueStrike</keyword> keyboards to improve gaming, designing, and content creation. With the latest Legion laptops, gamers can avail of a free 3-month subscription to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate. SEE ALSO:<a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/telecom/news/mobile-number-portability-revamped-to-reduce-sim-swap-frauds-here-are-the-new-rules/articleshow/108613683.cms" target="_blank"></a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/telecom/news/mobile-number-portability-revamped-to-reduce-sim-swap-frauds-here-are-the-new-rules/articleshow/108613683.cms" target="_blank">Mobile Number Portability revamped to reduce SIM swap frauds – Here are the new rules</a><a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/mobile/news/realme-narzo-70-pro-with-dimensity-7050-5000mah-battery-launched-in-india/articleshow/108610768.cms" target="_blank"></a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/mobile/news/realme-narzo-70-pro-with-dimensity-7050-5000mah-battery-launched-in-india/articleshow/108610768.cms" target="_blank">Realme Narzo 70 Pro with Dimensity 7050, 5,000mAh battery launched in India</a><a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/mobile/webstories/poco-x6-neo-5g-vs-redmi-note-13-5g-which-phone-should-you-buy-under-20000/slidelist/108586427.cms" target="_blank"></a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/mobile/webstories/poco-x6-neo-5g-vs-redmi-note-13-5g-which-phone-should-you-buy-under-20000/slidelist/108586427.cms" target="_blank">Poco X6 Neo 5G vs Redmi Note 13 5G – Which phone should you buy under ₹20,000?</a>

Lenovo launches new lineup of gaming laptops with AI features in India

<ul><li>As per the report, <keyword id="10150755" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="ott-sector">OTT sector</keyword> will directly benefit from the closure of cinemas, as some film studios choose to fast-track new releases to home video platforms. </li><li>OTT video in India is expected to see the largest gain and reach 5.2% by 2024, closely followed by <keyword id="441315" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="internet-advertising">internet advertising</keyword>.</li></ul>According to PwC’s <a href="https://www.pwc.com/gx/en/industries/tmt/media/outlook.html">Global Entertainment &amp; Media Outlook 2020-2024</a>, the Indian E&amp;M industry’s long-term outlook remains robust as it is expected to grow at 10.1% CAGR to reach 55 billion USD by 2024. A K-shaped bifurcated recovery is on the horizon in which sectors like OTT, internet advertising, video/games/e-sports, and music and podcasts are expected to spearhead growth in the industry. Globally, Digital revenue is expected to contribute 60% to the total E&amp;M revenue by 2020, alone. In terms of individual segment market size as a percentage of total E&amp;M revenue, OTT video in India is expected to see the largest gain and reach 5.2% by 2024, closely followed by internet advertising. Segments like advertising and those dependent on physical locations are likely to be further impacted in a negative manner whereas digital E&amp;M spending will increasingly be regarded as a non-discretionary expense. While globally, newspapers and magazines are dropping the free online model and starting to ask readers to pay for quality content online, digital paywalls are yet to become commonplace in India. Furthermore, while India will remain the world’s biggest cinema market in admission terms, cinema revenue in India will contract at a -2.6% CAGR to total US$1.5bn over the next 5 years. Rajib Basu, Partner &amp; Leader – Entertainment &amp; Media, <keyword id="148915" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="PWC-India">PwC India</keyword> said, “ "We find ourselves in extraordinary times, and the pandemic has accelerated ongoing shifts in consumers’ behaviour, pulling forward digital disruption and reaching industry tipping points that wouldn’t otherwise have been reached in the next few years. Our research shows that India will be the fastest growing entertainment and media market globally in terms of pure consumer revenue.” Coming out of COVID-19, a K-shaped bifurcated recovery is expected in which some sectors rise while others fall. Over the next 5 years, the outlook remains highly positive for digital led segments such as OTT, Internet Advertising, Online Gaming and Music &amp; Podcasts that were perfectly positioned to meet consumers where they are in 2020 - predominantly at home and online. However, companies simultaneously have to prepare to meet them where they will be two years from now. They will need to build and maintain direct-to-consumer relationships, offer enough differentiation or scale to compete, and unlock greater value using the right technologies. This is a unique window of opportunity for E&amp;M businesses to transform and make themselves more resilient and relevant for the future.” added Rajib Basu. Top 4 segments to advance rapidly: OTT Video: India holds the most potential of any market in the world and its breakneck rate of growth will see total OTT video revenue overtake South Korea, Germany and Australia to jump to being the sixth-largest market in 2024. Subscription video on demand will be the prime driver of revenue, increasing at a 30.7% CAGR from US$708mn in 2019 to US$2.7bn in 2024. OTT video growth is coming from both inside and outside the home as Internet-connected devices proliferate as the new ‘at-home’ environment has led to the rise of direct-to-consumer apps, local ‘bite-sized’ entertainment platforms and user-generated content (UGC) formats Internet Advertising: India is now the sixth-largest Internet advertising market in the Asia Pacific region. Mobile will be the primary driver of revenue in the Internet advertising market revenue due to increased data affordability, new mobile-first formats, ability to measure, and strategic targeting. Nonetheless, from a global perspective, Internet advertising in India remains underdeveloped and has massive headroom for growth Video, <keyword id="10150756" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="games-e-sports">Games &amp; E-sports</keyword>: Gaming and e-sports are capitalizing on the need to bring live experiences into the home in more personalized and more engaging ways. E-sports represented less than 1% of overall market in 2019, but has become one of the fastest growing segments today with a projected 33% CAGR by 2024. However, despite surging growth and enormous potential, the sector tackles with the biggest challenge of low levels of app monetisation Music, Radio &amp; Podcasts: Podcast industry was already experiencing rapid growth prior to the COVID-19 outbreak. Fuelled by the uptake of music-streaming brands, the overall space is expected to grow at a 13.5% CAGR, to total revenue of nearly US$1.7bn in 2024. India will also see strong increase at a 30.4% CAGR in its monthly podcast listener base over the next five years, supported by entry of foreign players and original content on topics including news, society and culture As the industry navigates into the post-pandemic world, one can witness new opportunities for capturing growth: Players bolster subscription offerings - With consumers increasingly paying a monthly fee to access a library of entertainment content, such as films, music, content, fitness etc., <keyword id="126927" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Media-and-Entertainment">media and entertainment</keyword> industry players are catching on to the value of subscription based models to bring in business. Optimising revenue mix or pricing models to emerge more resilient and capture a bigger share of the wallet will be the focus Physical events look for digital alternatives - Another opportunity made more compelling by the pandemic is bringing live experiences into the home in a more personalized and engaging manner. Digital spaces—e-commerce platforms, virtual event spaces, gaming channels, podcasts—are evolving into powerful new platforms for marketing. Creating new content propositions will help realise new revenue streams OTT will thrive in 2020 as cinema and traditional TV degrow - OTT sector will directly benefit from the closure of cinemas, as some film studios choose to fast-track new releases to home video platforms. Since OTT platforms offer convenience and accessibility to consumers who are likely to hold on to their new habits of streaming ‘at home’, global SVOD revenue may overtake box office spend very soon Landmark acquisitions are out; buying growth and cash flows are in – As companies look for ways to navigate barriers, strategic investments &amp; alliances in search of scale and growth will be crucial to determine success in the E&amp;M media industry

India’s E&M industry expected to grow at a CAGR of 10.1% to reach US$55 billion by 2024: PwC India Report

South Korean gaming company <keyword id="10155974" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="krafton">Krafton</keyword> on Thursday announced its first esports tournament -- <keyword id="11645293" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="battlegrounds-mobile-india-series-2021">Battlegrounds Mobile India Series 2021</keyword>. The registrations for the tournament kicked off on July 19 and the event would have five stages spanning over three months. The video game developer has announced a prize pool of Rs 1 crore for this inaugural series. "<keyword id="11645294" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="battlegrounds-mobile-india-series">Battlegrounds Mobile India Series</keyword> 2021 attempts to offer a platform to the beloved players of Battlegrounds in India to showcase their skills on the grand stage," the company said in a statement. "With this announcement, Krafton promises exciting times ahead for the <keyword id="1980143" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Indian-gamers">Indian gamers</keyword>, as this marks the beginning of a series of new content, collaborations and esports tournaments Krafton will be introducing in the country," it added. The in-game qualifiers start on August 2 and end on August 8 and any player living in India and with an account that is Platinum and above is eligible to register and play in in-game qualifiers. Recently, Krafton announced that it has partnered with Elon Musk's <keyword id="186291" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="EV">EV</keyword> maker Tesla to allow players to drive a Tesla Model Y and can experience the autopilot feature available in the game. With a new update for the game after its official launch, players can enter the Gigafactory and watch the production of a Tesla Model Y from start to finish. They can then drive away in their new car and also experience the ground-breaking autopilot feature available in all Tesla vehicles. A self-driving <keyword id="4414344" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="tesla-semi">Tesla Semi</keyword> will also spawn randomly on rural roads and automatically run along specific routes. Players can deal damage to the Semi to force its supply boxes to drop and obtain combat supplies. SEE ALSO - <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/news/netflix-plans-to-add-video-games-to-its-categories/articleshow/84433119.cms">Netflix will reportedly add video games on its platform ‘within the next year’</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/corporates/news/just-dial-share-price-surge-as-mukesh-ambani-is-looking-to-buy-just-dial/articleshow/84432450.cms">As Mukesh Ambani reportedly dials in, Just Dial stocks surge 3%</a>

Battlegrounds Mobile India announces a pool prize of ₹1 crore for its first esports tournament

<ul><li><keyword id="7826063" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="paytm-first-games">Paytm First Games</keyword> has launched into another esports parternship with Garena.</li><li>PFG will be hosting its very first <keyword id="9092465" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="free-fire-india">Free Fire India</keyword> Solos (FFIS) tournament in May and June.</li><li>The platform has been adding nearly 75,000 players on its gaming arm on a daily basis during the lockdown period.</li></ul>If you’re a fan of multiple battle royale games that you can win by being the last man standing, then you’ve probably heard of Garena’s Free Fire. <keyword id="6357120" type="DEFINITION" weightage="20" keywordseo="paytm">Paytm</keyword> First Games (PFG) is now going to host its first Free Fire India Solos (FFIS) tournament on its platform in May and June. “The action-packed tournament is going to be a tremendous opportunity for Indian gamers to compete at a national level,” said Sudhanshu Gupta, the chief operating officer (COO) of PFG. Known for being the gaming avenue where you can play games and earn some money as well, PFG has been aggressively trying to build inroads into the esports arena. Paytm is going hard on gaming tournaments during the Coronavirus lockdown Although Paytm is commonly known for its online payments and digital wallet facilities, it’s been gaining traction on the gaming front as well. Its gaming arm entered the year with 45 million registered users and total time spent on the platform cumulatively adds up to <a href="https://blog.paytmfirstgames.com/year-in-review-paytm-first-gamestats-2019/">7,700 years. </a> Now, it has more than half a million daily active users (<a href="https://blog.paytmfirstgames.com/year-in-review-paytm-first-gamestats-2019/">DAUs</a>), who spend up to 45 minutes per session, according to the company. As most people are forced to stay home during the lockdown, Paytm First Games saw a sudden surge of 200% growth in March with over 75,000 new users joining the platform every day. “Esports is already growing really fast in India. With the circumstances like what we are going through now with COVID-19, it is adding more fuel to the fire,” said Gupta. In a first, PFG and Supercell announced a partnership to host a Clash Royale tournament in India — a joint venture between Alibaba Group’s AG Holdings and One97 Communications. This was the first time that Paytm dipped its toe in the esports arena. According to Gupta, the company only expected around 500 players to show up for the Clash Royale esports tournament. Instead, over 11,000 people signed up and the finals attracted an audience of over 70,000 viewers. Earlier this month, on April 14, the mobile game platform teamed up with another player — Singapore’s Esports Players League (ESPL) — to host competition. ESPL is creating an esports tournament and media network, starting with esports competitions in Asia, which will now include hosting games on Paytm First Games. This works out well because even though ESPL eventually wants to cover all platforms, it’s immediate impetus is on mobile. With shopping and payments dropping as more people stay home, pushing on gaming is one way that Paytm can make up for its losses. India is still in the early stages of the esports revolution, but it looks like Paytm has plans to be an important part of that growth story. See also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/vijay-shekhar-sharma-reveals-plan-to-spin-out-paytm-different-units-and-list-them-in-3-years/articleshow/75117395.cms">Vijay Shekhar Sharma reveals plan to spin out Paytm’s different units and list them in 3 years⁠</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/advertising/brands/article/people-are-depending-most-on-paytm-and-bigbasket-for-ordering-essentials-during-the-covid-19-lockdown/articleshow/75288286.cms">People are depending most on Paytm and BigBasket for ordering essentials during the Covid-19 lockdown</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/vijay-shekhar-sharma-reveals-plan-to-spin-out-paytm-different-units-and-list-them-in-3-years/articleshow/75117395.cms">Vijay Shekhar Sharma reveals plan to spin out Paytm’s different units and list them in 3 years⁠</a>

Paytm is doubling down on e-sports as it launches another online tournament — this time with Garena’s Free Fire

<ul><li><keyword id="133664" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Tiger-Shroff">Tiger Shroff</keyword> becomes one of the first Bollywood actors to associate with Esports to push Esports to the mainstream in India.</li><li>This collaboration aims to nurture an ecosystem that the Indian Esports industry has never seen before.</li></ul>Tiger Shroff is all set to don a new hat as the brand ambassador for India’s first-ever franchise-based <keyword id="4296740" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="eSports-league">Esports league</keyword>, <keyword id="11453652" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="esports-premier-league">Esports Premier League</keyword>. <keyword id="3328350" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="ESPL">ESPL</keyword> kicks off on June 16th powered by Infinix smartphone as the presenting sponsor. While Esports has seen an exponential rise especially during the lockdown, this league is the first of its kind to partner with Bollywood to bring wider popularity and acceptance to Esports. This power-packed collaboration aims to nurture an ecosystem that the Indian Esports industry has never seen before. The league will leverage Tiger’s popularity and strong influence on the dynamic millennials and Gen-Z. Sharing his excitement Tiger Shroff said, “I am really excited to collaborate with Esports Premier League. This opens a tremendous opportunity to recognize the growing talent in Esports in India. As the world’s first franchise-based model in Esports, ESPL will surely help in putting India first on the global map. Esports fans and gamers are shaping the future of entertainment and sports. And I’m glad to represent this force of the future.” With the majority of the 1.4 billion Indian population being youth, the Bollywood sensation also known for his passion for sports and Mixed Martial Arts will connect Esports to the mainstream as the inaugural edition of the league promises to bring the excitement of Esports through its nationwide tournament with lakhs of registrations that will commence from Wednesday. The preliminary rounds will engage in a highly competitive contest as eight teams will be chosen in the third round who will go on to contest in the grand finale. While talking about the association, ESPL Director Vishwalok Nath said: “One of the major goals for ESPL has been to reach out to every millennial and gamer in the country and our purpose of having Tiger Shroff onboard has been to create a much deeper connect and grow the gaming community. We hope this association will also further our initiative to intensify the mission of taking Esports to the next level in India.” As part of the franchise-based league, the Hyderabad team has been bought by Chequered Flag Sports—a consortium between Sirish Kumar, Prasad Mangipudi, and Aashwij Ravula—and the team has been named as Hyderabad Hydras. Hyderabad is the first city that will witness the proud owners in the inaugural edition of ESPL. There will be more teams representing cities including Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Bengaluru, and states like Punjab, and Rajasthan in the upcoming league. India Today Gaming has teamed up with Garena to create this exclusive gaming platform featuring their most popular battle royale game, Free Fire, in India. The matches will be streamed on OTT giant Disney+ Hotstar alongside official YouTube and Facebook channels of India Today and Aaj Tak and its websites. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Season 1 will be held virtually over two and a half months. It will also feature a prize pool worth Rs. 25 lakhs where the winner takes home a sum of Rs. 12 lakhs while second and third-placed teams will take home Rs. 6 lakhs and Rs. 3 lakhs, respectively.

ESPL signs Tiger Shroff as the face of the first-ever franchise based Esports league

New Delhi, May 28 () Bharti Airtel and NODWIN Gaming on Thursday announced a partnership to promote and grow e-sports in India. E-sports have the potential to become a sizable part of the country's mainstream sporting culture given India's large youth population and rising internet penetration, according to a statement by the companies. It is estimated that by 2021, online gaming will become over USD 1-billion market in India with over 620 million gamers. "The partnership has been kicked off with the launch of Airtel India Esports Tour, which is the first and largest property of its kind in this segment," the statement said. It will also have a national ranking and awarding system for Indian e-sports players based on their year-long performance across top tournaments and will be used as a base to create a points table for all participants, it added. "Airtel India Esports Tour will initially cover all NODWIN tournaments across gaming titles of PUBG Mobile, CS:GO, Clash of Clans, FIFA, etc. The coverage will extend to all iconic NODWIN tournaments such as the India Premiership by NODWIN, Dreamhack India, The Northeast Cup, KO Fight Nights and PAN Fest," the statement added. MBI HRS

NODWIN Gaming, Airtel team up to grow e-sports in India

<ul><li><keyword id="7087972" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="mobile-premier-league">Mobile Premier League</keyword> had plans of spending 40% of its marketing budget on <keyword id="6354312" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="IPL">IPL</keyword> this year.</li><li>With the suspension of the league, we speak to <keyword id="6176095" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Abhishek-Madhavan">Abhishek Madhavan</keyword>, Senior Vice President, Growth and Marketing, MPL who tells us how the brand plans to communicate with its consumers now, and what its plans to grow the business further is.</li></ul>The <keyword id="6357332" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Gaming">gaming</keyword> and esports sector in India has been witnessing good growth in India, thanks to improved accessibility in technology and cheaper internet. That investors and venture capitalists are putting in monies in the sector is further proof that there is a huge opportunity. A recent report by <keyword id="274082" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Maple-Capital-Advisors">Maple Capital Advisors</keyword> stated that the Indian gaming sector saw investments of around $544 million between the August 2020 and January 2021 period, a number that is expected to double over the next 12-18 months on the back of higher user awareness and accelerated engagement. Over the past few years, we have seen a number of e-gaming players enter the market. Many of these have been spending substantial amounts on advertising too. One such player, Mobile Premier League (MPL), announced in February this year that it had raised $95 million in a Series D round of funding, bringing its value to $945 million after raising. With this fresh round of funding, MPL planned to expand its eSports portfolio and bolster its efforts to organize more eSports tournaments nationally and internationally at scale. It is also looking at accelerating its international expansion this year. Last month, MPL also acquired esports gaming platform <keyword id="6231572" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="GamingMonk">GamingMonk</keyword> that hosts esports tournaments across multiple platforms. MPL had invested on the Indian Premier League last year and reaped impressive results, it saw the number of gamers on its platform go up 7X post IPL so this year too, the platform had launched an aggressive campaign to grab maximum eyeballs during the league. However, with the suspension of the league, how does it impact its marketing plans for the rest of the year? We spoke to Abhishek Madhavan, Senior Vice President, Growth and Marketing, MPL who told us how the year has been so far for the platform and what more we can expect from it through the rest of the year. Excerpts: <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Q) We had thought 2020 was a difficult year but 2021 has been an even difficult one so far. How has the year been so far for MPL from a business standpoint?" text="Q) We had thought 2020 was a difficult year but 2021 has been an even difficult one so far. How has the year been so far for MPL from a business standpoint?">Q) We had thought 2020 was a difficult year but 2021 has been an even difficult one so far. How has the year been so far for MPL from a business standpoint?</cmsannotation> It’s been quite a year in general. What the country is witnessing is unprecedented and right now, our focus is on trying to do our bit in helping out and ensuring that our employees and their families are safe. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Q) In terms of growth, the pandemic had led to a lot of people staying at home, exploring newer ways of keeping themselves entertained and fantasy gaming benefited from that. What kind of growth have you witnessed in the last one year?" text="Q) In terms of growth, the pandemic had led to a lot of people staying at home, exploring newer ways of keeping themselves entertained and fantasy gaming benefited from that. What kind of growth have you witnessed in the last one year?">Q) In terms of growth, the pandemic had led to a lot of people staying at home, exploring newer ways of keeping themselves entertained and fantasy gaming benefited from that. What kind of growth have you witnessed in the last one year?</cmsannotation> Last year’s lockdown due to the pandemic was a black swan event that nobody could have foreseen. Yet, it did help the gaming industry as people explored their skills by taking to gaming platforms from their homes. However, pure fantasy apps were affected due to the lack of live sporting action last year. That being said, we added over 3 crore users on MPL last year. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Q) You were supposed to spend 40% of our ad budget on IPL. As the league stands postponed indefinitely, how are you modifying your marketing plans for the rest of the year?" text="Q) You were supposed to spend 40% of our ad budget on IPL. As the league stands postponed indefinitely, how are you modifying your marketing plans for the rest of the year?">Q) You were supposed to spend 40% of our ad budget on IPL. As the league stands postponed indefinitely, how are you modifying your marketing plans for the rest of the year?</cmsannotation> We will be back on IPL media properties whenever the league returns. However, since our business is not IPL dependent, we are looking at other conventional media channels to run our brand campaigns on, at the moment. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Q) You had an aim of increasing your user base to 10 crore by the end of the league. How do you aim to achieve this target now?" text="Q) You had an aim of increasing your user base to 10 crore by the end of the league. How do you aim to achieve this target now?">Q) You had an aim of increasing your user base to 10 crore by the end of the league. How do you aim to achieve this target now?</cmsannotation> We are a gaming platform. And while the IPL definitely helps us, what we offer our users goes beyond just fantasy sports. There are over 50 games on MPL across categories like esports, casual, fantasy, etc, and once things get better for the country, you will hear from us on our campaigns. Right now, our focus is on helping the situation get better in whatever way we can. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Q) What kind of growth had you seen from associating with IPL last year?" text="Q) What kind of growth had you seen from associating with IPL last year?">Q) What kind of growth had you seen from associating with IPL last year?</cmsannotation> Last year’s IPL broke viewership records and we too benefited from our partnerships and associations with teams such as KKR and RCB. We engaged our gamers with activities such as player meet-and-greets, special contests, and giveaways. During IPL 2020, the number of fantasy gamers on MPL increased by 7 times compared to pre-IPL, and the number of daily installs of the MPL app increased by 100% compared to pre-IPL 2020. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Q) In the last few years, there has been a boom of fantasy gaming platforms in India. How are you differentiating yourself?" text="Q) In the last few years, there has been a boom of fantasy gaming platforms in India. How are you differentiating yourself?">Q) In the last few years, there has been a boom of fantasy gaming platforms in India. How are you differentiating yourself?</cmsannotation> We are a full-fledged gaming platform with a 365-day value proposition and we aren’t a fantasy app that is dependent on sport seasons or leagues. With our wide variety of games and features, we attract a wide range of users above the age of 18, going all the way to ages 60 and above. Gamers can find all kinds of games on our platform, along with social features to connect with the gaming community. We are also organising fortnightly esports tournaments in games such as Chess, World Cricket Championship, etc, and entry to these tournaments is absolutely free, with lakhs in prize money up for grabs. We are also live-streaming these tournaments to millions of viewers through our social media handles. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Q) Where do you think MPL's next phase of growth will come from?" text="Q) Where do you think MPL's next phase of growth will come from?">Q) Where do you think MPL's next phase of growth will come from?</cmsannotation> Esports is currently on the upswing in India and across the world. We think India has an abundance of talent in esports and mobile esports is the best way forward in recognising and honing this vast talent pool. Esports being recognised by traditional sports competitions like the Asian Games is a big boost for this sector. We aim to take esports to the masses via our mobile application and are geared for the growth coming in from this sector. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Q) Will you continue with your Hain Akal Khelo MPL campaign despite IPL's suspension considering it had been gaining traction?" text="Q) Will you continue with your Hain Akal Khelo MPL campaign despite IPL's suspension considering it had been gaining traction?">Q) Will you continue with your Hain Akal Khelo MPL campaign despite IPL's suspension considering it had been gaining traction?</cmsannotation> The core message behind the ‘Hain Akal Khelo MPL’ campaign is that fantasy sports require skill and knowledge of the game. While we launched it along with the IPL, the campaign continues to run as the core message applies to all fantasy sports. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Q) What is your vision for MPL? Where do you want to see it in the next few years?" text="Q) What is your vision for MPL? Where do you want to see it in the next few years?">Q) What is your vision for MPL? Where do you want to see it in the next few years?</cmsannotation> We want to be the world’s biggest esports and skill gaming platform. That is the vision we have right from the start and we feel India is poised to become a global leader in esports. We have a great number of skilled game developers who can make games for the world and we have so many gamers who are waiting for an opportunity to excel in esports. By bringing them together on our platform, we can exhibit India’s prowess to the world. Our Indonesia business is doing really well and this has encouraged us to plan to expand to other geographies as we march towards realizing our vision.

We will be back on IPL media properties whenever the league returns: Abhishek Madhavan, Mobile Premier League

<ul><li>Esports has always been present in India since the days of the Defence Against the Ancients (DOTA) but it's booming to a whole new level with the advent of PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG) making its foray into the country.</li><li>More and more players are taking up gaming professionally but it's not as lucrative as one would expect and parents still want their kids to keep their grades up in case esports doesn't work out. </li><li>Business Insider India spoke to two previous winners of PUBG Mobile competitions in the country to find out what it's like to be a gamer in India.</li></ul> PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG) has been sweeping over India. And in June, the game crossed 400 million downloads reaching 50 million daily active users (DAUs). The esports industry is also hot on the track — expected to cross $1 billion in the next two years according to <a href="https://www.news18.com/news/tech/expect-indian-gaming-industry-to-cross-1-billion-within-two-years-says-google-2164255.html">Google</a> — with numerous competitions opening up the possibility of <keyword id="2466005" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Professional-Gaming">professional gaming</keyword> for PUBG players in the country. Business Insider India spoke to Mehul Dey, winning team member for Terrifying Nightmares who won the PUBG Mobile Star Challenge 2018, and Naman Sandeep Mathur — popularly known as Mortal on YouTube — from <keyword id="7799655" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="team-soul">Team SOUL</keyword>, winner of PUBG Mobile Championship Open (PMCO), to get some insight into the world of gaming. Here’s what it’s like to be a gamer in India:

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