MUMBAI: Looks like Zee Media is ready to trade the news desk for a joystick. In what could be its boldest play yet, the network is rumoured to be levelling up into the world of competitive gaming and the buzz is electric.
Word on the street is that Zee Media is developing a large-scale esports property designed to capture the hearts (and thumbs) of India’s youngest crowd: gen alpha, gen z and millennials. If early chatter proves true, the tournament could see over 60,000 players battling it out for a sizable prize pool, with the grand finale set to be nothing short of cinematic.
The network is also said to be plotting a dedicated gaming Youtube channel, influencer watch-alongs, and brand-driven collaborations: a full-blown content ecosystem to bring esports firmly into the mainstream.
It’s a move that underscores a bigger shift: gaming is no longer just a pastime, it’s pop culture and Zee Media seems intent on grabbing the controller. For now, the industry watches with anticipation to see whether this media powerhouse can turn its latest idea into India’s next big spectator sport.
Mumbai: Sports games have revolutionised both the gaming and sports industries, enabling enthusiasts to engage in their favourite sporting activities anytime, anywhere, without the need for elaborate sporting gear and equipment. Beyond immersive gameplay, these games serve as valuable tools for beginners, providing insights into the nuances of the respective sports they play.
Below is the list of the top-rated games across different platforms that offer an unparalleled experience of stepping onto the field and learning the ropes of various sports.
● EA Sports FC 24 (football):
EA Sports FC 24 not only allows players to experience the excitement of football but also provides a platform to understand strategic gameplay. Users can learn about positioning, passing techniques, and effective strategies to outmanoeuvre opponents. The game’s realistic graphics and physics contribute to a genuine football learning experience.
● Hitwicket Superstars Cricket (cricket):
Hitwicket Superstars Cricket offers an immersive cricket experience, allowing users to become the owner, coach and player of a virtual cricket team. The game helps learn cricketing strategies, player roles, and the dynamics of the sport. Users can don the captain’s hat, make strategic decisions, and experience the thrill of cricketing action. The game’s engaging gameplay and strategic depth offer valuable insights into the world of cricket.
● NBA 2K24 (basketball):
NBA 2K24 provides a realistic basketball simulation where users can grasp the fundamentals of the game. From dribbling techniques to offensive and defensive strategies, players can learn the nuances of basketball. The game’s detailed animations and strategic AI contribute to a comprehensive learning experience.
● Top Spin 4 (tennis):
Top Spin 4 offers an authentic tennis experience, allowing users to learn about different strokes, court positioning, and strategic shot selection. Players can understand the importance of timing and precision in tennis, making it an effective tool for both beginners and tennis enthusiasts.
● Madden NFL 24 (American football):
Madden NFL 24 serves as an educational tool for American football enthusiasts. Users can learn about offensive and defensive plays, player roles, and strategic decision-making. The game’s realistic simulations and strategic depth offer an engaging way to understand the complexities of American football.
● Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1+2 (skateboarding):
Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1+2 provides a platform for users to learn skateboarding tricks, stances, and navigate through various skate parks. Players can understand the physics of skateboarding and practise different moves, making it an engaging game for those looking to learn the basics of the sport.
● 8 Ball Pool (billiards):
8 Ball Pool is a virtual billiards game where users can learn about the rules, techniques, and strategies of playing pool. With realistic gameplay, players can practise different shots, understand spin control, and improve their overall skills in the game of pool. The multiplayer mode adds a competitive edge, making it an enjoyable learning experience for billiards enthusiasts.
● OK Golf (golf):
OK Golf provides a serene and realistic golfing experience where players can learn about swing techniques, club selection, and course strategy. With stunning visuals and intuitive gameplay, users can immerse themselves in the world of golf and understand the finer points of the sport.
● Table Tennis Touch (table tennis):
Table Tennis Touch offers a stunning virtual table tennis experience, allowing users to learn about spin, precision shots, and strategic gameplay. The game’s responsive controls and realistic ball physics provide an engaging way to understand the nuances of table tennis.
● FIE Swordplay (fencing):
FIE Swordplay provides a unique opportunity to learn about the sport of fencing. Players can understand the techniques of parrying, attacking, and footwork involved in fencing. With realistic swordplay simulations, the game provides an immersive learning experience for those interested in the art of fencing.
Mumbai: A reprise network company, Interactive Avenues, and the digital arm of Mediabrands India, have won the digital media duties for A23 Games. The account will be led out of the agency’s Bengaluru office.
A23 Games is India’s leading multi-gaming platform with 16+ years of experience in the online skill-based gaming industry.
With a goal of expanding A23’s reach across the country and establishing online gaming as a source of entertainment, Interactive Avenues’ mandate for A23 Games includes online brand building, social media management, content development, and digital activations.
Interactive Avenues EVP (south) Aparna Tadikonda said, “We are delighted to add another marquee brand and an industry leader like A23 Games to our clientele. The online gaming sector is booming, and A23 Games has played a pioneering role, since its inception over 16 years ago, in catapulting India to the second position in the world. Their “Responsible Gaming” campaign with superstar Shahrukh Khan has already raised the content bar, and we are truly excited to leverage our media expertise and creative prowess to not only elevate A23 Games’ digital game but also to help realise their vision of making India an online gaming powerhouse.”
Interactive Avenues is India’s leading full-service digital marketing company with offices in Mumbai (headquarters), Gurugram, Bengaluru, Chennai, and Kolkata. They offer a comprehensive range of cutting-edge services, including media, programmatic, data & analytics, e-commerce, paid search, social media, SEO, ORM, creative, and web development, all under one roof with fluid, multidisciplinary teams.
Mumbai: Mobile and skill gaming platform MPL has launched a Bug Bounty programme with the aim of strengthening the security of the users and continuing to provide a safe and fair gameplay environment. The programme will reward security researchers with up to Rs 10 lakhs for successfully identifying a valid vulnerability on MPL. This is open to researchers globally, and reports that address valid security vulnerabilities that are within the scope of the programme will be eligible for the rewards and recognition.
With the Bug Bounty programme, MPL will not just focus on identifying security vulnerabilities but will also make targeted efforts to devise a timely resolution to tackle them.
This initiative is aligned to the company’s player-first approach that considers the safety and security of the users as its topmost priority.
Interestingly, the MPL Bug Bounty programme does not restrict its scope to just identifying security loopholes but also allows researchers to report any possibility of fraud that could give a player an unfair advantage. The programme encourages reports on instances that can enable a player to compromise with the gameplay or the outcomes, like winning a game without playing, altering the gameplay, or even posting outrageous scores. Along with this, reporting of any vulnerability that can target the users on the platform, like taking over user accounts or dumping user data, also falls within the scope of the program.
MPL VP of security and compliance Ruchir Patwa said, “At MPL we are always committed to the player-first approach and the Bug Bounty programme has been launched to continue our efforts towards enhancing the user security and safe playing experience on our platform. With this, we also intend to reward and recognise some of the good samaritans of the gaming fraternity. We look forward to some great collaborations with researchers across the globe and will continue to create the best gaming experiences for all our users.”
MPL will also recognise the contributions of the researchers who have submitted the most insightful reports by featuring them in the Bug Bounty Hall of Fame page.
Mumbai: Jetsynthesys has appointed Girish Menon as chief strategy officer, according to his recent LinkedIn update.
He was previously associated with KPMG as a partner for its media and entertainment practice. Jetsynthesys is an IT services and consulting company specialising in gaming, esports and entertainment domain.
Menon is a professional with over 25 years of experience in mergers & acquisitions, strategy and consulting with a specialisation in media, digital, gaming & consumer internet domains.
He has been associated with KPMG for 21 years out of which 14 years were spent in the deal advisory practice covering strategy and mergers and acquisitions (M&A) advisory. He has also had an entrepreneurial stint heading a film studio venture and also held the role of head strategy at Balaji Telefilms.
MUMBAI: The Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) processed 1,064 complaints against advertisements in the January-March quarter. Of these, 200 ads were withdrawn by advertisers on receiving intimation from the industry body. Of the remaining 862 that required further investigation, the self-regulatory body’s independent Consumer Complaints Council (CCC) upheld complaints against 789 advertisements.
Education remains on top of the category of violations leaderboard with 337 cases, followed by healthcare with 250 cases, as per the latest complaints report released by ASCI for Q1 2021. A large number of complaints were also processed from the online gaming, food and beverages, and electronics & durables categories this quarter.
The maximum number of complaints processed- 337 –from the education sector- were related to misleading claims where students were promised 100 per cent placements or of the advertiser claiming to be India’s top-ranked college/ institute.
Expectedly, in healthcare, the majority of the 250 complaints against ads were mostly about fake claims of COVID cures or prevention.
To make the online gaming space safer, the industry body had introduced guidelines for the e-gaming segment for Real Money Winnings last December. Subsequently, ASCI received 61 complaints mostly related to cricket gaming and rummy, including those against established brands.
There were 47 complaints processed against food and beverage ads, many of them against claims around milk, milk products, bread, green tea, fish oil, as well as edible oils like sunflower.
In the electronics, durable, and construction category, ASCI processed 32 complaints against ads across a range of brands, from air-conditioners to paints. The automotive category received 14 complaints, many of them related to two-wheelers as well as e-rickshaw advertisements.
Complaints against 73 advertisements were not upheld as they were found to be adhering to the ASCI code.
Consumer vigilance around gaming has increased after the release of related guidelines, noted ASCI secretary-general, Manisha Kapoor.
“ASCI is working on more initiatives to ensure that advertising remains honest and decent and that consumers’ confidence in advertising is sustained. We also aim to raise consumer awareness to motivate them to report misleading claims. This would help safeguard their interests and encourage ethical advertising that benefits not just consumers but also honest advertisers”, Kapoor added.
Mumbai: If you are a gamer, you will know that at times, it looks like you are lagging far behind, with most of your shooters gone. But things turn around and you start scoring, knocking out the rival’s gunmen, and you come out on top. Just like recently, the publicly listed Nazara Technologies has done. The Indian gaming and esports major has reported operating revenue of Rs 123.38 crore in q4, 41.7 per cent higher than the previous year’s corresponding quarter.
The company has erased all the red ink on its earnings report by notching up growth of 84 per cent year-on-year in profit to reach Rs 4.2 crore, as against a loss of Rs 7 crore (q4 last year).
“As we operate in the high growth business segments of gamified early learning, esports, and freemium, we continue to prioritise growth over profit maximisation, to achieve and maintain market leadership in the segments we operate in,” said an excited Nazara Technologies group chief executive officer Manish Agarwal.
The esports segment revenue ballooned to Rs 48.57 crore from Rs 39.77 crore in the same quarter last year. Gamified early learning nearly trebled to reach Rs 50.61 crore, compared to Rs 19.52 crore. However, revenue for the freemium segment declined to Rs 4.32 crore from Rs 4.03 crore. Telco subscription also marginally declined to Rs 17.83 crore from Rs 18.08 crore for the corresponding period in the last fiscal.
“Prudent financial management is in our DNA. This is clearly visible from the Rs 4,784 million (Rs 478.4 crore) in cash reserves, including liquid investments, as well as the zero debt on our balance sheet. We will efficiently utilise our cash balance to fund any inorganic growth opportunities- ranging from building capabilities to geographic and demographic expansions in our operational domain. To conclude, we are in a good position to continue executing our strategy and maintain our market leadership position in the years to come,” Agarwal added.
For the financial year 2020-2021, operating revenue grew 84 per cent year-on-year to Rs 454.2 crore. While EBITDA has gone up by 508 per cent year-on-year to Rs 59.6 crore, EBITDA margins have also improved from 3.7 per cent in FY2019-2020 to 12.7 per cent. It has delivered profits of Rs 13.6 crore in the just-ended fiscal year.
Mumbai: With the Indian Premier League (IPL) leading the charge, cricket contributed Rs 5,133 crores ($694 million) to the total sports sponsorship in India in 2020, which works out to a mammoth share of 87 per cent, according to GroupM ESP Sporting Nation Report 2021 released on Monday.
Other sports cumulatively contributed Rs 761 crores ($ 103 million), which roughly accounts for 13 per cent of the total share. The report pegged the size of the Indian sports industry in 2020 at Rs 5,894 Crores, which includes sponsorship spends, celebrity endorsement and media spends on sports properties.
Media spends on sports
The biggest share is occupied by media, where advertisement spends on TV, digital and print media contributed to Rs 3,657 crores, which accounts for 62 per cent of the total spends. Sponsorship spends included on-ground sponsorships, team sponsorships, and franchise fee grabbed up 28 per cent of the industry pie, which translates to Rs 1,673 Crores.
An interesting shift that gained momentum in 2020 was athlete endorsements which grew five per cent over 2019, against the run of play in a year ravaged by the pandemic. Out of the total 377 endorsement deals that happened in 2020, as many as 275 involved cricket players.
The year 2020 also saw female athletes pulling in brands. “The continued success of these stars is proof of the fact that our champions are loved, and we are proud of them. As the sporting nations wait eagerly in anticipation, the stocks are highly in favour of endorsements from our athletes,” the report stated.
Group M South Asia CEO Prasanth Kumar said, “Even without any activities, our sports heroes stayed close to us during the pandemic by actively engaging with their followers on social media. The spontaneity of this online content flow demonstrates the power of sports in our country. Speedy responses and improvisations are on the go where the situation demanded. Among the many things the Covid2019 situation taught us, marketers were the need to be adaptable as the tide turns fast around us.”
The boom in e-sports in 2020
The lockdown had also catalysed the growth in certain sectors. The absence of live sports along with a sub-optimal supply of fresh OTT content led to the shift towards gaming. The month of April 2020 saw an 11 per cent increase in users per week along with a significant jump in average time spent per gamer. This led to a sudden boom in e-sports in 2020, with communities getting built and multiplayer activities gaining ground. Over the last three years, there has been a doubling in the gamer base as well as viewership numbers in the time, the report stated.
Sports: A success story in 2020
Despite the Covid2019 threat and multiple risks, the 13th edition of the IPL got underway in UAE in September 2020. The success of the IPL was a great demonstration of the qualities of brinkmanship and improvisation and was able to lift the spirits of the nation battered by the pandemic, highlighted the report.
In November 2020, the Indian Super League (ISL) kicked off in three venues in Goa with strict protocols and adherence to bio-bubble considerations. This was the first major sports event to be held in India after the pandemic and according to the report, it gave ample demonstration of the country’s ability to pull off an event of this magnitude under such circumstances.
GroupM South Asia head – sports Vinit Karnik said it was commendable how the sporting ecosystem reacted to the crisis in 2020 and returned sooner than expected.
“Many sports properties were either canceled or postponed and even sponsorship and media spends were impacted. Even in the face of an adverse context, the stakeholders came together to provide the spark the industry needed. The IPL and ISL are an exemplary demonstration of India’s preparedness to host major sporting events under such taxing circumstances,” he added.
Karnik went on to say he was hopeful of an increase in demand for subscription viewing in live sports in 2021, with many sporting events lined up in the next few months. “2020 looks like that proverbial backward step we take before a giant leap, like the one we are expected to take in 2021, as part of the making of the sporting nation,” he concluded.
MUMBAI: Cashing in on the IPL fever, skill-gaming platform, Mobile Premier League (MPL) has launched its latest campaign on TV and digital media platforms. Revolving around the theme ‘Hai Akal, Khelo MPL’, the adverts feature a humanoid brain as the protagonist, driving in the message that anyone with ‘akal’ (brains) can play the game.
There are a total of seven films in the campaign, of which three are already live and the rest will be released as the IPL progresses. The three films released are a humorous play on the words of popular Hindi language idioms like ‘Akal badi ya bhains’, ‘Akal ke dushman’, and ‘Dimaag ghaas charne gaya hai’. The films push the central idea that one can create their fantasy team on the e-sports platform with basic know-how of cricket during the ongoing T20 tournament. MPL has roped in veteran actor Vijay Raaz for the films’ voice-overs.
The campaign has been conceptualised by The Womb and brought to life by Early Man Films and was directed by Abhinav Pratiman. “This IPL, we decided to go back to the basics of fantasy cricket- which is to make the best possible team by using your knowledge of the game and your thinking skills. By giving the human brain its own manifestation as a protagonist and by using some very well-known Hindi sayings that we can all relate to,” MPL senior vice president – growth and marketing Abhishek Madhavan said.
“Passion and love for the game of cricket can at best make someone a great fan of the game. But to play the game either in real life or in the form of fantasy one needs skill. Skill in the form of strong analytical skills and strategic abilities to create the best teams game after game. Our attempt was to bring this alive by creating the brain itself as a device. The campaign uses popular idioms associated with the brain to generate popular appeal,” The Womb founding partner Navin Talreja added.
MUMBAI: Thanks to the 4G mobile data boom, the cult of e-sports and gaming is going mainstream. The Indian online gaming industry is growing at an exponential rate year upon year, and is expected to be worth $1.1 billion by 2021. During GEMS, there was a growing consensus among experts and industry leaders that yes, gaming is indeed “Getting Into The Mainstream”.
Moderated by GroupM ESP business head Vinit Karnik, the panelists included ITC Foods business division digital strategy and media head Anushree Ghosh, Parle Products senior category head – marketing Krishnarao S.Buddha, Airtel Media VP Archana Aggarwal, MSI regional marketing manager Green Chang-Ching Lin, NVIDIA South Asia consumer marketing head Pawan Awasthi.
Karnik started the session by setting up the context for the audiences from a marketing point of view. He highlighted that India is among the top five gaming countries and most of the players prefer mobile over personal computer, making India a predominantly mobile-first market.
The experts shared their insights on how families need to understand that being a gamer and an e-sports player can be viable career options. Also, the world of gaming and e-sports is no longer taboo – more and more brands and media organizations have seized upon its potential, and have been reaching out to gamers, and through them, to their sizeable audience and followers.
Watch the session here:
Awasthi touched upon various factors that have substantiated the growth of gaming. He said: “Globally there are close to two billion gamers. When we talk to gamers, 60 percent of them game on the PC as a platform, not mobile. Worldwide, the average age is 30 plus. In India, it is less than 20 years, so it follows that our audience is of an equally young age; this is possible because of the hardware and the platform which mobile provides. It is the freemium model which is leading to the growth in India.”
For instance, game casters Dynamo and Scout, who love to play on mobile, have a following of around nine million subscribers. And there are many such players in the country.
As India has rapidly emerged as one of the most lucrative markets comprising over 300 million gamers, Taiwanese gaming laptop giant MSI is looking to move into the Indian e-sports landscape in a big way.
“We’ve been working on gaming laptops and talking to the community. India is one of the world’s fastest-growing markets. So especially for a mobile gamer, there’s a huge growth and so they’re also looking for a better device to enjoy their gameplay,” said Chang-Chin Lin, adding that India will continue to be a key focus market where MSI is looking to expand its footprints.
Talking about Indian players’ preference for mobile gaming, Chang-Chin Lin shared that during major e-sports tournaments that take place here, the majority turns up for PC gaming, but mobile gaming is certainly not to be discounted. In the gaming market, there are 160 PDM and the mobile market takes 50 per cent of it. There will be an uptick in mobile tournaments happening in India in the coming years, he predicted. Already, the success of the Mobile Premier League (the platform recently raised $90 million in financing) is testimony to this fact.
Aggarwal agreed that the e-sports landscape is booming with the influx of players and corporate investment, but there is a need for a platform where streamers or gamers can professionally play tournaments. She asserted, “Earlier, the structure was unorganized but now I am seeing a lot of media houses and companies organizing tournaments. I believe that is when the brands will start following it.”
On the marketeers side, both Buddha and Ghosh pointed out that although there is a captive audience which is playing a game, the challenge is how engaging and brand-safe it is. Hence, gaming is still two per cent of the media mix. While they see a huge scope in the gaming and e-sports space, they still need more information, proof-points, research, validation and case studies to understand how it can be a profitable investment.
“Being the household brand with a whole lot of large CPG brands, we kind of traverse in terms of the target audience that one wants to reach out to,” said Ghosh.
Elaborating on the challenges they face as marketeers, Ghosh explained: “To begin with, to advertise on gaming (and we do advertise on gaming) there are brands that talk to that 15-30 age group – whether it is a snack brand or a confectionary brand – and we are consistently reaching out to these audiences.”
Young viewers in the e-sports industry demand authentic brand interactions. As brands attempt to analyse this space, there are qualms as to whether the gaming audience will like the interruptions, given the engaged nature of the platform.
“Our question is whether interruption-based communication becomes annoying especially when audiences are engaged and suddenly there is an advertisement. We also have questions around the efficacy of media advertising. Because these are extremely engaged platforms and the consumer is actually paying to get rid of advertising. Given the nature of the platform, its effectiveness also needs to be established,” added Ghosh.
With marketeers expressing reservations on how to seamlessly integrate branded content with online gaming, there seems to be a huge question mark looming over the e-sports sector. But given the pace at which it is growing, we’re certain that in the not-so-distant future, brands would be engaging with this medium with much more enthusiasm.
