Saudi crown prince unveils national strategy for esports, video games
Investment in video games is officially forming part of Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 initiative for economic diversification.
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman shared the kingdom's “National Gaming and Esports Strategy” Thursday, a plan to make Saudi Arabia a leader in the sector by 2030.
Salman said the initiative will contribute $13 billion to Saudi Arabia’s GDP and create 39,000 jobs by 2030. The strategy is part of the kingdom’s Vision 2030 initiative to diversify the economy and reduce dependence on oil, the official Saudi Press Agency reported.
Esports refers to playing video games for competitive purposes.
Why it matters: Saudi Arabia has shown intense interest in the video game industry under Salman’s leadership. The Salman-led Public Investment Fund bought a 5% stake in Nintendo in May. In August, the fund unveiled shares in US video game developer Take-Two Interactive worth more than $1 billion.
