Online gaming events – called esports — have drawn a passionate audience to watch teams compete for a prize pool. The audience is younger than for major sports leagues, tech savvy and relatively wealthy (Exhibit 2). They are demanding of specific games and eager to watch top players in competition. The most popular game, League of Legends, sold out a 17,000-seat venue for its final event in 2013, and the 2018 International Dota 2 Championship was streamed to an online audience of 27 million. Find out UFABET เข้าสู่ระบบ เพื่อบริการที่ดีที่สุดกับ www.UFABET.ltd

Esports are organized in closed leagues similar to the NFL or NBA with teams (franchises) that compete through the season for multiple events and a final championship. Leagues are supported by a variety of investors including esports event organizers and sponsors (e.g., Honda and Team Liquid in League of Legends), video game publishers and developers (e.g., Activision-Blizzard / Overwatch and Call of Duty), and game consoles and Smart TV providers (e.g., Apple and Amazon).

Game On: How Competition Shapes the Landscape of Online Gaming Communities

While esports have grown rapidly, they have not yet generated significant revenue for their operators. This is because esports involve a single game, which typically is owned by a third party and does not generate ancillary revenue for its developer. Consequently, game publishers have been cautious about esports participation and are focusing on growing their core video game businesses.

Mobile esports are increasing in popularity, but viewership still lags PC/console-based events. As more game publishers adopt cross-platform play, viewership across platforms will grow. However, it will take time for complex games that feature multiple heroes with unique abilities / skills (e.g., MOBA or FPS like Valorant) to become operationally and financially viable.