ValueTheMarkets.com News Commentary - With so much money on offer, it’s no wonder that the streaming specialists who already dominate the film and TV entertainment market are so keen to start benefitting from the growth of gaming. This article discusses this issue with reference to Netflix (NASDAQ: NFLX), Walt Disney Co (NYSE: DIS), Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) and QYOU Media (TSXV: QYOU) (OTCQB: QYOUF).
QYOU Media (TSXV: QYOU) (OTCQB: QYOUF) is currently focused on building a media brand that appeals to young Indians through its influencer-led TV and video-on-demand content. The company makes money from ad sales on its channels and through social media-based influencer marketing campaigns.
Having already launched three new channels in 2022 and achieved the fastest channel growth in 2021 with its flagship Hindi-language offering, the business is achieving considerable growth.
Now, the company has announced that it’s increasing its presence on Indian connected TV and digital platforms with the launch of a new channel – Q GameX.
The reasoning behind this move is clear. This year the gaming industry is expected to surpass $208bn in revenue and statistics suggest that the number of gamers around the world will exceed three billion people.
India is expected to be home to 450 million online gamers by 2023, putting it behind only China in terms of the number of users. Alongside this anticipated growth in audience is growth in the industry, with India’s gaming industry expected to reach $5bn by 2025, mainly driven by a rapidly increasing young population with higher disposable income.
The new channel, Q GameX, will stream gameplay matches and battlegrounds while taking
viewers through some interesting insights on consoles and gaming equipment, unboxing experiences, tips and tricks and much more.
The company’s ultimate aim is to engage with digitally savvy young adults and monetize their viewership by working with brands and advertisers.
QYOU’s attitude to programming is similar to its other channels. The business will leverage content from a wide array of top social media influencers and digital content creators, serving it to a highly engaged audience 24/7.
The channel, which is scheduled to launch in September 2022, will target the 18–35-year-old demographic.
The Q India COO and leader of connected TV platform efforts, Krishna Menon, commented:
“We are executing on our goal this year of becoming a leading provider of genre-based channels to audiences adopting Connected TVs as a primary destination for their viewing time".
“Our unique and socially connected content style is perfectly aligned with what this audience is looking for. We expect more channel launches to be announced this year and of course, we believe that Q GameX can be a big winner on these platforms.”
Netflix (NASDAQ: NFLX) is another business looking to take advantage of the popularity of gaming. The streaming service giant was founded in 1997 and originally made its name as a movie rental service before becoming the biggest name in streaming.
Now, the company is turning its attention to the world of gaming.
The move started with the company’s ‘choose your own adventure’ style on-off episode of Black Mirror, titled Bandersnatch, which was released in December 2018. The interactive show allowed users to make choices and change the narrative, allowing them to experience different plots and endings.
This was Netflix dipping its toes in, but appears to have been a sign of things to come. After launching a series of mobile games in November 2021, the company has been consistently releasing new game content. It has currently built up a portfolio of more than 20 titles.
The company’s emphasis is on accessibility for all users, with the goal being increased engagement from subscribers. To this end, it has acquired several development studios and claims to have a strong pipeline of new releases for the next couple of years.
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