Report Of E-sports Boost Gets A Mixed Response

An e-sports enthusiast on Friday welcomed a report that the government will provide a boost to the sector, but an academic said funding should also be set aside to prevent young people from becoming addicted to video games.

They were responding to the Secretary for Innovation and Technology Nicholas Yang’s announcement that e-sports – video game competitions between professional players – will receive a boost in next week's budget.

E-sports player Dexter Wai said a permanent venue for tournaments and training is needed in Hong Kong but the government's reported move to locate it at Cyberport is not good. "It is too far," he said.

Wai said those who are looking to make a career out of e-sports should be at least 18 years old. "Lower than 18 years, we prefer they study first," he said.

Meanwhile, an academic said he thinks the government is being pressured to spend more money on developing e-sports because it'll be a medal event at the 2022 Asian Games in Hangzhou.

Professor Chung Pak-kwong from the Department of Physical Education at Baptist University said funding should also be spent on maintaining the mental health of players.

“The youngsters probably cannot decide what is good or bad, and how many hours they should spend [on games],” he told RTHK’s Janice Wong.

Chung said schools, counsellors, and clinical psychologists should keep an eye on young players to make sure they are not addicted.

He said the growth of e-sports can't be ignored as many youngsters are interested in them. “If we can’t stop that trend, then we should regulate the e-sport in a better way,” Chung said.