According to Acumen Research and Consulting, the eSports market is growing at a 25.1% compound annual growth rate (CAGR) and will surpass $7.1 billion in value by 2028
The relatively new market is one of the fastest growing subsectors in the video game industry. Hundreds of thousands of gamers currently compete in eSports on some level, with over 380 million spectators who watch competitions both online and at live tournaments.
Over the past few years, the growing global population of youth has catapulted the video game industry into one of the world’s fastest growing. Now, video games, including eSports, have moved beyond the youth market, and have penetrated all age demographics.
The average gamer is now 35 years old, with eSports “players” averaging 26. But with a CAGR of 25.1%, the market is expecting the average age of both players and spectators to increase and could soon match the demographic of traditional major US sports leagues.
The average age of traditional sports fans, like the National Football League or Major League Baseball, for example, is around 49 years old. This age demographic happens to be the one that spends the most money on all forms of commerce, including eCommerce.
By 2028, as eSports becomes a mainstream entertainment venue, this demographic will be primed not only for gaming, but for eCommerce as well. By incorporating eCommerce into eSports, the true value of the eSports market could easily double the expected $7 billion, and perhaps much more.
But for this to happen, in-game commerce platforms must be incorporated into both the gaming and viewership side of the equation. While this incorporation has thus far been negligible at best (due to technical capabilities), the technology to fully accomplish this comingling of gaming and eCommerce may now finally be here.
Because of this new technology, a bridging of gaming and eCommerce could create a new growth opportunity, worth perhaps hundreds-of-billions of dollars.
As the prevalence of eSports grows, so does the opportunity for investment in the space.
Read more about the eSports market growth, HERE
Or learn more about in-game eCommerce technology, and the company that may have already solved the in-game commerce problem, HERE