Lets start with some numbers:
- Newzoo estimates the gaming market revenue will reach $189.6 billion in 2020, up from 148.8 billion in 2019.
- According to a report by Quantum Tech Partners, approximately $1 billion was invested in the eSports category in 2019,
- M&A transactions in esports reached $475 million in 2019, across 33 deals
As the global gaming industry continues to grow in 2020 and beyond, Quantum Tech Partners projects esports revenues will grow to $4 billion the outlook for esports revenues, as it expects the industry to reach $4 billion in revenues by 2022, much higher than predicted by Goldman Sachs ($2.96 billion) and Newzoo ($1.79 billion).
But when it comes to eSports there’s a certain stagnation with regards to who is capturing the majority of the value: game publishers and the top streaming platforms. Judging by the growing interest in esports and the various 2020 predictions, that is expected to spread out to other parts of the esports ecosystem:
- Viewership for esports events is projected to grow and break new records. Broadcasters are getting serious about esports providing ESPN quality coverage to the top competitions
- The streaming platforms will also want a piece of the action and you can expect in general more content/coverage of esports will become available (and monetised!)
- Real money betting and social betting are increasingly becoming popular, creating new revenue opportunities for streamers and more engaged audiences on gaming streams
- Gamers wishing to improve their skills can now take part in training platforms which analyse their weaknesses in the game
- Brands looking to reach the gamer demographic are looking to enter the space, partnering with streamers directly or sponsoring tournaments and competitions
- Cloud gaming (and in the future 5G networks) will make console games accessible in the cloud via the mobile, growing audiences and fan based
- Twitch, Mixer, Youtube, Caffeine, Facebook and other streaming platforms will continue to open up their streams for third party developers to better leverage their audiences and data
And the list goes on. Intel has announced it will host an esports tournament in Tokyo during the lead-up to the 2020 Olympics. esports stadiums are popping up everywhere, including the Fusion Arena, a $50 million stadium being built by Comcast in Philadelphia. We’re very excited about these trends at Remagine Ventures, and looking to shine a spotlight on the opportunities esports presents for startups.
To that end, next week we are hosting our second annual esports event in Tel Aviv with a fantastic line up:
- EVP esports and gaming at Modern Times Group MTG AB who led MTG’s acquisitions & investments in ESL & DreamHack AB
- CEO of eSports.com and MD of ProSiebenSat.1 Media SE sports
- Head of global business development at ESL Gaming
- Head of innovation & data at Newzoo
- QueeNiki – one of Israel’s top streamers
- CEO of Overwolf
- Co-founder of StreamElements
In attendance there will also be the top esports startups and investors in Israel. If you’re in Tel Aviv next week, we’d love to have you join us. Spaces are limited, please RSVP here: https://remagineesports2020.splashthat.com
I'm a former general partner at google ventures, head of Google for Entrepreneurs in Europe and founding head of Campus London, Google's first physical hub for startups.
I'm also the founder of Techbikers, a non-profit bringing together the startup ecosystem on cycling challenges in support of Room to Read. Since inception in 2012 we've built 11 schools and 50 libraries in the developing world.
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