Mark Robson, head of e-business at the Isle of Man’s Department of Economic Development, reflects on a another landmark year for i-gaming and looks ahead to 2017.

IoM

AS 2016 draws to a close, and we approach the next year, we take a look at some of the key themes that drove the industry agenda this year and that will continue shaping the landscape moving forward.

CONTINUED GROWTH OF E-SPORTS E-sports is now a very well-established sector, having transformed from a niche hobby to mass-market entertainment in the past few years. Its audience continues to rival traditional sports in size and engagement. Research group IHS forecasts e-sports viewing hours will grow from just over six billion this year to almost nine billion by 2020, after growing by almost 750 per cent in the last four years.

Read the full article in the latest issue of iNTERGAMINGi