Gaming unicorn Games24x7 on Friday (December 1) announced a partnership with the Karnataka government to launch an online gaming accelerator initiative.
Called ‘GameTech Accelerate – The Future of Gaming’, the programme will mentor online gaming startups offering ‘innovative and viable’ solutions. With an eye on fostering growth and innovation in the ecosystem, the initiative will also connect the selected startups to investors to help them raise capital.
In a statement, the company said that the accelerator programme will largely focus on four key areas:
New games (real money, casual, hyper casual, educational, simulation, strategy, and MMO)
Real-time analytics, telemetry and personalisation
Security and anti-cheating measures
Community and social integration
The accelerator will handheld startups and offer the selected startups mentoring sessions from Games24x7, AWS experts and other investors. Along with offering AWS credits, the initiative will also offer the startups an opportunity to pitch before a clutch of investors in the first week of March.
The shortlisted startups will likely be announced at the upcoming ??GAFX event in Bengaluru in January 2024.
“In collaboration with the Government of Karnataka, we aspire to foster entrepreneurship and innovation within the gaming industry, which has shown remarkable growth. Games24x7’s accelerator programme represents our firm commitment to unlock the gaming industry’s full potential…,” said Games24x7 chief technology officer (CTO) Rajat Bansal.
Chiming in, Karnataka IT Minister Priyank Kharge added, “… The online gaming sector in India is rapidly evolving, and it is crucial to support this industry, which not only generates employment opportunities but also fosters innovation, contributing significantly to our digital economy. We are delighted to collaborate with Games24x7, who shares our commitment to responsible innovation, empowering aspiring entrepreneurs on their journey toward success.”
The accelerator will also likely enable the startup to mentor budding startups in the domain and cash in early on big emerging players.
It is pertinent to note that the startup launched its corporate investment arm to back early-stage Indian startups last year. With a corpus of INR 400 Cr spanning the next five years, the new arm plans to support Indian players operating at the ‘intersection of technology and interactive entertainment’.
Founded in 2006 by New York University-trained economists Bhavin Pandya and Trivikraman Thampy, Games24x7 is an online gaming startup that largely caters to the skill-based gaming segment. It houses big-ticket brands such as RummyCircle, My11 Circle, and casual games hub U Games.
The startup turned unicorn in March 2022 after raising a $75 Mn in Series C round, becoming the third Indian gaming platform to enter the coveted club.
Backed by names such as Tiger Global and Malabar India Fund, Games24x7 competes with the likes of Dream11, MPL, and Nazara Technologies.
The Mumbai-based gaming giant reported a loss of INR 230 Cr in the financial year 2021-22 (FY22) compared to profit of INR 110 Cr in FY21. Its total revenue also declined 25% YoY to INR 1,170.3 Cr in FY22 from INR 1,562.5 Cr in FY21.
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