South Korean brokerage house Samsung Securities is expanding the global network for esports market research to local investors amid its growing presence in the sports industry.

Esports refers to a form of competition using multiplayer video games. The ongoing 2018 Asian Games feature esports as a demonstration sport. ESports will debut as a medal event at the forthcoming 2022 Asian Games. 

Samsung Securities analyzes the world’s esports market by two sectors -- game software developers like Blizzard and Electronic Arts, and video streaming service providers like Twitch and YouTube, operated by Amazon.com and Alphabet Inc., respectively.

The brokerage has gained access to information to conduct research by forming partnerships with financial firms and research companies in Asia, Europe and North America, including Newzoo, an Amsterdam-headquartered market intelligence provider, as well as RBC Capital Markets, an investment banking service provider subsidiary of Royal Bank of Canada.

Based on the network, Samsung Securities predicted that the global market would record a compound annual growth rate of 27 percent for five years until 2021, undergoing “structural growth,” according to a 36-page report released on Aug. 16.

By Son Ji-hyoung (consnow@heraldcorp.com)