Good Game

Esports company Evos is climbing its way up to become the future of entertainment

Esports, competitive video gaming in a wide range of games and platforms, are growing exponentially in terms of players, audience size, and business. Some of the prestigious esports tournaments offer prize pools of as much as $25 million and are watched by massive audiences that can reach millions—both live and streaming. Reports by Newzoo published early last year stated that the global esports market will reach nearly $1.1 billion and have an audience of 453.8 million world-wide in 2019. An estimated 82% of this value will come from investments in the esports teams in the form of media rights, advertising, and sponsorship.

Southeast Asia, where mobile penetration and internet use have been rapidly increasing, provides the perfect climate for esports growth. Esports were added as a demonstration sport during the Indonesia-hosted Asian Games 2018 and as a medal event at the Southeast Asia (SEA) Games in November. In Indonesia, President Joko Widodo has been vocal in his support for the industry.

Upon noticing how esports began to pick up in 2016, Ivan Yeo, Harris Hartman, and Michael Wijaya cofounded EVOS under their holding company named ATTN. The three have been friends since high school. They were motivated to address problems in the industry, such as the issue of poor management and career development for the players, and to create a profitable business model. So EVOS aims at being more than just a group of gamers. Instead, it focuses on the teams’ marketing, social media, and building the brand and content. The company also plans to expand further as a holistic entertainment company. Now in its third year, EVOS has more than 15 teams and operates in six countries in Southeast Asia. Eight are from Indonesia, and the rest from Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.