In this interview with CalvinAyre.com’s Stephanie Raquel, Valery Bollier of Oulala discusses the future of fantasy sports in Asia.
Daily fantasy sports (DFS) operators are predicting a fantasy sports boom in Asia in the coming years and there are tell-tale signs to back their claims.
Smartphone usage in the region remains the most active in the world, thanks to tech-savvy Asian millienials. Another reason is the thriving eSports ecosystem in the region.
Valery Bollier of Oulala believes that DFS will become a multi-billion dollar industry in the Asia-Pacific region, given the region’s vast population and appetite for gaming.
Newzoo, a gaming market intelligence provider, recently released a study indicating that China and South Korea will account for a combined 22 percent of US$696 million in global eSports revenues this year.
This figure alone, according to Bollier, proves that Asia offers great opportunities for DFS operators.
“DFS is a skilled game and eSport is already big in Asia. DFS has been responding to the need of the newer generation, so it should go very quickly in Asia,” Bollier told CalvinAyre.com.
To ensure the success of DFS in the region, Bollier said that governments should craft regulations that will be beneficial to both operators and the players.
He explained that a sound regulation is needed in order to preserve the game’s integrity and at the same time protect the whole ecosystem from scrupulous operators who are easily blinded by short term gains.
Bollier cited Poker as a perfect example to prove his point on regulations.
“We need a legal frame that will understand the specificities of our activity. Because of those new things in our sector, the frame needs to adapt to this,” he said. “Otherwise, we might have some operators, who might be tempted for short term gain and not to respect the integrity. We’ve seen this in poker, and it has seriously damaged the poker industry. So we have to learn from the poker failure. This is why we are expecting quite a lot of time with the legislator to try to convince them to create something that will be fully adapted to our needs.”
