The business of video gaming is big and getting bigger, with a majority of US adults playing this year.
A burgeoning area of the gaming industry is much like with regular sports: when people aren’t playing them, they like to watch others play. Indeed, so-called e-sports is continuing its rapid rise, with spending on the category in the US expected to reach $281 million this year, per forecasts from PwC.
To put the growth of e-sports into perspective, in the 4 years between 2014 and 2018, spending on e-sports overall (including consumer contribution, sponsorship, streaming advertising, consumer ticket sales and media rights) quadrupled from $56 million to $222 million.
This fast ascent is expected to continue into 2023, when PwC forecasts that total e-sports spending in the US will reach $516 million.
Six in 10 (59%) of the more than 2,000 respondents to a survey by Manatt-Vorhaus say they have heard of e-sports. About 1 in 8 US adults surveyed who say they have not heard of e-sports say they are interested in learning more.
While more than one-third (37%) of those who are aware of e-sports report attending an in-person e-sports event at least once a year, more respondents have watched an event remotely.
Indeed, almost half (47%) say they watched events remotely at least once a year. Read the rest at Marketing Charts.
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