A new investment capital firm called Hiro Capital has pledged to pump over £100 million into gaming and tech across Europe. The brand will be investing in video games, esports and digital sports. There are also plans for Hiro Capital to assist the growth of gaming technologies such as wearables, streaming and cloud gaming.
© Hiro Capital
The people behind Hiro Capital have gone on record as saying that video game companies are ‘under-capitalised’. As a result, many gaming brands in countries like the UK tend to become foreign owned, and Hiro Capital are aiming to get these games developers further up the value chain before they sell the rights to their video games.
Hiro Capital will be hoping to fill a hole that has been left by investors who have previously failed to correctly assess the market potential of video games. With ongoing negative media representation of esports betting hits like Counter Strike Global Offensive, it seems that many potential venture capital firms are missing out on what could be a shrewd investment.
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Luke Alvarez, the managing partner of Hiro Capital, has said that the video gaming sector of 15 years ago was niche, but the current environment has changed radically. With over three billion global gamers and over 500 million games streaming fans, it seems that the video gaming revolution is nearing its peak.
It’s something that has come about through many games like Fortnite being cross platform releases. Plus the arrival of esports has meant that simply watching competitive gaming has also become a mini-industry in itself.
With reports that the revenues from gaming exceeded those of music, videos and movies combined in 2018, it makes perfect sense for an investment company like Hiro Capital to get involved.
While many of the big names in video gaming are based in Japan or the US, Europe is actually capable of producing plenty of high-profile gaming output. In 2018, European gaming companies produced more PC and console titles than Asia and America, and half of the top 30 mobile games came from the European continent.
But with reports that only 2% of the UK’s 2,500 gaming studios receiving any venture capital funding, Hiro Capital is aiming to fill the void. This is especially so as US gaming companies reportedly receive up to 20% of venture capital funding.
The team at Hiro Capital already have plenty of experience in video gaming and esports. With key players in the successes of everything from Tomb Raider to ESL competitive gaming tournaments, the investment firm might have what it takes to supercharge the European video gaming industry.
Above all, the investment fund shows how our entertainment tastes have changed dramatically in just a couple of decades. While movies and music are still with us, it looks like the future will be video games, esports and digital sport.
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