BW Gaming World
Gaming is indeed one of the biggest trends in the smartphone industry in 2021. The exponential growth in the gaming population backed by the rise in smartphone consumption in India has led us to become the 5th largest mobile gaming market across the world (Inmobi Report), he said.
Over the last few years, Mobile gaming has seen stunning growth and is likely to grow further in upcoming times. There are a total of 2.69 billion mobile game players globally. Plus, the mobile industry in India has seen the growth of the Mobile Game industry in 2020, amid the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic.
In an interview with BW Gaming World, Anish Kapoor, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Infinix Mobile talked about the emerging trending mobile gaming, Dar-Link game boost technology and more.
Q. How does the brand look at this emerging trend of mobile gaming?
Ans- Gaming is indeed one of the biggest trends in the smartphone industry in 2021. The exponential growth in the gaming population backed by the rise in smartphone consumption in India has led us to become the 5th largest mobile gaming market across the world (Inmobi Report)
As per the recent report by CLSA, the mobile gaming market will touch $3 Billion in India by 2023 from the current $1.3 Billion. As the consumer base continues to increase amidst the pandemic, the industry will see further growth in this consumer segment, raising the demand for high-end features in smartphones for a better gaming experience. All these numbers and predictions clearly show that mobile gaming is truly here to stay and new-age smartphone companies like ours need to focus our offerings as per this consumer pool.
Q. How is your company making a difference in the gaming industry?
Ans- There are more than 80 per cent of committed gamers in India who are spending considerable hours playing games. The internet penetration in rural India has played a big role here. Women are also increasingly coming into the gaming fold. In fact, as per Inmobi mobile gaming report 2021, 43 per cent of the gamers in India are females. Through our budget smartphones which are equipped with gaming ready specs, we encourage these budding talents and first-time gamers to pursue their passion for mobile gaming.
Since 85 per cent (as per Deloitte technology, media, and telecommunications predictions 2021) of the online gaming in India is smartphone intensive, our R&D teams work on newer and patented technology to offer the best-in-segment smartphones which can help Indian gamers to not only have a good user experience but also earn through participating in Esports national tournaments like Esports Premier League (ESPL) & WEC as well as tap the potential to represent India on global platforms in the coming time. Our motive is to empower the users with value for money devices that can seamlessly take their game to the next level as well as equip them to compete in top-notch international tournaments too at the opportune time.
Our partnerships with ESPL and WEC initiatives are just a few of the key steps we have taken in order to bring to our users a unique gaming experience with the thrill of the city-based franchise model for the first time in India.
Q. What do you have to say about Dar-Link game boost technology offered by Infinix in recent offerings? How it’s going to be a game-changer for the brand?
Ans- Yes, we have received an overwhelming response from our consumers and experts around Dar-link game boost technology. This ultimate technology innovation enhances the system by improving the graphics display and touchscreen sensitivity. It enables our consumers to enjoy a gaming experience with eliminated screen tearing/stuttering, a responsive touch panel, actual colour reproduction, and no heating even after extended hours of play. The fact that it is available in our budget smartphone range, gives us an upper edge over other smartphone brands in the same price segment.
Q. How big is the gaming and esports market in India right now?
Ans- India’s gaming and eSports community is evolving and the country is expected to add 40 million online gamers to emerge as a $2.8-billion-dollar online gaming industry (Deloitte India Report, 2021). This comes as a tremendous opportunity for us to tap the sector as people are no longer relying on consoles or PCs or waiting for the weekend to play a game. By constantly optimizing our smartphones to improve the gaming experience for the users and also make it accessible for the masses, we foresee more users indulging in this space and contributing to the growth of the industry as well as our business in the near future.
Q. As Esports become mainstream, do you think there is a large scope for Indian gamers to generate revenue?
Ans- Esports has been attracting major traction in 2020 as it was responsible for 4 per cent of all online gaming users and constituted 9.13 per cent of aggregated revenue in the country’s overall online gaming market. No wonder, the sector is exhibiting a rise in investment from several angel investors and venture capitalists. As per the Venture Intelligence report, since April 2020, $438 million venture capital funds have been invested in Indian gaming start-ups to boost the esports community. While the aggregate value of esports start-ups in India touched $68 million by 2020, the industry is now expected to grow by a CAGR of 36 per cent in the next 3 years.
Q. What can we expect from your company in future?
Ans- This genre is progressive in nature and is already trending at a rate of almost 27 per cent per annum. We are pretty sure that it has the propensity of becoming a secondary source of entertainment for Young India which not only is limited to playing but also to viewership. Also, we feel it is the right space in order to communicate our offering to this community as we already have been manufacturing game-ready devices for the mid-range segment that are feature-rich and enhance the users’ gaming experience. We are keeping a watchful eye on the evolution of this genre in India and will keep on exploring innovative ways to promote and leverage the mobile-centric esports and competitive gaming ecosystem in our country.
