According to statistics, 12 e-sports themed movies and shows will be coming to screens in 2017, including Gods of War, Family of Winneks, and Rising Galen etc. It’s apparent that e-sports is now a hot direction for film production.

TV shows, Internet shows and films are an entirely different field. To achieve a relatively high box office in China, the production and marketing both matter, as well as channels and schedules. Because of that, e-sports, though being a hot field, still requires close collaborations from multiple sides and possesses greater risks.

TV and Internet shows rely heavily on the content of the episodes, and therefore they need a clear storyline and value that the audience would understand and accept to have a decent market performance.

Chen Rui from Sea of Stars Capital told TMTPost that:

When running an entertainment chain business, you can’t just cater to the original audience. Otherwise, you will limit your market potential.

According to open data, China has an e-sports audience base of 170 million, 62 million of which are hardcore viewers of e-sports. Compared with the past, the audience has grown much larger, providing e-sports themed film productions with a sizable audience.

The Indian movie Dangal which was insanely successful in China a couple of weeks ago is also a sports themed film. By June 16th, the film had amassed a box office of ￥1.242 billion in China.

In the traditional film industry, sports theme movies, including boxing, football, and swimming etc., are usually associated with inspiring stories. And Dangal was no exception.

VSPN’s CEO Teng Linji told TMTPost that as the user base grows, the relevant film products and fan merchandise will enter the next phase, and that it’s a good progress of having e-sports themed movies. He believes that e-sports is a movie genre that can raise mutual emotions. “As part of the sports genre, e-sports movie will become a mainstream direction for film makers. And of course, the core here is good stories,” he said.

IP realization an breakthroughs from the mobile gaming sector

Films are metal leisure. The industry needs physical leisure to create a balance.

JD’s four professional teams

On June 14th, JD announced the establishment of JD Greater Entertainment Industry Alliance.

“The 3C industry is penetrating into the gaming and entertainment sector. For young people, games have become essential social scenarios. ”Hu Shengli, JD’s vice president and the president of the 3C business department, stated.

It has been less than month since JD Mobile Gaming Industry Alliance was established, the gaming industry has already shown fast fusion speed with 3C products. JD’s PC department and gaming director Dai Li told TMTPost that JD’s greater entertainment strategy would change JD’s current e-commerce and retailing role. “JD will customize IP products with hardware makers and utilize both online and offline resources to bind net bars with hardware makers around the country,” Dai said.

“In China, JD is the first company to name a club with the company’s name and manage the club like commercial companies do. It’s quire similar to South Korea’s management model. In South Korea, all top professional clubs are run by local business giants like Samsung and CG etc.”

Smartphone brands are also contributing to this particular sector. Huawei’s Honor 9, for example, has made specific optimization for Honor of Kings, while Oppo R11 has teamed up with Honor of Kings’ technological team to launch a version fitted for dual core framework.

According to CNNIC’s 39th China Internet Development Report, by December 2016, China has a mobile user base of 695 million. It’s evident that smartphones have become a very common consuming product, through which games are penetrating further into people’s lives.

Whether it’s the variety shows, films or smartphones centering Honor of Kings, they all aim at breaking the boundaries and connecting more people. As for the result, it’s too early to tell.………………………………………………………………………………………………………

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The article is published with authorization from the author @Zhu Taowei, please note source and hyperlink when reproduce.]

Translated by Garrett Lee(Senior Translator at PAGE TO PAGE), working for TMTpost.