It’s a good day for Malaysian esports. Earlier at the tabling of Budget 2019, the Government announced an allocation of MYR10 million to grow esports in the country. The USD1 billion game industry may be nascent but growing at a rapid pace, with Malaysia being one of the top six esports nations in the Southeast Asian region. Following Malaysian Youth and Sports Minister Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman’s call for foreign investments in Malaysia, Razer co-founder and CEO Min-Liang Tan pledged to invest MYR10 million in Malaysian eSports in 2019.
He lauded the progressive move by Malaysia to commit to esports for the youth and millennials.
Min-Liang said, “I’m committed to investing MYR10M in Malaysian esports in 2019 to match the Malaysian government budget for esports for the year.”
He added that Razer will be sponsoring teams, tournaments and investing in facilities, among other things, in 2019.
https://www.facebook.com/minliangtan/photos/a.585540961503690/2020449061346199/?type=3&theater
It isn’t the first time Razer is investing its resources in Malaysia.
Earlier in the year, the Singapore gaming company chose Malaysia for the global debut of its e-wallet service – Razer Pay, a partnership with Berjaya Corporation Berhad.
Razer Pay, targeted at youth and millennials makes it easy for gamers to purchase PIN codes for services like zGold MOLPoints, Steam Wallet, Garena, Sony PlayStation, Spotify and more.
Through investments from local and foreign parties such as Razer, alongside government initiatives through agencies like the Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC), the nation’s ambitions to be an esports powerhouse in Asia will be closer to reality.
According to research by Newzoo, Southeast Asia is the industry’s fastest-growing region, with more than 9.5 million esports enthusiasts. Over 2.4 million of them are in Malaysia. The total number of players is reportedly set to double by 2019.
It isn’t just the esports culture that’s gaining traction, revenue from PC and mobile games are rising too, expected to surpass USD2 billion in 2021.
After a demonstration run at the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta, esports will be included as a full-medal event at the 2022 Asian Games, reaffirming the nascent sport as a “real sport.” The International Olympic Council is currently mulling over its inclusion in the 2024 Olympic Games in France.
More Budget 2019-related stories below:
- Budget 2019: Netflix, Spotify, Steam to be taxed
- Budget 2019: Targeted fuel subsidies for cars 1,300cc or less
- Budget 2019: Government introduces MYR100 unlimited public transport pass
- Budget 2019: MDEC gets MYR10 million boost for eSports
Header image: qz.com
