With the eSports industry around the globe on an absolute surge, more and more big players are coming into the scene.
Why?
Because, the prospects in and around eSports seem to be quite rewarding in the near future. With the digital boom the world is experiencing, the electronic sports (eSports) sector is supposed to only grow further ahead.
Talking about major players venturing into the industry, Acer is one of the many companies who delved into eSports, before the term was popularised as it is now. Being one of the known names when it comes to PC products which cater to most of the games played professionally, Acer has created its stronghold in the eSports industry.
AnimationXpress spoke to Acer India, senior director and consumer business head, Chandrahas Panigrahi, to get a better insight about the company’s plans in regards to eSports and get a better understanding about the impact and acceptance of eSports in India.
“Indian gaming industry has gradually picked up the momentum and today we are seeing customers for gaming PCs which cost much more than the conventional PC. With professional eSports becoming more mainstream, gaming parlours which see professional gamers coming together to play tournaments, contribute to the sale. Individual purchases are also going up,” mentions Panigrahi. “Professional gaming teams are now getting more endorsements, creating a good market for gaming enthusiasts to invest on gaming PCs, even while they are priced higher. Professional gamers also get a chance of earning through various such tournaments. This gives them the impetus to invest on gaming PCs.”
Even in India, the eSports scene can be gauged at a much larger scale now as the scenario has changed for good, even according to the people associated to the industry. Major global tournaments are having their ‘India edition’ and more and more tournaments are seeing the light of the day with handsome prize pools. The Indian eSports Championship recently concluded too and even Thermaltake announced their partnership with an Indian eSports team.
So, what are the initiatives taken by Acer to tap in to this industry?
“Acer was recently the official sponsor of the 2016 League of Legends World Championships and 2016 All Star Event. This sponsorship for two of the world’s most popular and exciting e-sports events, helps Acer demonstrate its gaming prowess to gaming enthusiasts around the globe.”
In the recently concluded IFA Berlin event, Acer had launched the Predator 21x series of gaming laptops, the world’s first laptop with a curved screen, which was praised all over. The company also launched a trio of gaming monitors, and while only one of them is curved, all three of them include built-in Tobii eye-tracking and will likely be launched in India by the first quarter of 2017.
Having said that, when it comes to gaming and if it’s not related to mobile, India still has a long way to go. The acceptance of the products by the consumers lags quite a bit when compared to the western market. As Panigrahi says, “In some International markets we are already leaders in the PC gaming market. Due to the niche gaming market in India, though we have seen similar enthusiasm like its international counterpart, the numbers are comparatively small. The emerging gaming market in India has turned into an opportunity for many of the tech companies. The number of PC gamers has increased significantly in recent years. People are beginning to view gaming just like watching a movie and don’t mind paying for it. People who use gaming computers are a different group of people. They have different thinking, different perspectives and different requirements.”
Apart from that, how is Acer tapping into the Indian eSports scenario?
“eSports in India, is a comparatively new term. Considered to be one of the fastest growing “sport” in the world, eSports forayed into India, with the Indian Gaming League (or IGL). In the recent past, Acer was one of lead sponsors of the Taiwan Excellence Gaming Cup 2016, held in Mumbai. This association with the Taiwanese Government will further enable the brand to reach out to a larger gaming fraternity across the country, and establish Acer as a key player in the PC gaming market in India,” adds Panigrahi, while further informing us that Acer has long-term plans for Virtual Reality offerings in India.
Changes have been occurring rapidly and dramatically in India’s digital ecosystem. India, with 1.3 billion people and two-thirds below the age of 35, the world’s largest youth population, is poised to become one of the world’s leading gaming markets. Historically, games did not gain a foothold in India due to the lack of access to gaming consoles and PCs, and the low social acceptance of this entertainment medium. This is all changing now as the Indian games industry is at the cusp of a major transformation.
As the eSports explosion continues, the need for gaming PCs in new form factors is driving demand. The fusion of allied sectors like game development, animation and designing is also very important not only from Make for India point of view but also from Make in India prospective. Interestingly, we have huge youth workforce which can help in developing a co-creative ecosystem around gaming.