As reported by Games Industry, Nazara Technologies has acquired a 55% stake in Nodwin Gaming to develop an official esports ecosystem in India. Manish Argawal, CEO of Nazara Technologies, has stated that he believes that the acquisition will help develop a “robust player and community orientated esports ecosystem”.
The deal is thought to eventually aid Indian teams to take part in international tournaments, which is inline with Nazara Technologies’ pledge from February 2017 to invest $20 million (£14.07m) into the Indian esports scene over five years. The value of the acquisition has not been revealed at this time, though we know EY acted as the financial advisor to the transaction.
Nazara Technologies intends to use Nodwin Gaming to build IPs in both mobile and digital sports, develop an esports ecosystem to enable competitive online & offline gaming, and to create leagues and cups to promote esports as spectator sports in India. Nodwin Gaming was founded back in 2014 by both Gautam and Askhat Rathee, who now acts as the company’s MD and CEO. Rathee also touched on the deal, promising that it will open “a wide vista of opportunities for Indian esports players to build careers domestically and internationally.” Nodin already has ties to esports companies with the likes of Valve and ESL, and will operate as a subsidiary of Nazara.
Esports Insider says: Much like in traditional sports, everybody deserves a chance to compete should they wish to. This acquisition is a promising sign in the early years of a new esports scene – we hope it flourishes!
