eSports in a pandemic.
The Market
Despite still being in its formative stages, the eSports market is experiencing rapid growth, with worldwide market revenue expected to reach $1.6 billion by 2024. These revenues are overwhelmingly generated through sponsorship and advertisement, which accounts for 59% of the markets value. The easy accessibility of eSports continues to attract a larger and larger audience, and at the current rate of growth, by 2023 there are expected to be almost 300 million frequent viewers of eSports world wide, with an additional 351 million occasional viewers.
Impact of Lockdown.
People’s reliance on technology to stay connected and entertained has increased the use of digital goods during lockdown, boosting the viewership of eSports and Streaming. Furthermore, in the absence of live sporting events, mainstream sport organizations (such as F1, the Premier League) have broadcast eSports competitions, further thrusting eSports into the eyes of the mainstream media. Appealing to the mainstream market is crucial for the growth of the industry, if achieved successfully — some 15.5% of internet users could watching eSports at least once per month by 2023.
Post Lockdown / re-emergence
As lockdown measures ease, consumers will resume face-to-face interaction — placing other leisure activities back into competition with gaming. As a result, the eSports market will stabilize, returning to its expected pre-covid-19 growth trends. The lifting of social distancing restrictions means the operation of in person eSports social events can continue (such as eSports bars and studios). The merging of gaming and socialization appeals to both eSports fans, casual gamers, and also acts as a means of introducing friends to the eSports scene in an approachable environment. Some 62% of consumers reported an interest in going to an eSports bar.
New generation of consoles
The release of the PS5 and Xbox Series X in winter 2020, marks the first launch of a new generation of consoles since 2013 — and thus represents a crucial period for sales growth. Whilst concerns over finances, due to the pandemic, may limit the appeal of the next-gen consoles to the wider market — those within professional eSports and amateur competitive streaming will see this as less of a barrier. Primarily, to remain competitive with other streamers / content creators — but also due to the return of investment they are likely to see from the purchase.
The Consumer
Some 35% of those under 20 play videogames at least 5 times a week. With younger people making up the market share of gamers, trends in game viewing and streaming is largely controlled by the younger audience: while just under a third of all console gamers watch livestreams, 58% of Gen-Z gamers watch gaming steams. Furthermore, one in four children aged between 13 and 18 watches eSports, with younger audiences proving to be highly engaged with eSports — with over 10% also participating in eSports themselves (in India, USA and Australia).
Following in their footsteps
The level of interaction between pro-eSport players and their fans easily outweighs that of conventional sports. Once your favourite football player finishes their post match interview — that’s it. Yet when a pro-eSports player finished a big game, the first thing they do is start up a stream, from which the fans can hear from the pro-player, interact with others in the community, and even donate / write a message in chat directly to the streamer. It is thus not surprising that some 48% of eSports viewers show interest in becoming professional players themselves.
Community
While gaming may initially seem like a hobby for the anti-social, the communities and friendships made throughout the industry beg to differ. Some 51% of eSports viewers use / would use a calling application to communicate with other viewers while watching a game. Discord is the most popular platform for this, due to the ability for gamers to create their own online community within which communication between viewers can occur. The social aspect of watching eSports is further highlighted by the fact that only 27% of those going to an eSports event would go alone.
TV Coverage
Of those who watch eSports or streaming — 64% agreed that greater TV coverage would encourage them to watch more often (while 11% of those who do not currently watch eSports also agreed). The potential for eSports to enter the mainstream is greater now than ever before, with key eSports events post COVID-19 being pivotal in the integration of eSports into the eyes of mainstream media. Already, have we seen pro-players from relatively niche eSports appearing on mainstream television — such as two-time Overwatch League Champion Matthew ‘Super’ Delisi who was interviewed twice by NBC’s Jimmy Fallon on the Tonight Show.
Streaming Platforms
Platforms such as Twitch and YouTube have benefited greatly from the increased viewership due to the lockdown — with concurrent viewership of eSports on the online streaming platform Twitch estimated to reach more than 3.2 million in 2023. Furthermore, in a 2020 survey some 91% of gamers from the US admitted to watching gaming videos on YouTube. In January of 2020, Google reported a deal with Activision giving YouTube exclusive streaming rights for the Call of Duty League, Overwatch League and HearthStone eSports tournaments. Competition between streaming giants such as YouTube and Twitch only serves to benefit the fans as it promotes innovation over stagnation.
The power of Video Games.
While many people have struggled with boredom during lockdown, those who enjoy video games have been able to find refuge in its consistency and reliability despite the pandemic. Playing on the Universities Overwatch Team biweekly has provided me with structure, friendship and routine in what would’ve been largely structureless time. And has given me the opportunity to meet new people in a time when social interaction is in short supply. I have no doubt that this trend is consistent across my demographic, and I’m looking forward to exploring what eSports has to offer post COVID-19.
