Gaming industry welcomes recognition for e-sports

The Indian government’s decision to officially recognise e-sports and online gaming as a multi-sports event has been welcomed by the industry stakeholders.

President Droupadi Murmu the other day issued a notification making e-sports a part of “multi-sports events” under the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports.

The Indian e-sports industry has been demanding that e-sports should not be categorised as ‘gaming,’ as e-sports is a competitive sport which involves the usage of abilities to compete in virtual video games.
So, what this announcement means for the industry? Industry players are sure that the government move will open doors to newer and better opportunities. They are unanious in tehir view that it is an exciting development in the gaming and e-sports industry.
“Recognizing e-sports as a part of the mainstream sports in India by the sports ministry is indeed a welcome move,” says JetSynthesys founder-CEO Rajan Navani.
According to him, India saw e-sports players double from 300,000 in 2020 to 600,000 in 2021, with revenue growing by 29% from INR 7.5 billion in 2020 to INR 9.7 billion in 2021.
These numbers, according to him, are telling of the popularity of the medium and the huge potential it brings with it to unlock economic growth and also impact the country’s demographic dividend positively.
“And as the founding partners of Nodwin Gaming, India’s largest e-sports company, we at JetSynthesys are thrilled to hear this news. We ventured into this sector when it was still nascent, and today, we have successful IPs via our in-house brand, Skyesports, where we host largescale tournaments with million-dollar prize pools. In fact, we currently publish India’s best e-sports game Real Cricket, recipient of multiple awards in the past, and one of the biggest revenue spinners for the market. We’re certain this recognition will make e-sports enter mainstream folds even more strongly, boost the morale of existing players within the ecosystem, and open doors to newer and better opportunities. It will also attract new players and brands and encourage viewership for the sport. Undoubtedly a great start to 2023, we thank the government for this and hope to see e-sports level up even further in the years to come,” Rajan Navani said.

Loco founder Anirudh Pandita said: “We welcome the government decision to recognise e-sports as a component of multi-sport events and bring online gaming under the remit of MeitY. With this legislation, the government has underlined the importance of building a vibrant gaming ecosystem and we believe that if the industry works in resonance with the government, then India will become a global gaming superpower soon. In the past two years, Loco has been the largest investor in India’s game streaming and e-sports ecosystem and in 2023, we look forward to continuing our investment in domestic gaming technology and content initiatives,” he said.

A uniform central regulation for online skill gaming has been a long-standing demand of the industry and this step will hopefully lead to a progressive regulatory framework underpinned by consumer welfare, said All India Gaming Federation CEO Roland Landers.

Salone Sehgal, Founding General Partner, Lumikai, said: "E-sports being recognised as an official sport is a milestone event in making the gaming industry mainstream. With 507M gamers, India is emerging as a key gaming market in the world. E-sports streaming watch hours already rival that of traditional sport. The further recognition of athletic achievement will result in an expansion of the gaming community, emergence of viable career options, bona fide support to e-sports players, higher brand/ media engagement alongside the broader acceptance of gaming as an industry. Lumikai is heartened to see our research and recommendations assist in shaping policy and regulation. We expect the industry to make even greater strides in 2023. "

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