Govt E-sports Effort Pays Off

Secretary for Innovation & Technology Nicholas Yang

Most Hong Kong folks thought e-sports was just playing video games, not realising that the e-sports industry drives and thrives on innovation and technology. Here in Hong Kong, we do have a world-class information and communication technology infrastructure, which is necessary for the e-sports industry. And we also have excellent experience and a track record in hosting large-scale international events. After asking Cyberport to conduct a study on the e-sports industry, confirming its scale and future potential, we wasted no time. We announced in the 2018-19 Budget Speech the allocation of $100 million for promoting the early stage development of the local e-sports industry, which includes the construction of a dedicated world-class e-sports competition venue at Cyberport. I am pleased to see the effort and resources put in by the Government and Cyberport bearing fruit, with the first official e-sports competition to be held at this great new venue this coming weekend.

Following the Government’s $100 million injection in 2018, Cyberport has swiftly set up the "e-sports Industry Facilitation Scheme" and the "e-sports Internship Scheme" to help the industry organise competitions and events and to provide funding support for interns. You should all be impressed by this e-sports venue, which is among the best in the region. It has state-of-the-art facilities - the sports arena which you are sitting in, advanced lighting and audio system, the ultra-high resolution screen behind me, together with the large outdoor screen at the podium. It also provides adjacent storage spaces for the convenience of competition and event organisers. I am confident that this venue will develop into a flagship e-sports and digital entertainment centre in Hong Kong.

As the theme of Digital Entertainment Leadership Forum 2019 suggests, a vibrant ecosystem is instrumental to the development of the e-sports industry. Over the past year, Cyberport has invited various key players and stakeholders to join the ecosystem, be they e-sports associations, game owners, e-sports venue operators, hardware and software companies, e-sports gadget manufacturers, gamers, live streaming companies and higher education institutions. Today, I am pleased to see that Cyberport will enter into more strategic partnerships with the Hong Kong e-sports Premier League, and Team Hong Kong enters the Robot Fighting Championship of World Cyber Games.

Promoting the development of e-sports will bring new opportunities for our young people. This was a key consideration of the Government to drive the development of the e-sports industry three years ago. It is still true today and for the foreseeable future, as e-sports presents many new alternative career paths for youth, from professional players, technical experts and consultants, game developers, directors, coaches, promoters and commentators, to startup entrepreneurs in this exciting Internet-driven economy.

I would like to congratulate Cyberport on its accomplishments, in providing a fertile breeding ground for Hong Kong’s very own e-sports industry. With continued efforts from all the stakeholders and most important of all, strong support from the community, I look forward to seeing a thriving e-sports industry, not just players and game developers, but also a wide range of I&T professionals in digital marketing and live streaming etc. in the years ahead.

Secretary for Innovation & Technology Nicholas Yang gave these remarks at the opening ceremony of the Digital Entertainment Leadership Forum 2019 on July 16.