Reliance, BLAST to form JV To Expand Esports Business In India

New Delhi: Reliance's wholly-owned subsidiary RISE Worldwide has entered into a strategic partnership with BLAST Esports to form a joint venture to conduct esports business in India, according to a joint statement.

Reliance and BLAST will partner to develop market-leading Intellectual Properties (IPs) in India and introduce BLAST's global IPs to the Indian market for fans, players, and brands, the statement said. BLAST, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Denmark-based BLAST ApS, is one of the biggest tournament organisers in the world. It works with the world's biggest game publishers, including Epic Games, Valve, Riot Games, KRAFTON, and Ubisoft, to create leading global esports properties. "The JV's (joint venture) ambition is to attract top tier titles and events in the future," it said.

India is the fastest growing gaming market with a massive gamer base of more than 600 million, which is 18 per cent of the total gamers globally. India's esports market is in the nascent stage and is expected to be a high-growth market. The government of India has officially recognised esports in the country by declaring it a part of the "multi-sports event" category. Esports, short for electronic sports, is a form of competition using video games, in which multiplayer video games are played competitively.