Hasta La Motion!

The Indian Federation of Sports Gaming (IFSG), the self-regulatory industry body for the sports gaming sector, and KPMG India launched a report on ‘The Evolving Landscape of Sports Gaming in India’ at its second flagship event – Game Plan 2019. The report provides an overview of the online gaming industry with a focus on fantasy sports and esports.

Highlights the findings of a survey conducted by KPMG on fantasy sports users to understand their preferences and playing patterns;

Aims to create awareness about the growth drivers of the fantasy sports market in India and the stark differences between fantasy sports, esports and sports betting;

72 per cent of respondents, the primary motivation for playing fantasy sports are fun and excitement. Further, 69 per cent of respondents say that there are no overlaps between fantasy sports and sports betting and amongst these, 81 per cent say that playing fantasy sports requires profound skill and knowledge

Based on the overall theme of the economy of sports gaming, the GamePlan 2019 event hosted three separate panel discussions: Future of Online Sports Entertainment in India, Growth of Sports Gaming Ecosystem and Fuelling Sports Fan Engagement.

Panellists included the likes of Facebook director global marketing  solutions Melinda Petrunoff; Google  country director sales Vikas Agnihotri ; AWS head business development Navdeep Manaktala,; Hotstar EVP and head product Varun Narang; Pro Kabaddi League president new strategy Ipsita Dasgupta,; FIH  global head and sales Ricky Thussu; KPMG partner Girish Menon,; Dream11 founder and CEO Harsh Jain; Wavemaker CEO SEA Karthik Sharma, Sportz Interactive CEO Arvind Iyengar, FanFight  founder and CEO Akhil Suhag, Fantain and sports  co-founder CPO  Arvind Ramachandran,  industry experts like Amrit Mathur, Gaurav Kapoor and Joy Bhattacharjya, PVL.

Commenting on the occasion IFSG president  John Loffhagen, said, “With the rapidly growing digital infrastructure and emergence of new sports leagues, the Indian online sports gaming industry is witnessing a boom which shows no sign of slowing down. Exponential growth provides users with easy access to a vast variety of sports gaming apps, formats and genres. This could lead to potential confusion and misjudgement among players in choosing the right platform to engage with their favourite sport. As India’s only self- regulated industry body for sports gaming, we are dedicated to creating awareness about fantasy sports, encouraging operators to adopt ethical and best business practices and allowing sports fans to enjoy their favourite sports in a fun, exciting and safe manner.”

KPMG in India partner and head – media and entertainment Girish Menon said, “Online gaming in India is seeing increased traction due to the growth of digital infrastructure, with fantasy sports emerging as an important segment in this space. With the number of fantasy sports operators growing rapidly and the number of users on fantasy sports platforms expected to cross 100 million by 2020, this segment has the potential to spawn a whole ecosystem around it and could help deepen user engagement with their favourite sports.”

Key highlights from the KPMG Report:

• 74 per cent of users play fantasy sports one to three times a week, with the majority playing once a week
• Around 20 per cent of the respondents reported playing more than five times a week which indicates the growing traction of the genre in the country
• Across all age and income groups, fun and excitement is the primary motivator for playing fantasy sports
• For around 50 per cent of the respondents, the ability to manage teams virtually, remain connected with the sport and utilisation of sports knowledge were other important motivators for engagement.
• The opportunity to win money  was seen as one of the motivators for around 30 per cent of respondents, however, this was only the 5th most important factor for engagement
• 54 per cent  of users play fantasy sports for free
• 46 per cent of the respondents have played paid contests at least once in the last 12 months
• Important to note that only 25-30 per cent of the spends on fantasy sports platforms come from the users’ pocket. 70-75 per cent of the spends are re-investments coming from previous winnings, cash bonus or periodical promotional offers given by these platforms to their users
• Majority of users from the top seven to eight cities of the country were found to be playing less frequently than some of the smaller cities in the country. Nearly 85 per cent of the respondents from the major cities play fantasy sports one to three times a week as compared to nearly 70 per cent of respondents from smaller cities who play more than four times a week on such platforms
• 71 per cent of the respondents played fantasy cricket followed by 54 per cent playing football. The non-cricket sports leagues in India are also witnessing increasing traction.
• 69 per cent of the respondents say that there are no overlaps between fantasy sports & sports betting. 81 per cent of these respondents believe that there is a significant amount of skill and knowledge that goes into the selection of their fantasy sports teams. Fairness, legality and safe & secure nature of transactions are other aspects that draw users to play on fantasy sports platforms.
• Nearly 55 per cent of the respondents had an incorrect understanding of esports, associating it exclusively with sports based games. A further 22 per cent of respondents were completely unaware of what esports constitutes.

A survey was further conducted by KPMG taking into account 336 consumers who have played fantasy sports in the last 12 months. KPMG further expressed that the rapid growth in digital infrastructure has led to the growth of online gaming in the country, with the revenue is expected to touch Rs 11,900 crore by financial year 23. The online gaming industry that was pegged at Rs 2,000 crore in financial year 14 grew 2x to reach Rs 4,400 crore in financial year18. The revenue expected to clip at 22 per cent CAGR from 2018 to 2023 to touch Rs 11,900 crore, according to KPMG.

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Eric Brevig has joined Deluxe-owned VFX house Method Studios as a senior VFX supervisor and creative director.

Reporting to Erika Burton, Method’s executive vice-president global features VFX, Brevig will also work closely with fellow Method senior VFX supervisor and creative director Kevin Baillie to spearhead the company’s virtual production and real-time VFX workflows. The company maintains bases in Los Angeles, Vancouver, New York, Montreal, Melbourne, San Francisco, Atlanta, and Pune.

Brevig, who also earned Oscar nominations for the VFX on Pearl Harbor and Hook, has a career that has already spanned three decades and more than 30 feature films as VFX supervisor/second unit director. He is a tech-savvy 15-year veteran of ILM who also directed the 2008 feature Journey to the Center of the Earth 3D, the first narrative live-action feature shot entirely in digital 3D.

Brevig also has created effects for theme-park experiences, such as Universal Studios’ Race Through New York, and served as VFX supervisor for Netflix’s A Series of Unfortunate Events.

Method is currently working on such upcoming films as John Wick 3: Parabellum, Ad Astra and Men in Black: International.

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Audeze, the manufacturer of planar magnetic headphones, has announced the official partnership with esports organization and media company, Echo Fox. With a commitment to innovation and best-in-class audio solutions, Audeze will equip Echo Fox teams with Mobius, the critically acclaimed immersive cinematic gaming headphone that features Audeze planar magnetic drivers and Waves Nx 3D audio technologies.

Echo Fox is home to some of the top esports players in the world across multiple titles, including League of Legends, Super Smash Bros Ultimate, and Dragon Ball FighterZ. Echo Fox’s drive to develop the best esports athletes and celebrate their achievements aligns with the Audeze brand, lauded by music industry professionals and video game critics for their premium quality, precision, and excellence.

“We are happy to welcome an award-winning partner in Audeze to the Echo Fox family,” said Echo Fox co-owner and three-time NBA champion Rick Fox.

Earlier this year, Audeze announced the continued expansion of the Mobius platform with plans to release Head Gesture Keybinds in 2019, promoting further immersion and customisability for gamers beyond a mouse and keyboard.

“Audeze has always been defined by our commitment to innovation and our passion for creating best-in-class listening experiences. “Audeze is very delighted to partner with Echo Fox, an esports organization whose drive and passion for excellence matches our own,” stated Audeze CEO Sankar Thiagasamudram.

By partnering with the distinguished esports athletes at Echo Fox, Audeze to showcase its commitment to developing Mobius and elevating gaming audio.

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Walt Disney Company has brought on board former Netflix executive Tehmina Jaffer, to help launch and run its upcoming streaming service, Disney+. Jaffer is hired as the conglomerate’s business affairs senior VP for Disney+’s direct-to-consumer and international segment.

Prior to joining Disney, Jaffer served as the director of original series for Netflix, where she helped develop business strategies for shows like 13 Reasons Why, Narcos and Maniac.  She also will work closely with Disney-ABC Television.In her new role, Jaffer “will lead all aspects of business affairs strategy, policy and procedure for the Disney+ content and marketing team.”

Expected to launch later this year, Disney+ is expected to compete with Netflix. WarnerMedia and NBCUniversal also have products in the works that will compete with the worldwide leader in subscription premium streaming.

Disney+ president of content and marketing Ricky Strauss said,”Jaffer is an outstanding executive whose expertise and experience will provide tremendous value as we continue to ramp up our Disney+ original programming efforts. Her insights into the evolving nature of deal-making in the streaming space are vital to our efforts. Jaffer is smart, innovative and hardworking and I couldn’t be more excited to have her join us.”

Disney+ will stream original content from Disney, Pixar, Marvel and Lucasfilm, serving as the exclusive streaming home for Walt Disney Studios’ films released this year and beyond, including titles as Captain Marvel, Toy Story 4, new versions of Dumbo, The Lion King and Aladdin.

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PokerStars India, operated by Sachiko Gaming, launched India’s first ever poker TV commercial and announced its association with Bollywood actor Nawazuddin Siddiqui, who stars in the adverts. The launch and association is designed to strengthen the brand’s resonance as it seeks to bring the concepts of poker to a wider audience.

Three television commercials have been shot, each with a different narrative, challenging the audience to work out whether they think Nawaz is bluffing in the scenarios, or not. One features Nawaz trying to use a poker chip as everyday money, one follows him as he attempts to take on a role inspired by James Bond and one sees him analysing the behaviour of people in a café. The commercials shine a light on the different and varied skills needed to play poker, such as reading body language, eventually leading Nawaz to the poker tables.

Viewers are encouraged to vote on whether they think Nawaz is bluffing for the chance to win prizes. Those who vote will receive tickets to free poker tournaments which will give out more than 0.5 million in guaranteed prizes, ranging from cash to high tech items such as Smart TVs, smartphones, wireless headphones, smart speakers and powerbank chargers. The free tournaments take place every Sunday from 8 to 24 March at PokerStars’ official website.

“It’s a great pleasure to be associated with PokerStars India”, said Siddiqui, “I have been intrigued by poker for some time now as I believe it hits the magic balance between being easy to learn yet gives ongoing opportunities to increase your knowledge and master the game. PokerStars is one of the most popular and trusted poker brands in the world thanks to its wide range of tournaments and games, excellent 24/7 customer support, top level security and award-winning software. I am looking forward to improving my poker skills alongside some of the best professional poker players at PokerStars India.”

The advert was produced with creative agency Ogilvy who brought the concept of the bluff to life through engaging and fun narratives designed to entertain but also encourage people to work out whether Nawaz is bluffing and try their hand at the game themselves.

“We are delighted to partner with Nawaz for this ground-breaking TV advert. Nawaz is one of the most engaging and, popular and personalities in Bollywood who has shown great resilience, determination and skill to get to where he is today. These are all key attributes belonging to poker players and PokerStars India so we could not have partnered with anyone better. I look forward to working with him on many successful projects in the future,” said Sachiko Gaming CEO Ankur Dewani.

To see the poker skills in action, viewers can tune into the broadcasts of the PokerStars-sponsored Global Poker League (GLP) India, the country’s premier long-run poker league. The first show will be aired on 9 March on Color Infinity channel. Two 22-minute episodes will be aired weekly with the final broadcast on 30 March. Six teams from across the country will play poker and compete to win 10 million and be crowned champions. Professional poker players Aditya Agarwal and Muskan Sethi, who are both sponsored by PokerStars India, captain two of the teams, the Kolkata Creators and the Delhi Diehards respectively. Each team is comprised of a team captain, two experienced, high level poker players, and two online qualifiers from PokerStars India.

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