An important lever for the computer games industry in Germany

The e-sports sectoral dialogue is taking place today in the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action in Berlin. Michael Kellner, Parliamentary State Secretary and the contact in the Federal Government for the cultural and creative industries, has invited 50 representatives of events organisers, teams, publishers, volunteers, academia and associations to take part in the meeting. The discussions are focusing on the challenges in the current market environment, the role of Germany’s e-sports sector in the world, and the opportunities for society to be found in e-sports.

Parliamentary State Secretary Michael Kellner said: E-sports have gained greatly in popularity in Germany. Many major global e-sports players are based in Germany. However, the sector is not getting the public recognition that it deserves. For example, e-sports offer a good way for companies to find skilled digital workers by addressing young target groups. By holding the e-sports sectoral dialogue, we want to make it clear that we take e-sports seriously, and wish to improve the policy environment for them. The goal is to have a strong e-sports sector in Germany.

Numerous key e-sports players are based in Germany, and top-class competitions and events regularly take place here. Leading teams and volunteer amateur clubs are well positioned in this country. Furthermore, stakeholders from neighbouring segments of the ecosystem are involved in e-sports.

The e-sports sectoral dialogue forms part of the Strategy for Germany as a Games Hub, which is being implemented by the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action. The Games Strategy sets out overarching fields of action for the Federal Government relating to the computer games industry, and these include e-sports as a subsector.