KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 4 — Improving the e-gaming ecosystem in Malaysia will also work to benefit small and medium enterprises (SMEs) who seek to enter the market already dominated by major gaming companies, said Youth and Sports Minister Syed Saddiq Abdul Rahman.
In an interview with local gaming website Kakuchopurei on the National e-Sports Blueprint, he cited the launch of the E-Sports National League next year as an example.
“That is when states can start proposing their own brands, their own e-sports enthusiasts, and can start sponsoring SMEs,” Syed Saddiq said.
The minister was asked about how small e-sports companies or entities can stand a chance in competing with their bigger and better-established counterparts.
“In doing so, unknown players can start coming up and outshining even some of the well-known players. So it has to start somewhere.
“When the ecosystem gets better, more investments start coming in and societal consciousness on e-sports gets better,” he said.
Syed Saddiq also noted the potential issues that could arise if the e-sports ecosystem is not expanded upon, such as the formation of monopolies and oligopolies.
“They have the money and resources, and as such a lot of banks or private investors are not willing to put in money into the other small players. So they end up being the ones in control.
“But now when there is so much hype and great enthusiasm behind e-sports, more and more people start coming in. The interest is there.
“That is where you see the small players becoming big, and I think that is what we want to see in Malaysia,” he said.
