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What are the demographics, attitudes, psychographics, behavoirs, media consumption habits and passions of eSports fans? Who are they influenced by? What brands are they passionate about? why they are an attractive target for brands and broadcasters?
Hello! Thanks for your question about the demographics, attitudes, psychographics, behaviors, media consumption habits and passions of eSports fans. The short version is that according to several studies, the eSports audience is mostly comprised of millennials. This is a difficult age segment to reach for many traditional companies because millennials do not watch as much TV or listen to the radio or read print media. Most eSports fans are high earners, and the higher their annual incomes, the more devoted they are to gaming. Below you will find a deep dive of my findings.
MEDIA CONSUMPTION AND DEMOGRAPHICS OF THE ESPORTS AUDIENCE
In 2016, brands spent approximately $325 million on direct marketing and sponsoring for eSports- a 4 9% increase compared to 2015. Media companies, game publishers and investors are interested in this industry because eSports is the biggest disruption since the iPhone in 2007. Games are moving from personal entertainment to a spectator event. According to a Newzoo report, 63% of eSport enthusiasts watch the video streams of games on platforms like Twitch, YouTube, Hitbox, Azubu, and Ding it.
The eSports audience has grown from 90 million fans in 2014 to 131 million in 2016, and by 2019, it is expected to grow to 180 million. Forty-four percent of the eSports audience are from Asia-Pacific, 25% from the EU, 19% from North America, and 12% from the rest of the world. More than half of the eSports audience are between the ages of 21-35, and this is a segment that is hard for traditional companies to reach. In the past, sponsors were mostly endemic brands like Intel, G2A, and Hyper, but recently, non-endemic brands like Coca Cola, Mastercard, and Samsung have become sponsors.
According to a report by Mindshare North America, eSports fans are high earners. Forty-three percent of eSports fans have an annual income of $75,000 or higher. A large portion of them are millennials and 60 percent are between the ages of 25 to 39. Women compose 38% of this fan base. eSports fans are passionate about their hobby, and their fervour seems to increase with income. Forty-nine percent reported that they spend the majority of their free time in activities related to eSports. This number went up to 56% for those with incomes of $50,000 to $99,000 and 67% for those with an annual income higher than $100,000. The average eSports fan was 32 years old, and had a total household income of $64,900.
ESPORT AUDIENCE BEHAVIORS, PASSIONS, AND ITS INFLUENCERS
Celebrity players like MarineKing and Ellohime provide motivation for fans to watch eSports. Seventy-one percent of fans believe that watching professionals helps them improve their game. Sixty-four percent only watch videos of games that they play themselves. Sixty-one percent consider eSports teams like Evil Geniuses, Team Liquid or Newbee as important celebrities. Among American millennials, 22% of respondents said that eSports were as popular as baseball or hockey. Seventy-six percent said that eSports had taken time away from watching sports. Of the 80 million American basketball fans, 9.6 million are eSport fans too.
Gaming provides a way for people to socialize. More than two-third of respondents stated that they had made new friends from taking part in eSports activities, and 79% of these respondents earned more than $100,000. Fifty-one percent of fans who watch eSports on their video game console enjoy watching it with friends and family, and for females this number went up to 58%.
While watching or playing a game, 57% of eSports fans are willing to pay to skip ads. This number goes up to 78% for those who earned $100,000 or higher annually. However, fans did report that they enjoyed free marketing stuff like computer hardware, t-shirts, tournament tickets and hats.
According to an analyst firm called EEDAR, the most popular game with the eSport audience was League of Legends (70%), and its genre MOBA (77%) was the most popular. The second and third most popular genres were shooters and fighters. The study found that the more people play, the more they spend on branded products and event tickets. However, 40% are unlikely to attend an eSports event, despite their interest. Other interesting facts about eSports fans are-
- In 2015, eSports fans spent $3 Bn in gaming hardware.
- Online eSports fans have a preference for PayPal and the Paysafe card.
- When it comes to mobile providers, eSports fans preference is in the order- AT&T (38%), Verizon (23%), and T-mobile (21%).
- Forty-two percent of eSport fans own an iPhone,
- 35% of eSports fans have a subscription to Spotify, 65% use Instagram and and 52% have a subscription on HBO.
- Fifty-eight percent of eSports Fans like Nike.
According to the Nielsen eSports Report, only 35% of eSports fans play on PCs. Nearly half of all respondents played on an 8th generation Sony PlayStation 4, Nintendo Wii U, or Microsoft Xbox One. Sixty-five percent used any mobile or tablet device. eSports enthusiasts spend more on mobile games than the average gamer. Forty-two percent of eSport fans download a mobile game app at least once per week.
CONCLUSION
To wrap it up, the eSports audience is mostly comprised of millennials. This is a difficult age segment to reach for many traditional companies because millennials do not watch as much TV or listen to the radio or read print media. Most eSports fans are high earners, and the higher their annual income, the more devoted they are to gaming.
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