On the 26th of April, 2021, Esports Technologies announced that they will be launching their consumer platform, GoGawi, on the Thai market. GoGawi aims to provide an exhaustive gambling platform to its customers. Esports betting is the name of the game, and GoGawi has a stronghold on the market along with their technology partners; UltraPlay, SoftSwiss, and Apcopay, just to name a few. GoGawi: Go Game Win! has reported more than $10 million annual gross on the Asia-Pacific market. They allow players to place wagers on more than 500 tournaments in games like League of Legends, CSGO, or Dota2.
Thai Esports Market
Thailand is shaping as an important player in the gaming market. There are over 32 million gamers in Thailand spread over different platforms, making it the world’s 19th-largest market. 95% of them prefer to conduct their gaming on mobile. The second most popular platform for Thai gamers is the PC, at 84% of total gaming numbers. When it comes to the genre preferred by Thai gamers, the clear winner is shooters, with more than 38% of the market.
Based on Newzoo’s recent study on Thailand’s gaming environment, 45% of gamers have played Candy Crush within the last 6 months. The second most played franchise in Thailand is FIFA, with 44% of gamers dabbling with football. FIFA has very high popularity among Thai males, and Candy Crush is very popular among women. The emerging middle class and the urbanization of Thailand contribute to the steady increase in the number of gamers. The Thai gaming industry is on an ascending path and is expected to grow another 10% in revenue during 2021.
In 2021, Thailand’s esports market is expected to grow to a whopping US$450 million. The Thai government has identified the potential of this growth and is actively promoting esports in hopes of generating new jobs and sustainable economic growth. Such initiatives are more than welcome and have been adopted by different governments across the world. Not at least China made headlines earlier this year when it was announced Shanghai is building a new esports center at an estimated cost of $898 million.
About GoGawi
The platform can be accessed from over 140 jurisdictions and offers esports enthusiasts and gamblers safe betting. The CEO of Esports Technologies, Aaron Speech, has expressed his excitement regarding the launch on the Thai market. Aaron’s enthusiasm is backed up by the innovative payment methods that GoGawi has to offer. They have partnered with Apcopay, Astropay, and CoinDirect to offer Thai esports fanatics even more reliable deposit and withdrawal options.
The local Thai betting site, ThaiBet365, comments on the news saying this is an important step towards strengthening the Thai esports industry. With these partnerships, GoGawi will not only be offering Thai gamblers better payment options on international betting sites but will also provide multi-tier bonus programs of exceptional value to Thai gamblers. Players will be able to benefit from better deposit matches as well as free bonus codes. GoGawi also intends to expand its iGaming and Casino game offerings in order to provide gamblers with even more wagering options.
The Future of Thai Gaming
Thailand remains faithful to mobile devices, unlike the US or South Korea. High hardware costs make gaming on a PC more scarce in Thailand. This has forced gamers to adapt to mobile play. However, this has not stunted the growth of competitive gaming in Thailand. And this is why mobile esport platforms are flocking to Thailand.
Thai people are changing the way they have traditionally been looking at gaming. Gaming went from a “waste of time” and “childish indulgence” to something more serious that has rallied more people behind it. University leagues and even a Thai national esports team are planned for the near future.
On Google Play, there are 531 mobile game publishers from Thailand with 1684 published games. The games published by Thai developers have reached 400,000 downloads, which means they are faring quite well. If consistency is kept in2021, it will bring with itself a large growth for the industry. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, even more, people have taken to video games for a lack of better alternatives. This is a win-win situation for everyone involved; developers and gamers. Players will receive even better games made locally, and the scene itself will earn extra revenue.
This is a paid guest post.