Taiwan should endeavor to reclaim a leading position in the global competitive gaming, or e-sports, industry, especially as the industry’s market value is forecast to reach US$113 billion next year, Chinese Taipei e-Sports Association director Cheng Pao-ching (鄭寶清) said.
Citing statistics from Twitch, the world’s largest gaming livestreaming platform, and the Market Intelligence & Consulting Institute (MIC), Cheng said that Taiwan has both the manufacturing capacity and enough interest among the population to make a comeback as a force to be reckoned with.
According to Twitch’s June statistics, more than 4.5 million unique Taiwanese users watched 1 billion minutes worth of livestreamed footage that month, making Taiwan one of the five biggest audiences worldwide and also an important base for development, Cheng said.
Photo: Chen Yao-tsung, Taipei Times
Views from Taipei alone grew 34 percent from the same month last year as city residents watched 1 billion minutes of live-stream footage, Cheng said, adding that Taipei had the highest viewership.
MIC statistics show that equipment specifically made to enhance player performance in e-sports is becoming more commonplace as the industry matures, Cheng said, adding that Taiwan stood to benefit as computer hardware and equipment has always been Taiwanese manufacturers’ strong suit.
With China, South Korea, European countries and the US giving competitive gaming official recognition, the fervor behind e-sports would only continue to grow, Cheng said.
The e-sports industry has also seen a gradual rounding-out of its ecology, with direct-broadcast platforms, broadcasting rights to televise events, advertising and the establishment of professional teams, he said.
More than 80 percent of Taiwanese motherboard maker Micro Star International’s profit of NT$102 billion last year came from sales related to e-sports, Cheng said.
However, despite the numbers, the government and the public have not warmed up to the industry, he added.
With 6 million Taiwanese playing mobile games or massively multiplayer online games, the government should take a lesson from basketball and baseball, sports that were seen as a frivolous waste of time, but which now offer salaries higher than the average white-collar job, Cheng said.
The e-sports industry offers a bright future and is a global trend, and parents should not feel that children are wasting their time on computer games, he added.
With the recent inclusion of e-sports in an amendment to the Sports Industry Development Act (運動產業發展條例), the Taiwanese e-sports industry still stands a chance of reclaiming its previous glory through development of software, peripheral hardware and e-sports events, Cheng said.
If Taiwan performs well in e-sports at the 2022 Asian Games, Taiwan’s visibility on the international stage would be greatly increased, Cheng said.
A good environment is critical to foster an e-sports industry, and aside from next year’s International e-sports Federation championships being held in Kaohsiung, Cheng said he hopes to persuade the governments of all six special municipalities to construct e-sports arenas that conform to international competition standards.
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