Ampverse Driving Esports In Asia

We connected with Charlie Baillie, Co-Founder & Chief Strategy Officer at Ampverse. We discussed the organization’s key priorities for the rest of the year and Charlie’s outlook on esports in Asia.

Ampverse: Esports Asia
image credit: Unruly

JustGamers: Why was Ampverse created?

Charlie: Ampverse was created because, as a founding team, we felt there was a huge opportunity to identify, develop and commercialize leading esports teams and gaming talent in high growth, mobile-first markets.

We could see the shift in the consumption of gaming content and esports as a new entertainment form. The team felt that esports talent could become heroes for the next generation in the past that other sports stars or celebrities had.

We also felt that while brands would want to engage more and more in the space, it needed a company like Ampverse to help educate and connect the dots for brands in a fragmented ecosystem by connecting them with leading esports teams and talent.

JustGamers: What are some of Ampverse’s key priorities for the rest of 2021?

Charlie: Key focus for us during the rest of 2021 is to drive regional expansion in preparation for scale next year. We recently entered Vietnam, having acquired the leading Wildrift team in Southeast Asia. Then we’ll be making further announcements in the coming months as we continue to expand our portfolio of owned and operated esports assets and expand across the region.

JustGamers: What is your outlook on esports in Asia over the next 3 to 5 years?

Charlie: Being on the ground in Asia and specifically Southeast Asia, it’s hard to be anything but bullish. The popularity of esports continues to accelerate in the region, with continuing investment right across the ecosystem, from publishers growing their leagues, to brands entering the space, to gaming talent rising in popularity. We’re still in the early days, so market education is needed.

Still, overall, I expect we’ll see a lot more growth domestically, as well as seeing local talent rise in popularity and start to cross over into the mainstream.