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Esports trends in 2022 and beyond India : the sleeping tiger
Source : nikopartners . com
elements to the growth of gaming and competitive gaming .
According to estimates from the Pew Research Center , the majority of the population , around 1.3 billion , is classified as ‘ low income to poor ’, compared to around 66 million classed as ‘ middle income ’ and 18 million classed as ‘ upper to high income ’.
China , on the other hand , with a similar population size , has much greater numbers of people classed as ‘ middle income ’ ( 493 million ) and ‘ upper to high income ’ ( 265 million ).
However , the tide is slowly turning for India . Fifty-five per cent of the country ’ s population are expected to join the middle class by 2025 , in the process making it one of the largest segments in the world .
A recent Niko Partners report tipped the country ’ s game market to triple in size to $ 1.5bn by 2025 , three times a projected $ 534m in 2021 .
Meanwhile , in 2025 , India ’ s gaming consumers are expected to make up 56 % of the overall audience in the Asia-10 market , which consists of Chinese Taipei , India , Indonesia , Japan , Korea , Malaysia , Philippines , Singapore , Thailand and Vietnam .
A similar report from Ernst & Young , titled Ready . Set . Game On !, forecasts a quadrupling of esports industry revenue from 2021 to 2025 , fuelled by an increase in prize money , more game localisation , regional adaptation and deeper penetration of smartphones , laptop and broadband infrastructure .
“ Esports in India tells a great growth story ,” explained Ashish Pherwani , partner ( media & entertainment ), at EY India . “ As a game of skill accessible indoors and on the ubiquitous mobile phone , it has gained popularity during the lockdowns witnessed in 2020 and 2021 .”
Pherwani said for the industry to achieve its potential , the country requires government support , such as regulatory assistance in recognising esports , the creation of a nodal esports body , development grants and incentives for grass root inclusion .
Esports trends in 2022 and beyond March 2022