In the world of business, there is always that quest in finding the “next big thing.” With this point in mind, the business and finance magazine Forbes is looking into what many are saying will be the “next big thing” – Esports – and comparing it with what now appears to be “old news” – poker.
Writer Darren Heitner examines in an in-depth article the similarities between the burgeoning Esports world – stating that it is expected to generate $590 million in wagers on gambling sites by the end of this year – and the world of poker. He also notes that the powerful Canadian provincial gaming site Loto-Quebec recently accepted its first bets on an Esports event. Heitner shows how the Esports community has slowly broken onto the consciousness of the populace, including the development of a business course at the University of Nevada-Las Vegas that focuses on the Esports industry, much like how poker slowly broke out over the internet and television.
Through all these examples, Heitner demonstrates that there is plenty that compares Esports and poker. He also demonstrates that there are some huge chasms between the two entities. For example, the Esports industry is expected to have a total industry value of $463 million by the end of 2016. Online poker and gaming, on the other hand, has a total industry value estimated to be over $40 BILLION.
When it comes to viewership, Heitner states that poker (because of a longer established history) still is outpacing Esports. Although Heitner says that 40% of China’s 600 million smartphone owners have attended an Esports event (240 million), the worldwide coverage of poker benefits from its television exposure on ESPN for the World Series of Poker and other televised events. Add in the online coverage that poker gets – not only from their online sites but from such avenues as Twitch – and it is still reigning supreme over Esports.
Finally, Heitner cites that the players in the Esports realm still aren’t as well-known as those in the poker world. Heitner says that “professional poker player Doyle Brunson, with his trademark cowboy hat” is more recognizable than video game professionals such as Chris “Fatal” Bond and Peter Dager, whom Heitner says “the vast majority of civilization has never heard (from).”
There are some similarities, Heitner notes, that could eventually see Esports pass online poker in the gaming realm, however. Heitner believes that the multitude of online arenas for viewing (such as Twitch and others) is an advantage that Esports has over poker. The communication aspect of high-speed internet between people is also seen as a positive in the Esports world (and, in some ways, has become almost nonexistent in the online poker area).
It could also be said that the two disciplines have something else in common – the ability to wager on the outcome. International gambling is a $500 billion business and, while people still enjoy online casinos and table games (including poker), there are always new avenues to pursue that may increase the bottom line. Esports covers that well and is something that could be huge in the near future.
That is what Heitner’s analysis is telling him. “While poker may still be supreme, Esports is quickly catching up and displaying many positive signs that in some ways mimic poker’s successful attributes,” he concludes in his article. “It is only a matter of time until the Esports industry hits a total value of over $1 billion.”
